Studied by 1 person
memory
the ability to capture each successive "present moment" within the nervous system so we are forever changed by it
encoding
translating a stimulus into internal code to form a memory representation of the stimulus
consolidation
changes in the brain stabilize memory over time, resulting in long-term memory
storage
permanent record, results from acquisition and consolidation
retrieval
finding and reproducing a stored memory representation or executing a learned behavior -> anything that bring a memory back into its active state
sensory memory
high capacity, very short duration, can be ionic (visual) or echoic (auditory)
short term memory/working memory
short duration (60 secs) -> whatever you are currently thinking about or aware of based on sensory inputs (where your attention is)
long term memory
theoretically there is no limit to how much we can remember
amnesia
the inability to recall old and/or store new long-term memories
retrograde amnesia
the impairment in memory for information that was acquired prior to the event that caused the amnesia
anterograde amnesia
the deficit in learning new information after the onset of amnesia
perirhinal cortex
who and what, information comes from unimodal association areas in the cortex
parahippocampal cortex
where and when (context), information comes from polymodal association areas
hippocampus
binds information together, relational memory
ribot's law (1882)
greater compromise of more recent memories than more remote memories
anterograde loss
new memories cannot be consolidated
retrograde loss
recent memories were not fully consolidated at the time of brain damage
place cells
fire to the relative location within an environment
grid cells
in entorhinal cortex, fire when the animal is a certain location in the environment aligned along a hexagonal grid
time cells
provide information on the temporal associations, fire to the same relative location, but in time, not space
synaptic plasticity
ability of synapses to change as a result of learning
donald hebb's idea (1985)
neurons that fire together, wire together
long term potentiation
long-lasting enhancement in signal transmission between two neurons -> considered one of the major cellular mechanisms that underlies learning and memory
amyloid angiopathy
increased risk of hemorrhage
attention
an umbrella term for processes that allow us to select information for further processing
bottom up attentional selection
some intrinsic aspect of the stimulus itself causes it to be attended (ex// a sound that is particularly loud or of emotional significance might grab one's attention)
top down attentional selection
the person determined how to direct his or her attention (ex// you might direct your attention to a particular point in space or to a particular object or person)
dichotic listening
a different message is presented to each ear, participants are to told to attend to and "shadow" one ear
broadbent's filter model
sensory memory, filter, detector, short term memory
filter model sensory memory
holds all incoming information for a fraction of a second, transfers all information to the next stage
filter model filter
identifies attended messages based on physical characteristics (pitch, sex of speaker, etc.), only attended messages are passed on
filter model detector
processes information to determine higher-level characteristics of the message
filter model short-term memory
receives output of detector, holds information for 10-15 secs and may transfer to long-term memory
task load
how much of a person's cognitive resources are used to accomplish a task
high load
uses almost all, no resources for other tasks
low load
uses few, resources left for other tasks
social brain hypothesis
the primate brain evolved to be disproportionately large compared to other species in order to support processes of social cognition that are necessary for successful group living
anterior cingulate cortex
bridge between cognition (PFC) and emotion (limbic system)
conformity
the tendency for people to shift their own opinions, beliefs, and actions such that they are in agreement with others
informational conformity
in uncertain situations, we rely on other people's opinions as a helpful source of information
normative conformity
people may conform to be liked by others
social norms
written and unwritten rules that govern social behavior (ex// how to behave at a job interview or funeral)
pulling the lever (impersonal dilemma)
brain areas associated with working memory (prefrontal cortex)
pushing a person (personal dilemma)
brain areas associated with memory and emotion (amygdala)
pity
elderly, disabled
disgust
homeless, drug addict
pride
student, american
envy
rich, professionals
rogers hypothesis (1977)
self is a unique cognitive structure with unique mnemonic and organizational elements
klein and hkilstrom hypothesis (1986)
we have more knowledge about ourselves, and therefore more elaborative encoding
self descriptive personality traits
when deciding if adjectives are self descriptive, ppl rely on self perceptions that are summaries of their personality traits
simulation theory
posits that we understand the mental states of others through simulation, intimacy, mimicry, or acting "as if" we are them
theory of mind
posits that we have a cognitive representation of other ppls mental states, including their feelings and their knowledge
superior temporal sulcus
tracks the intention behind shift in eye gaze rather than all shifts in eye gaze
stereotyping
the tendency to assume that certain characteristics are universally true of group members
prejudice
a negative attitude about a particular social group
discrimination
behavior that is biased against a particular social group
error related negativity
large negative potential observed around 150 ms after an "incorrect" response in response in tasks that require "correct" identification of a stimulus present -> studied in relation to racial bias
emotions
valanced responses to external stimuli or internal mental representations
hypothalamus
governs the level of activity in the autonomic system, determining the extent to which the fight or flight response is activated
amygdala
early detection of emotional information, rapid response to information, learning the emotional significance of information
basolateral nuclei
project to the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, as well as brain regions involved in reward and punishment
central nucleus and corticomedial nuclei
connect to the hypothalamus, enable emotional modulation of these responses
fear conditioning
a form of classical conditioning, a neutral stimulus develops a negative emotional connotation through association with an aversive stimulus
ohman (2004)
flashed 16 snake and spider phobics with pictures of snakes and spiders
capgras syndrome
patients claim that relatives/loved ones are imposters
ekman and friesen (1976)
ethnographic studies identified six basic "universal" emotional expressions
interoception
ability to perceive and represent the internal state of the body
somatic marker hypothesis
complex and conflicting choices - cognitive overload
somatic markers
emotions that mark certain outcomes
olds and milner (1954)
implanted electrodes into rat brains, gave rats opportunity to turn on electrodes by pressing lever
super potency
reinforcement from direct electrical stimulation is more potent than other rewards, such as food and water
lack of satiation
animals respond continuously, taking only brief breaks from lever pressing
Note
Flashcard