Cognitive Psychology: Long Term Memory

Lecture Objectives

Explore how personal memories differ from factual memories.

  • Understand interactions between different memory types in daily experiences.

  • Assess the different aspects of Long-Term Memory (LTM) and the interplay between Short-Term Memory (STM) and LTM.

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

  • Definition: LTM is described as an “archive” of information about past events and knowledge that has been learned.

  • Functionality: LTM works closely with working memory, exhibiting a longer duration and a significantly larger capacity compared to STM.

Types of Long-Term Memory

Explicit Memory

  • Definition: Explicit memory entails conscious recollection of information.

  • Subtypes:

    • Episodic Memory: Memory for specific personal experiences; involves mental time travel to relive experiences.

    • Example: Remembering a visit to a coffee shop and discussing a bike trip.

    • Semantic Memory: Memory for general facts and knowledge.

    • Example: Knowing there is a Starbucks down the road.

Implicit Memory

  • Definition: Implicit memory involves learning that is not associated with conscious recollection.

  • Types of Implicit Memory:

    • Procedural Memory: Memory for skills and actions, without recollection of when or where the skill was acquired.

    • Priming: The presentation of a stimulus affects the response to a subsequent stimulus.

    • Conditioning: Involves learned responses from previously neutral stimuli through association.

Interaction Between STM and LTM

Serial Position Effect

  • Research Reference: Murdoch (1962)

    • Findings: Demonstrated the distinction between STM and LTM via the serial position curve. Participants who read a list of words remembered more words from the beginning (primacy effect) and the end of the list (recency effect).

    • Primacy Effect Explanation: Better memory for early items due to more rehearsal time leading to LTM entry.

    • Recency Effect Explanation: Enhanced memory for last items as they are still retained in STM when recall occurs immediately.

Key Studies and Figures

  • Figure 6.3: Illustrates Murdoch’s serial position curve emphasizing the primacy and recency effects.

  • Figure Results of Rundus’s (1971) Experiment: Supports the primacy effect with rehearsal data corresponding to memories recalled.

  • Figure Results of Glanzer and Cunitz’s (1966) Experiment: Highlights recency effects diminishing when the memory test is delayed, revealing STM involvement.

Memory Encoding

Definition of Coding

  • Coding: The method by which stimuli are represented in memory.

Semantic Encoding in Memory

  • In Short-Term Memory:

    • Wickens et al. (1976) Experiment: Suggested that semantic interference arises from the meanings of words leading to performance reduction due to proactive interference.

  • In Long-Term Memory:

    • Recognition Memory: Ability to identify previously encountered stimuli.

    • Sachs (1967): Concluded that although specific wording may be forgotten, the general meaning is retained long-term.

Examples of Semantic Coding

  • Task by Sachs (1967): Examined participants’ ability to recognize sentences from a passage read earlier. Variations in sentence structure tested recognition versus recollection ability.

Examples of Coding in Memory

Code Type

Short-Term Memory

Long-Term Memory

Visual

Holding a visual in mind (e.g., Della Sala et al., 1999).

Visualizing a friend's surprised face at a birthday party.

Auditory

Repeating sounds (e.g., Conrad, 1964).

Remembering a familiar song.

Semantic

Performance affected by word meanings (Wickens et al., 1976).

Recalling a novel's plot (Sachs, 1967).

Episodic vs. Semantic Memory

  • Episodic Memory:

    • Involves mental time travel and is tied to personal experiences.

    • Characterized as “self-knowing.”

    • Example: Remembering being at the Eiffel Tower.

  • Semantic Memory:

    • Does not include mental time travel and relates to general knowledge.

    • Characterized as “knowing.”

    • Example: Knowing Paris is the capital of France.

Time and Memory

  • General Principle: Forgetting increases with longer intervals following encoding.

  • Forgetfulness: Not an absolute process; involves a gradient increase over time.

  • Remember/Know Procedure:

    • Participants indicate their response when presented with already encountered stimuli, distinguishing between familiar stimuli they remember and those they merely know.

  • Findings from Petrican et al. (2010): Demonstrated lost episodic character in older memories over a long interval, supporting semanticization of remote memories.

Implicit Memory

  • Definition: Implicit memory is learning from experience that occurs without conscious awareness.

  • Types of Implicit Memory:

    • Procedural Memory: Remembering how to perform skills without recalling when learned.

    • Priming: The influence of previously encountered stimuli on response to new stimuli.

    • Conditioning: Emotional responses formed through associated learning can occur without recall of the initial pairing.

Everyday Applications of Memory

Propaganda Effect

  • Study by Perfect and Askew (1994): Suggests that people are more likely to perceive statements previously seen/heard as true due to implicit memory influence, impacting advertising strategies and consumer behavior.

Classical Conditioning in Memory

  • Involves the association of neutral stimuli with emotional reactions, maintaining implicit memory, particularly when the original pairing has been forgotten.

It shows the presence of Both LTM and STM

Overview of Memory Systems

  • This chapter explores the intricate mechanisms of human memory, focusing on the distinctions and interactions between different memory types, with a particular emphasis on Long-Term Memory (LTM) and its relationship with Short-Term Memory (STM).

Lecture Objectives

  • Personal vs. Factual Memories: Investigates how personal memories (episodic) differ from factual memories (semantic).

  • Memory Type Interactions: Examines how various memory types work together in daily experiences.

  • LTM and STM Interplay: Assesses the components of LTM and its dynamic interactions with STM.

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

  • Definition: LTM functions as an extensive archive of past events and acquired knowledge.

  • Functionality: Characterized by longer duration and significantly larger capacity compared to STM, working in conjunction with working memory.

Types of Long-Term Memory

  • Explicit Memory: Conscious recollection of information.

    • Episodic Memory: Deals with specific personal experiences, involving "mental time travel."

    • Semantic Memory: Pertains to general facts and knowledge.

  • Implicit Memory: Learning that occurs without conscious awareness or recollection.

    • Procedural Memory: Memory for motor skills and actions.

    • Priming: The effect of a prior stimulus on the response to a subsequent stimulus.

    • Conditioning: Learned responses through association with previously neutral stimuli.

Interaction Between STM and LTM

  • Serial Position Effect: Demonstrated through studies like Murdoch (1962), explaining:

    • Primacy Effect: Better recall of early list items due to LTM encoding via rehearsal.

    • Recency Effect: Enhanced recall of late list items still present in STM.

  • Key Studies: Rundus (1971) supported the primacy effect, while Glanzer and Cunitz (1966) showed the recency effect's reliance on STM.

Memory Encoding

  • Coding: The process by which stimuli are represented in memory.

  • Semantic Encoding: The representation of information based on meaning.

    • In STM: Wickens et al. (1976) demonstrated semantic interference.

    • In LTM: Sachs (1967) indicated that general meaning is retained long-term despite forgotten specific wording.

Episodic vs. Semantic Memory

  • Episodic Memory: "Self-knowing," involves specific events and mental time travel (e.g., remembering being at the Eiffel Tower).

  • Semantic Memory: "Knowing," concerns general knowledge and facts without mental time travel (e.g., knowing Paris is the capital of France).

Time and Memory

  • Forgetfulness: Increases over time, as episodic details often fade or become "semanticized" (Petrican et al., 2010).

  • Remember/Know Procedure: A method to distinguish between actual recollection of an event and merely knowing a stimulus was encountered.

Implicit Memory Revisited

  • Further details on procedural memory, priming, and conditioning as forms of unconscious learning.

Everyday Applications of Memory

  • Propaganda Effect: Perfect and Askew (1994) showed how implicit memory can influence judgments of truthfulness, impacting advertising.

  • Classical Conditioning: How emotional responses can be implicitly maintained even when the original associated pairing is forgotten.

Lecture Objectives

  • Explore how personal memories differ from factual memories.

  • Understand interactions between different memory types in daily experiences.

  • Assess the different aspects of Long-Term Memory (LTM) and the interplay between Short-Term Memory (STM) and LTM.

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

  • Definition: LTM is described as an “archive” of information about past events and knowledge that has been learned.

  • Functionality: LTM works closely with working memory, exhibiting a longer duration and a significantly larger capacity compared to STM.

Types of Long-Term Memory
Explicit Memory

  • Definition: Explicit memory entails conscious recollection of information.

  • Subtypes:

    • Episodic Memory: Memory for specific personal experiences; involves mental time travel to relive experiences.

    • Example: Remembering a visit to a coffee shop and discussing a bike trip.

    • Semantic Memory: Memory for general facts and knowledge.

    • Example: Knowing there is a Starbucks down the road.

Implicit Memory

  • Definition: Implicit memory involves learning that is not associated with conscious recollection.

  • Types of Implicit Memory:

    • Procedural Memory: Memory for skills and actions, without recollection of when or where the skill was acquired.

    • Priming: The presentation of a stimulus affects the response to a subsequent stimulus.

    • Conditioning: Involves learned responses from previously neutral stimuli through association.

Interaction Between STM and LTM
Serial Position Effect

  • Research Reference: Murdoch (1962)

    • Findings: Demonstrated the distinction between STM and LTM via the serial position curve. Participants who read a list of words remembered more words from the beginning (primacy effect) and the end of the list (recency effect).

    • Primacy Effect Explanation: Better memory for early items due to more rehearsal time leading to LTM entry.

    • Recency Effect Explanation: Enhanced memory for last items as they are still retained in STM when recall occurs immediately.

Key Studies and Figures

  • Figure 6.3: Illustrates Murdoch’s serial position curve emphasizing the primacy and recency effects.

  • Figure Results of Rundus’s (1971) Experiment: Supports the primacy effect with rehearsal data corresponding to memories recalled.

  • Figure Results of Glanzer and Cunitz’s (1966) Experiment: Highlights recency effects diminishing when the memory test is delayed, revealing STM involvement.

Memory Encoding
Definition of Coding

  • Coding: The method by which stimuli are represented in memory.

Semantic Encoding in Memory

  • In Short-Term Memory:

    • Wickens et al. (1976) Experiment: Suggested that semantic interference arises from the meanings of words leading to performance reduction due to proactive interference.

  • In Long-Term Memory:

    • Recognition Memory: Ability to identify previously encountered stimuli.

    • Sachs (1967): Concluded that although specific wording may be forgotten, the general meaning is retained long-term.

Examples of Semantic Coding

  • Task by Sachs (1967): Examined participants’ ability to recognize sentences from a passage read earlier. Variations in sentence structure tested recognition versus recollection ability.

Examples of Coding in Memory

Episodic vs. Semantic Memory

  • Episodic Memory:

    • Involves mental time travel and is tied to personal experiences.

    • Characterized as “self-knowing.”

    • Example: Remembering being at the Eiffel Tower.

  • Semantic Memory:

    • Does not include mental time travel and relates to general knowledge.

    • Characterized as “knowing.”

    • Example: Knowing Paris is the capital of France.

Time and Memory

  • General Principle: Forgetting increases with longer intervals following encoding.

  • Forgetfulness: Not an absolute process; involves a gradient increase over time.

  • Remember/Know Procedure:

    • Participants indicate their response when presented with already encountered stimuli, distinguishing between familiar stimuli they remember and those they merely know.

  • Findings from Petrican et al. (2010): Demonstrated lost episodic character in older memories over a long interval, supporting semanticization of remote memories.

Implicit Memory

  • Definition: Implicit memory is learning from experience that occurs without conscious awareness.

  • Types of Implicit Memory:

    • Procedural Memory: Remembering how to perform skills without recalling when learned.

    • Priming: The influence of previously encountered stimuli on response to new stimuli.

    • Conditioning: Emotional responses formed through associated learning can occur without recall of the initial pairing.

Everyday Applications of Memory
Propaganda Effect

  • Study by Perfect and Askew (1994): Suggests that people are more likely to perceive statements previously seen/heard as true due to implicit memory influence, impacting advertising strategies and consumer behavior.

Classical Conditioning in Memory

  • Involves the association of neutral stimuli with emotional reactions, maintaining implicit memory, particularly when the original pairing has been forgotten.

It shows the presence of Both LTM and STM

Overview of Memory Systems

  • This chapter explores the intricate mechanisms of human memory, focusing on the distinctions and interactions between different memory types, with a particular emphasis on Long-Term Memory (LTM) and its relationship with Short-Term Memory (STM).

Lecture Objectives

  • Personal vs. Factual Memories: Investigates how personal memories (episodic) differ from factual memories (semantic).

  • Memory Type Interactions: Examines how various memory types work together in daily experiences.

  • LTM and STM Interplay: Assesses the components of LTM and its dynamic interactions with STM.

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

  • Definition: LTM functions as an extensive archive of past events and acquired knowledge.

  • Functionality: Characterized by longer duration and significantly larger capacity compared to STM, working in conjunction with working memory.

Types of Long-Term Memory

  • Explicit Memory: Conscious recollection of information.

    • Episodic Memory: Deals with specific personal experiences, involving "mental time travel."

    • Semantic Memory: Pertains to general facts and knowledge.

  • Implicit Memory: Learning that occurs without conscious awareness or recollection.

    • Procedural Memory: Memory for motor skills and actions.

    • Priming: The effect of a prior stimulus on the response to a subsequent stimulus.

    • Conditioning: Learned responses through association with previously neutral stimuli.

Interaction Between STM and LTM

  • Serial Position Effect: Demonstrated through studies like Murdoch (1962), explaining:

    • Primacy Effect: Better recall of early list items due to LTM encoding via rehearsal.

    • Recency Effect: Enhanced recall of late list items still present in STM.

  • Key Studies: Rundus (1971) supported the primacy effect, while Glanzer and Cunitz (1966) showed the recency effect's reliance on STM.

Memory Encoding

  • Coding: The process by which stimuli are represented in memory.

  • Semantic Encoding: The representation of information based on meaning.

    • In STM: Wickens et al. (1976) demonstrated semantic interference.

    • In LTM: Sachs (1967) indicated that general meaning is retained long-term despite forgotten specific wording.

Episodic vs. Semantic Memory

  • Episodic Memory: "Self-knowing," involves specific events and mental time travel (e.g., remembering being at the Eiffel Tower).

  • Semantic Memory: "Knowing," concerns general knowledge and facts without mental time travel (e.g., knowing Paris is the capital of France).

Time and Memory

  • Forgetfulness: Increases over time, as episodic details often fade or become "semanticized" (Petrican et al., 2010).

  • Remember/Know Procedure: A method to distinguish between actual recollection of an event and merely knowing a stimulus was encountered.

Implicit Memory Revisited

  • Further details on procedural memory, priming, and conditioning as forms of unconscious learning.

Everyday Applications of Memory

  • Propaganda Effect: Perfect and Askew (1994) showed how implicit memory can influence judgments of truthfulness, impacting advertising.

  • Classical Conditioning: How emotional responses can be implicitly maintained even when the original associated pairing is forgotten.

Summary of Essential Memory Concepts for Recall

  • Long-Term Memory (LTM): An archive of information with large capacity and duration, interacts with working memory.

  • Short-Term Memory (STM): Limited capacity and duration, interacts with LTM.

  • Explicit Memory: Conscious recall.

    • Episodic Memory: Personal experiences, mental time travel ("self-knowing").

    • Semantic Memory: General facts/knowledge ("knowing").

  • Implicit Memory: Unconscious learning.

    • Procedural Memory: Skills and actions.

    • Priming: Stimulus affecting subsequent response.

    • Conditioning: Learned responses through association.

  • Serial Position Effect (Murdoch, 1962): Primacy (LTM, rehearsal) and Recency (STM, immediate recall) effects. Supported by Rundus (1971) and Glanzer & Cunitz (1966).

  • Memory Encoding: How stimuli are represented in memory.

    • Semantic Encoding: Based on meaning. Evidenced in STM (Wickens et al., 1976) and LTM (Sachs, 1967).

  • Time and Memory: Forgetting increases over time; episodic memories can "semanticize" (Petrican et al., 2010). Remember/Know procedure distinguishes recollection from familiarity.

  • Everyday Applications: Propaganda Effect (Perfect & Askew, 1994) and Classical Conditioning demonstrate implicit memory's influence on daily life.