Cognitive Psychology/Memory

Question 1

Define memory

Answer 1

An organism’s ability to store, retain, and subsequently retrieve information

Question 2

What are the stages of memory

Answer 2

Sensory input - Encoding - Storage - Retrieval

Question 3

What is the encoding stage of memory?

Answer 3

Converts sensory input into a usable code that can be stored in memory

Question 4

What is the storage stage of memory?

Answer 4

Holds encoded information for a period of time

Question 5

What is the retrieval stage of memory?

Answer 5

Locates stored information and returns it into consciousness when needed

Question 6

Provide an example demonstrating the stages of memory

Answer 6

Encoding: When you met the person and were told the name (“this is Joe”)
Storage: When you retained or stored the name (“hmm, Joe”)
Retrieval: When you retrieved/recovered the name from memory (Yeah, you are Joe!”)

Question 7

Define sensory memory

Answer 7

A short-term memory store for information being processed through the senses

Question 8

What are the 2 main sensory registers for memory

Answer 8

Iconic memory
Echoic memory

Question 9

Define Iconic memory with one example

Answer 9

The sensory register for visual information e.g., you look at a flower, close your eyes, and an icon of a flower is imprinted in your consciousness. The image you “see” in your mind is your iconic memory of that visual stimuli

Question 10

Define echoic memory with one example

Answer 10

The sensory register for auditory information
E.g., when someone talks, your echoic memory holds each syllable. Your brain recognizes words by connecting each syllable to the previous one

Question 11

Iconic memory- what it holds, duration stored, and storage capacity

Answer 11

It holds: exact replica of visual information (an icon)
Duration stored: approx. 1/3-1/2 of a second
Storage capacity: relatively unlimited

Question 12

Echoic memory- what it holds, duration stored and the storage capacity

Answer 12

It holds: exact replica of auditory information (an echo)
Storage capacity: approx 3-4 seconds
Duration stored: relatively unlimited

Question 13

Define short term memory

Answer 13

Where we store info that we only need to remember for a short period (15-30 seconds)

Question 14

What is Miller’s magic number 7?

Answer 14

Most people can store 7 (plus or minus 2) items in their short term memory

Question 15

What is ‘chunking’ according to Miller’s theory? Provide 1 example.

Answer 15

Taking individual pieces of information and grouping them into larger meaningful units. e.g., “5932” would be 4 seperate numbers for most people unless they’re your PIN numbers, then they would form a single “chunk”

Question 16

What factors affect the capacity of short-term memory?

Answer 16

Reading aloud
Rhythmic grouping
Pronounciation time

Question 17

What is the duration of short term memory?

Answer 17

Approximately 18-20 seconds before the information starts to disappear

Question 18

What is maintenance rehearsal in relation to increasing STM duration?

Answer 18

Repetition of information a number of times so it can be held in STM for longer than 18-20 seconds

Question 19

What are advantages and limitations to maintenance rehersal with regard to increasing STM duration?

Answer 19

Advantages:
-Allows for info to be stored in STM for longer than 18-20 seconds
-Good for remembering meaningless information
Limitations:
-Does not add to understanding
-Restricts entry of new information into STM
-Limited effect transferring from STM-LTM

Question 20

What is elaborative rehearsal in relation to increasing STM duration?

Answer 20

Involves linking new information in some meaningful way with information already stored in the long term memory, or other pieces of new information to hold it in short term memory for longer than 18-20 seconds

Question 21

What are advantages and limitations to elaborative rehersal with regard to increasing STM duration?

Answer 21

Advantages:
-Increases understanding because it requires deep processing
-Adds more detail; increases retrieval chances
-Makes information more accessible because it creates more potential retrieval cues
Limitations:
-Takes longer than maintenance rehearsal
-Difficult to practise in situations where information entering STM is rapidly changing
-Requires more conscious effort than maintenance rehearsal

Question 22

What is the serial-position effect?

Answer 22

A pattern of recall from list items, where recall is better for items at the beginning (primacy) or end (recency) of a list than items in the middle

Question 23

Serial-Position Effect: What is the recency effect?

Answer 23

Recall items at the end of a list

Question 24

Serial-Position Effect: What is the primacy effect?

Answer 24

Recall items from beginning of list

Question 25

What was Glazner and Cunitz’ (1966) experiment?

Answer 25

Serial-position effect
-PPs recalled more words at beginning (primacy) and end (recency) of the list
-The interference task removed the recency but not the primacy effect
-This implies that primacy words were stored somewhere different to recency words

Question 26

Define asymptote

Answer 26

The middle portion items of the list are remembered far less well than those at the beginning and at the end

Question 27

Why does asymptote occur?

Answer 27

The increasing number of items fills the limited capacity of the short term memory, and these items are unable to be properly rehearsed/transferred to the long term memory before they’re been displaced

Question 28

Long-term memory: Information is stored and organised by __________ and _______

Answer 28

Importance
Meaning

Question 29

Why can’t we remember every long term memory we have formed?

Answer 29

The reason we can’t remember every LTM we have formed is due to inability to retrieve the information, not that the information has been lost

Question 30

What encoding does long-term memory rely on?

Answer 30

Long-term memory is encoded semantically

Question 31

What are the 2 types of long-term memory?

Answer 31

Procedural (implicit)
Declarative (explicit)

Question 32

Identify and describe what procedural memory is

Answer 32

-Memory for knowing how to things such as habits and skills e.g., walk, talk
-We retain these skills but can’t consciously describe how we do them - resistant to forgetting

Question 33

What encoding does short-term memory rely on?

Answer 33

Acoustic

Question 34

What is declaritive memory?

Answer 34

Concerns all the information we can describe or report

Question 35

What are the 2 types of Declarative (explicit) memories?

Answer 35

Semantic
Episodic

Question 36

Identify and describe what semantic memory is

Answer 36

-Recollection of ideas, concepts and facts
-Involves general factual information about the world that doesn’t involve memory of personal events or episodes
-E.g., algebra or grammar

Question 37

Identify and describe what episodic memory is

Answer 37

-Memory based upon personal experience and linked to a particular time and space in our lives
-E.g., what you had for breakfast