Notes on Chapter 7: Memory

Chapter Overview

• Focus: Memory
• Key Themes: Ebbinghaus's research, types of memory, testing methods, eyewitness reliability, encoding and retrieval, amnesia, and mnemonic devices.

Ebbinghaus’s Research

• Pioneering Studies: Ebbinghaus studied his own memory using nonsense syllables.
• Findings: Observed how longer lists took more time to memorize.
• Memory Definition: The retention of information.

Types of Memory

• Explicit Memory: Direct memory retrieval.

  • Free Recall: Producing a response without cues (e.g., essay questions).
  • Cued Recall: Recalling with hints.
  • Recognition: Identifying the correct answer among options.
  • Savings Method: Comparing original learning speed to relearning speed.

• Implicit Memory: Indirect memory influences behavior unconsciously (e.g., priming effect).

• Procedural vs. Declarative Memories:

  • Procedural: Knowledge of how to do things (habits learned gradually).
  • Declarative: Facts and events we can verbalize (remembered all at once).

Memory Processes

• Short-Term vs. Long-Term Memory:
  • Short-Term: Temporary storage for recent experiences.
  • Long-Term: More permanent storage; includes semantic memory (facts) and episodic memory (personal events).
• Working Memory: System for processing current information; involves executive functioning.
• Capacity and Decay:
  • Short-term memory is limited in capacity; techniques like chunking can help.
  • Long-term memory can interfere and decay over time without recall.

Improving Memory

• Study Techniques:
  • Varied Study Conditions: Improves retention; avoid cramming.
  • Note-taking: Encourages attention and aids later review.
  • Testing: Self-testing improves overall retention.

Mnemonic Devices

• Definition: Memory aids based on unique encoding methods.
• Examples:
  • Acronyms (e.g., BRISTLE for vows).
  • Method of Loci: Associating locations with items to remember.

Eyewitness Testimony

• Factors Influencing Accuracy:
  • Timing of interviews and type of questions.
  • Use caution with suggestive questioning and repetitiveness.

Memory Reconstruction

• Reconstructing Events:
  • Memory is not perfect; individuals may fill in gaps with expectations.
  • Hindsight bias can reshape recollection to fit outcomes.

Forgetting

• Types of Interference:
  • Proactive: Old information disrupts new memory.
  • Retroactive: New information disrupts retrieval of old memory.
• Amnesia: Loss of memory, impacted by brain damage particularly in the hippocampus (e.g., anterograde vs. retrograde amnesia).

Alzheimer’s and Early Childhood Amnesia

• Alzheimer’s Disease: Affects memory retention, especially long-term declarative memories.
• Early Childhood Amnesia: Difficulty recalling events from early childhood due to rapid neuro-development affecting memory formation and retrieval.

Self-Assessment and Review

• Importance of Topics: Understanding different types of memory and processes helps in enhancing memory retention.
• Questions to Consider:
  • What methods effectively strengthen memory?
  • How accuracy varies between memories of similar events?
• Key Takeaways: Memory is complex, involving processes like encoding, storage, and retrieval; it is prone to errors and reconstruction.