Psychology Chapters 7–9: Memory, Skill Learning & Working Memory

What are the three long-term memory processes?

Encoding, consolidation, and retrieval.

What is encoding?

Forming a new memory.

What is consolidation?

Strengthening encoded memories.

What is retrieval?

Accessing memories; remembering.

What is episodic memory?

Memory for specific events based on personal experience; acquired during a single event.

What is semantic memory?

Memory for facts, general knowledge, and personal information; acquired in one or multiple exposures.

What is declarative/explicit memory?

Memory that is consciously accessible and can be verbalized or communicated.

How do repeated exposures affect semantic memory?

They strengthen semantic memory.

How do repeated exposures affect episodic memory?

They weaken episodic memory.

Does exposure guarantee encoding?

No, exposure to information does not mean it will be successfully encoded.

What is desirable difficulty?

The idea that effort or difficulty during learning can support memory; exposure alone does not guarantee encoding.

How does prior knowledge affect memory?

Memory is better for information related to prior knowledge.

What is the Levels of Processing effect?

Deeper processing during encoding improves later recall.

Who proposed the Levels of Processing effect and when?

Craik and Lockhart (1972).

What are the levels of processing?

Structural, phonological, and semantic processing; semantic processing is the deepest.

What is encoding specificity?

Recall is easier when retrieval conditions are similar to encoding conditions.

What is transfer-appropriate processing (TAP)?

Memory is better when the processing at encoding matches the processing required at retrieval.

What improves retrieval through cues?

Having more cues that remind you of the memory or encoding process.

What is free recall?

Remembering information without cues.

What is cued recall?

Remembering information with a hint or cue.

What is recognition?

Identifying the correct information from presented options.

How can struggling to remember affect later memory?

Struggling or failing to remember can improve later memory.

How do researchers study memory in humans?

Ask what people remember, present information/events and test later retrieval, and use free- or cued-recall paradigms.

What is the Remember/Know paradigm?

A method used to study memory in humans; associated with Tulving.

How is semantic-like memory studied in animals?

Using the radial arm maze.

How is episodic-like memory studied in animals?

Using foraging research with birds.

What is Representational Similarity Analysis (RSA)?

A method for studying memory representations that uses fMRI.

What is the hippocampus?

A medial temporal lobe structure important for episodic memory.

What are the perirhinal and parahippocampal cortices?

Medial temporal lobe regions important for semantic memory.

What role does the frontal cortex play in memory?

Involved in semantic memory and helps decide what to remember or forget.

What is directed forgetting?

The process involving decisions about what to remember and what to forget; associated with frontal cortex.

What is a common site for strokes that can cause amnesia?

Basal forebrain and fornix.

What neurotransmission can be lost with basal forebrain/fornix damage?

Acetylcholine (ACh) and GABA transmission to the hippocampus.

How does sleep affect memory?

The hippocampus replays memories during sleep.

How does a short-term rise in cortisol affect memory?

It strengthens encoding.

How does long-term elevated cortisol affect memory?

It can damage the hippocampus and impair retrieval.

What is amnesia?

Memory loss.

What is anterograde amnesia?

Memory loss involving difficulty forming new memories after the onset of amnesia.

What is retrograde amnesia?

Memory loss involving difficulty remembering information from before the onset of amnesia.

What is dissociative amnesia?

Loss of memory from a specific traumatic event.

What is the DSM-5 criterion for autobiographical memory?

The person is unable to recall autobiographical memory associated with a traumatic event.

What is the DSM-5 criterion for distress?

The inability to recall the traumatic event creates distress.

What is the DSM-5 criterion for physiological cause?

The memory dysfunction does not have a physiological cause.

What conditions must dissociative amnesia be distinguished from?

It is not dissociative identity disorder and is not caused by substance abuse or another substance.

What was the focus of Quiroga et al. (2005)?

Examining how neurons respond to visual stimuli and implications for memory representation.

What is Transient Global Amnesia (TGA)?

A case study related to memory loss, but specific symptoms and causes were not provided.

What is a skill?

An ability to perform a task that is honed through experience.

What are perceptual-motor skills?

Skills relying on physical attributes such as dexterity, strength, and speed.

What are cognitive skills?

Skills relying on general intelligence and brain health.

When do perceptual-motor skills typically develop?

At younger ages.

When do cognitive skills typically develop?

Typically later; many require perceptual-motor skills as a foundation.

Which species perform perceptual-motor skills?

Many species.

Which species perform cognitive skills?

Only a few species.

What are open skills?

Skills requiring flexible modification of actions or thoughts in response to current circumstances.

What are closed skills?

Skills involving a predefined set of movements.

What is non-declarative/implicit memory?

Memory acquired and retrieved without awareness or a feeling of remembering.

What are other types of non-declarative memory?

Associative learning, non-associative learning, and priming.

What is associative learning?

Includes classical conditioning and operant conditioning.

What is non-associative learning?

Includes habituation and sensitization.

What are habituation and sensitization?

Forms of non-associative learning.

What is priming?

A type of non-declarative/implicit memory.

What is the Serial Reaction Time task?

A task used to study perceptual-motor skills.

What is the Stroop Task?

A task used to study cognitive skills.

What was Thorndike's practice experiment about?

Participants were blindfolded and drew lines of a specific target length, such as 3 inches.

What is the power law of practice?

A relationship describing how performance changes with practice.

What is massed practice?

Practice concentrated into a shorter period; better for short-term retention.

What is spaced practice?

Practice distributed over time; better for long-term retention.

What is constant practice?

Repeating the same conditions; good for initial acquisition and closed skills.

What is variable practice?

Practicing under changing conditions; good for long-term retention, open skills, and skill transfer.

Who is considered an expert?

Someone who performs a skill better than most other people.

What is Fitts' learning model?

A model for perceptual-motor skill learning.

What is the transfer of training?

Skills transfer to a novel situation.

What is transfer specificity?

Some skills are restricted to specific situations.

What is the Identical Elements Theory?

Transfer to a new situation depends on how many elements in the new situation are similar to the original one.

What is Learning Set Formation?

The ability to learn novel tasks more quickly based on similar past experiences.

What is the function of the basal ganglia?

Initiates and maintains movement.

What did basal ganglia lesion studies in rats show?

Rats with basal ganglia lesions had inhibited stimulus-response learning compared with rats with hippocampal lesions.

What is the role of the cerebellum?

Involved in encoding and retrieving perceptual-motor skills.

What is the function of the frontal cortex in skill memory?

Frontal cortex areas often hold skill representation networks.

How can cortical organization shift?

Cortical organization can shift to accommodate skills.

What do the slides say about forgetting skill memories?

Forgetting skill memories is raised as a topic but no specific mechanism is given.

What is short-term memory (STM)?

Temporary storage of information.

What is working memory (WM)?

Active representation of information in the short term that is manipulated.

How are STM and WM similar?

Both are types of transient memory.

What is the approximate STM capacity?

About 7 items, with a range of 5-9.

What is rehearsal in the context of STM?

A strategy listed for working with the limits of short-term memory.

What is chunking?

Grouping information into meaningful units to work with STM's capacity limits.

What is Baddeley's working memory model?

A model containing the phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, episodic buffer, and central executive.

What does the phonological loop do?

Holds auditory and verbal information.

What is the phonological store?

The 'inner ear'; one component of the phonological loop.

What is the articulatory rehearsal process?

The 'inner voice'; one component of the phonological loop.

What does the visuospatial sketchpad hold?

Visual and spatial information.

What is the visual cache?

One component of the visuospatial sketchpad.

What is the inner scribe?

One component of the visuospatial sketchpad.

What is selective interference?

Two tasks using the same processing mechanism interfere with each other when performed simultaneously.

What is the episodic buffer?

Combines visual, auditory, and other perceptual information; integrates current information with LTM and includes timing/sequences.

What does the central executive do?

Monitors and manipulates all buffers in Baddeley's model.

What is Cowan's working memory model?

Parts of LTM are activated as the focus of attention.

What happens to recently activated LTM items in Cowan's model?

They remain partially activated and are easier to bring back to attention.

What are place-based models?

Also called multi-store models; WM and LTM are located in different places.