Memory Encoding

Transforming an external stimulus into a memory

Encoding

Storing a memory in long-term storage

Consolidation

Accessing a memory in long-term storage

Retrieval

Characteristics of the to-be-learned material

Meaningfulness

Cognitive strategies of subject

1. Depth of processing

2. Generation effect

3. Method of Loci

Prior knowledge reduces how much we have to encode (chunking)

Meaningfulness

Chess Study

• One board was a picture of piece construction of a masters game and another board was a random piece construction that was not possible in the game

Recall test showed that the ___ skilled someone was in chess for the masters game, they remembered more of the piece configuration

more

Chess Study

• One board was a picture of piece construction of a masters game and another board was a random piece construction that was not possible in the game

Recall test showed that the random piece construction __________ an encoding difference between novice and expert chess players

did not show

Chess Study

• One board was a picture of piece construction of a masters game and another board was a random piece construction that was not possible in the game

• Recall test showed that the more skilled someone was in chess for the masters game, they remembered more and more of the piece construction 

• Recall test also showed that the random piece construction did not show an encoding difference between novice and expert chess players

What is the significance of this study?

Meaningfulness

Chess Study

• One board was a picture of piece construction of a masters game and another board was a random piece construction that was not possible in the game

• Recall test showed that the more skilled someone was in chess for the masters game, they remembered more and more of the piece construction 

• Recall test also showed that the random piece construction did not show an encoding difference between novice and expert chess players

____ game are more _______ for experts and therefore they can encode them and remember them better

actual, meaningful

Study Phase

• Subjects were asked 1 of 3 questions about each word

• Ex. “Is the word in capital letters?”, “Does the word rhyme with ___”, or “Would the word fit in the following sentence?”

Test Phase

• Presented words one at a time and asked if they saw this word in the study phase

What were the results?

The more deep processing the questions provoked the more participants remembered the words

Study Phase

• Subjects were asked 1 of 3 questions about each word

• Ex. “Is the word in capital letters?”, “Does the word rhyme with ___”, or “Would the word fit in the following sentence?”

Test Phase

• Presented words one at a time and asked if they saw this word in the study phase

Results: The more deep processing the questions provoked the more participants remembered the words

What is the significance of the study?

Depth of Processing

Generate Condition: Series of words and first letter of target words (e.g, rapid-f)

Prompted to complete the second word that is related to the first word as a(n)…

• Associate (lamp-light)

• Category (ruby-diamond)

• Opposite (Long-short)

• Synonym (Sea-ocean

• Rhyme (Save-cave)

Read Condition: Series of word pairs (e.g, rapid-fast)

What were the results?

Generated material is remembered better than the read material

Generate Condition: Series of words and first letter of target words (e.g, rapid-f)

Prompted to complete the second word that is related to the first word as a(n)…

• Associate (lamp-light)

• Category (ruby-diamond)

• Opposite (Long-short)

• Synonym (Sea-ocean

• Rhyme (Save-cave)

Read Condition: Series of word pairs (e.g, rapid-fast)

Results: Generated material is remembered better than the read material

What is the significance of the study?

Generation Effect

Visual-spatial strategy that facilitates encoding and recall of faces, digits, and word lists

Method of Loci

1. Thinking of a setting you are familiar with

2. Define a path going through the setting in your mind

3. Come up with a list of objects and place them in different areas within the setting in your memory

4. Later, when you want to remember the list of objects what do you do?

Go through the setting in your memory to find the items you placed there

• Study a list of 20 nouns (ex. table)

• Each group of participants used one of these encoding strategies

  • Rehearsal- think of word meaning

  • Imagery - form mental picture of each word

  • Link - mentally picture words interacting

  • Peg - mentally picture each word, connect with rhyme and interaction (ex. “one is a bun”; picture the word interaction with a bun)

  • Method of Loci

• What were the results?

Loci and Peg strategies resulted in the best memory performance

• Study a list of 20 nouns (ex. table)

• Each group of participants used one of these encoding strategies

  • Rehearsal- think of word meaning

  • Imagery - form mental picture of each word

  • Link - mentally picture words interacting

  • Peg - mentally picture each word, connect with rhyme and interaction (ex. “one is a bun”; picture the word interaction with a bun)

  • Method of Loci

• Results: Loci and Peg strategies resulted in the best memory performance

What is the significance?

There is a difference in memory performance depending on the strategy used