Psychology - Memory Quiz

Central Executive

It replaces the 'sensory buffer' and directs attention to tasks before allocating information based on modality.

Visuospatial Sketchpad

Where visual and/or spatial information is stored as well as where the visual cache and inner scribe are located.

Phonological Loop

Where auditory information and language (both written and spoken) are dealt with.

Episodic Buffer

It is dedicated to linking information across domains to form integrated units of visual, spatial, and verbal information with time sequencing, such as the memory of a story, event, or a movie scene.

Dual-Task Technique

Two tasks are performed where the primary task is what the researcher is looking to observe and the secondary task merely is a competitor to the primary.

phonological store

holds words heard

articulatory process

holds words heard/seen and silently repeated like an inner voice

inner voice

the result of certain brain mechanisms that allow you to 'hear' yourself talk in your head without actually making any noise

inner scribe

processes spatial and movement information

visual cache

processes what things look like and information about form and color

articulatory suppression

the act of overwhelming the phonological loop and preventing the inner voice from rehearsing (articulatory processes from occurring)

articulatory rehearsal component

the inner voice repeating information

amnesia

loss of memory

amnesiacs

people who have a loss of memory

primacy effect

information presented at the beginning of an experiment is more likely to be remembered due to increased opportunity for rehearsal

recency effect

information presented at the end of an experiment is more likely to be remembered due to it still being within the short term memory duration

retrograde amnesia

the loss of old memories prior to an injury/event

childhood amnesia

a form of retrograde amnesia but specifically relating to the loss of childhood memories

global amnesia

amnesia both prior to or post injury/event

anterograde amnesia

the inability to retain or form new memories made post-injury/event

mean

average of all data points (all data added together and divided by the total number of data points)

standard deviation

a quantity calculated to indicate the extent of deviation for a group as a whole

mann whitney u test

a non-parametric statistical test used to compare two samples or groups (independent measures)

statistical significance

the probability of the null hypothesis being true compared to the acceptable level of uncertainty regarding the true answer

independent samples

an experimental design in which two separate samples are used, one for the experimental condition and one for the control condition

one tailed hypothesis

a directional hypothesis which points to the direction the effect will appear in

two tailed hypothesis

a non-directional hypothesis that predicts the existence of an effect but not the direction it will appear in

null hypothesis

a hypothesis that says there will not be a psychological test in either condition

word length effect

increased word length correlates with increased syllable count and therefore increased units of information making longer words harder to remember

Long-term memory storage

where long term memories are stored after appropriate rehearsal in the STM

attention

focusing on certain stimuli

rehearsal

repetition of information in the STM

Executive Control Processes

decision making of the central executive in the prefrontal cortex

auditory information

any information received through hearing

Goal Shifting

a part of the CE that has to apply schemas and explains how we choose which tasks to switch to

Rule Activation

our understanding based on different goals

Task Switching

switching between where attention is being focused and what tasks are being carried out

T-Test

a statistical test that compares the means of two samples and requires a normal curve

Wilcoxon Test

a non-parametric test that determines whether two dependent groups differ significantly from each other (typically repeated measures)

engrama

a hypothetical permanent change in the brain accounting for the existence of memory/a memory trace

short-term memory/working memory

a store with limited capacity and duration that gets information from the sensory buffer if it is paid attention.

Short-Term Memory (STM)

The information must be rehearsed in the STM to move to the LTM.

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

Where memory is stored after it has been rehearsed while in STM and has unlimited capacity and duration.

Semantic Memory

Factual knowledge that you have.

Episodic Memory

Autobiographical memories, memories of events or experiences.

Procedural Memory

Memories of how to do something or habits.

Facial Recognition

The ability to recall and recognize faces.

Human Memory

Has 3 components; sensory memory, short-term memory store, and long-term memory store which are characterized by duration and capacity.

Transfer

The movement of information from store to store.

Retrieval

The movement of information from the LTM to the STM allowing for recall to occur.

Iconic Memory

Memory based on visual inputs which has a duration of 1 second.

Echoic Memory

Memory based on auditory inputs that has a duration of 2-5 seconds.

Duration

The period of time for which a store can hold information.

Capacity

The amount of units of information a store can hold.

Chunking

Grouping information together to form 'larger' units of information.

Prosopagnosia

Face blindness/the inability to recognize/recall who someone is based on their face due to damage to the fusiform gyrus.

Conscious (Explicit) Memories

Semantic memory for facts and episodic memory for events expressed through recollection.

Unconscious Implicit Memory

Systems that include skills, habits, and learned emotional responses expressed through performance.

Sensory Buffer

A temporary store that holds information from the environment very briefly in its original form (visual, auditory, tactile, or olfactory).

Miller's Rule

The capacity of short term memory is 7+/- 2 units of information.

Reconstructive Memory

The process of piecing together information from stored knowledge when there is no clear memory of an event.

Levels of Processing Theory

The idea that the way information is encoded affects how well it is remembered (deep vs. shallow processing).