A1 Cognitive Approach Flashcards
What is persistence of vision?
An after-image that persists on the retinas for about 1/25th of a second after an object has moved
Example of sensory memory, illustrating how we perceive brief visual stimuli.
What does sensory memory (SM) store?
Memory stores for each of our five senses:
* Vision (iconic store)
* Hearing (echoic store)
Encoding in the iconic store is visual, while in the echoic store it is acoustic.
What is the capacity of sensory memory?
Very high; over one million cells in the retina store sensory data
Each cell in the retina can retain sensory information.
What is the duration of sensory memory?
Very brief; less than half a second for visual information and about 2-4 seconds for auditory information
Information in sensory memory fades quickly.
What is short-term memory (STM)?
A limited-capacity memory store with a duration of up to 30 seconds without rehearsal
Capacity is between 5 and 9 items, known as ‘7 plus or minus 2’.
What is the capacity of short-term memory?
Limited; can contain between 5 and 9 items
George Miller’s research established this capacity in 1956.
What is long-term memory (LTM)?
A permanent memory store with practically unlimited capacity, storing memories for up to a lifetime
Encoding in LTM is mainly semantic (based on meaning).
What is the duration of long-term memory?
Potentially permanent; information can be stored for a lifetime
Information may not be forgotten but can be inaccessible without the right cues.
How is information encoded in sensory memory?
Converting environmental information (sights, sounds, etc.) into a storable form
Encoding depends on the sense involved.
What type of encoding is primarily used in short-term memory?
Mainly acoustic (based on sounds)
Mistakes in recalling words typically involve sound-based errors.
What type of encoding is used in long-term memory?
Mainly semantic (based on meaning)
Errors in LTM recall often involve substituting words with similar meanings.
True or False: Most information in short-term memory is forgotten.
True
Only some information is passed to long-term memory.
What assumption relates to the brain being compared to a computer?
The brain processes information similarly to a computer, with distinct memory stores
Information goes from sensory memory to short-term memory and then potentially to long-term memory.
What is maintenance rehearsal?
Repeating information over and over to keep it in short-term memory
This process can help transfer information to long-term memory.
Fill in the blank: The capacity of long-term memory is _______.
Practically unlimited
LTM can store everything learned.
What is the duration of short-term memory?
Up to 30 seconds without rehearsal
Information may disappear quickly if not actively maintained.
