LTM: Autobiographical memory Flashcards
autobiographical memory
the memory for what happens in your life
* how personal experiences are recorded in your brain
- combo of semantic and episodic
- elements linked to events but also elements that require inferences based on knowledge
emotion enhances memory consolidation
childhood amnesia
not being able to remember anything before age 3/4
- used to think this happened because young brains are so immature that early memories are not stored
- but researchers began testing children as young as 9 months and they do have memory
research shows that amnesia for events before age 3 begins at about 7 years of age
* 5 year olds can remember but fading starts at 7 and memories are gone at 10
theories for childhood amnesia
brain connections for early memories are there but we can’t retrieve them
or we can’t access them because the way that kids think about the world is just qualitatively different from what you’re using now
* no framework for accessing early memories
childhood memories that survive
certain memories survive childhood amnesia
* highly emotional memories
- develop a story around the event so parents will often play a role in maintaining memories by giving shape and structure to events
some researchers posit that there may be an evolutionary component to this type of memory
some people say they stick around because it is also emotional for the family so it lives on as a story the family tells which is a confound
memories throughout lifetime
- there is a social component to memory
- parents help kids remember stories from their childhood
- traditionally, looked at how recall faired when two people recalled together (eg: waitlists)
- generally did poorer than when recalling solo
- however, recent research also shows that long-term partners develop inter-connected memory systems
memories live within our social exchanges with other people
memory boosts to older adults is greater when recalling information with a lifelong partner vs solo
socially distributed cognitive systems
recalling information together led to an increased ability to recall autobiographical information
compared to a solo session:
* more information and new information recalled
* richer more vivid descriptios of events
* information from one partner often puts things in a new light for the other
exchange between the two people acts as retrieval cues for each other
memories more vivid and descriuptive when recalling about the partner
each perspective allows the other person to recall info that they wouldnt have otherwise
memory and emotion
people tend to have better memory for emotional life events
* like emotional public events or traumatic personal experiences
emotion is thought to enhance consolidation of memories
researchers have found neurologic links between memory and emotion
* amygdala
process of memories becoming more stable and independent from the hippocampus happens faster and connections are more stable
emotion speeds up and enhances connections
ability to encode and recall memory and emotion is strongly associated with activity of amygdala
how emotion could affect memory
attentional focus and intensity
encoding depth and elaboration
degree of rehearsal and review
rate or extent of consolidation
affect/emotion acts as retrieval cue
flashbulb memories
we all have some memories that are so vivid it seems that we can recall it perfectly
- linked to emotional events to study the enhancement of memory
emotional memory: recorded vividly like a camera
flashbulb memories continued
specific type of autobiographical memory
* memory of our own history
flashbulb memory: memory for the moment of learning about a emotional or surprising event
thought as a snapshot in your mind
has personal significance and can be positive or negative
researchers ask “Where were you when you heard about:
* 9/11
* Red sox winning
* trump elected as president
* pandemic
Are they really more accurate than other memories?
downfalls of flashbulb memories
originally thought that flashbulb memories were complete, accurate, and resistant to forgetting
* because people reported such vivid images
- originally thought to have a high degree of detail that does not fade over time
studied people downtown and 5 miles away from 9/11 attack
* downtown group remembered more info and had increased activity in amygdala
* midtown group did not show any differences between 9/11 and their other memories
conclusion: witnessing an event can heighten emotions associated with the event and produce lasting memories
what do flashbulb memories depend on
prior knowledge
* aiding in relation to the event and existing memory structures
personal importance
* great relevance personally
emotional state
* emotional reaction of the person
overt rehearsal
* retelling of the story often linked to the flashbulb memory
emotion helps to fit memory into a narrative
knowledge of the events helps with personal recall of the event
flashbulb memories
label may be misleading: implies photographic properties
some researchers have argued for a new label
* memories of personal circumstances
flashbulb implies that there is a photograph in our head
* but detauls aren’t always accurate
* not actual photographs
Hympermnesia
superior autobiographical memory
- can remember events that happened to them in great detail years later
- still experience childhood amnesia
- don’t show ay other types of superior memory performance
- wouldn’t be better at memorizing list of words
overlap with OCD but it does not affect everyday functioning so it is not treated as a disorder
Adrenaline and memory
role of adrenaline in making strong memories
- emotion releases adrenaline and sears memories into brain for stronger memories
- certain amount of forgetting is crucial to our ability to think
