Episodic memory

Question 1

Name a theory of encoding.

Answer 1

Levels of Processing theory (Craik & Lockhart, 1972)

Question 2

Recall is a copy of an event. True/false?

Answer 2

False - recall is a record of how you process an event.

Question 3

Which levels can info be processed at?

Answer 3

Shallow - perceptual features

Deep - semantic features

Question 4

What type of processing leads to better recall?

Answer 4

Deep processing

Question 5

Craik & Tulving (1975) had pps read unrelated words and use different types of processing at study (encoding). What were these types of processing & what did they involve?

Answer 5

Shallow - upper/lower case judgement
Intermediate - rhyme judgement
Deep - sensible-or-not judgment

Question 6

What did Craik & Tulving (1975) find when pps were given a surprise recognition test?

Answer 6

Pps who used deep processing at encoding had better recognition than those who used shallow/intermediate

Question 7

Which researcher/s claimed that deep processing might not always be sufficient for episodic remembering?

Answer 7

Craik (2002)

Question 8

Craik & Kester (1999) found that WHAT at encoding could impair memory performance?

Answer 8

Divided attention

Question 9

What underlies the LoP effect?

Answer 9

Elaboration

Question 10

What is elaboration?

Answer 10

Relating a to-be-remembered item to other info known about the item (other stored knowledge)

Question 11

What does the elaboration hypothesis state?

Answer 11

We are more likely to remember something if we can relate it to other things we know about

Question 12

What influences retention?

Answer 12

The amount of info we have about an item (number of things it is linked to in memory)

Question 13

What type of processing did Craik & Tulving (1975) produces more elaboration?

Answer 13

Semantic processing produces more elaboration than non-semantic processing –> the item is more likely to be remembered

Question 14

Memory for words that appeared in sentences judged to be sensible (______) was better than memory for words judged to be nonsensical (______)

Answer 14

Memory for words that appeared in sentences judged to be sensible (CONGRUENT) was better than memory for words judged to be nonsensical (INCONGRUENT)

Question 15

What is the congruency effect?

Answer 15

Congruent info provides more elaboration because it ties items more closely to stored knowledge

We have more elaboration if we process the correct semantic info about the item during encoding –> remember the item better

Question 16

Does memory depend more on elaboration or the distinctiveness of the encoded info?

Answer 16

Memory depends on distinctiveness of the encoded info (how well it stands out from other items in memory; a more distinctive memory trace) rather than elaboration

Question 17

What type of processing does Hunt & Elliot (1980) say will produce more distinctive encoding?

Answer 17

Semantic processing

Question 18

Recall of a distinctive sentence was better than recall of an elaborative sentence. Who found this?

Answer 18

Bransford et al. (1979)

Question 19

Which are words more likely to be distinct in terms of - their meaning (semantic) or physical appearance (non-semantic)?

Answer 19

Words are more likely to be distinct in terms of meaning

Question 20

Distinctiveness theory states that semantic encoding will always be better than non-semantic encoding. True/false?

Answer 20

False - semantic encoding isn’t always better than non-semantic encoding

Question 21

Which researcher/s found evidence for the idea that semantic encoding is not always better than non-semantic?

Answer 21

Eyesenck (1979) - used a non-semantic task with unusual word pronunciations

Found that pps’ memory after the task was as good as that after a semantic task

However, he did conclude that semantic processing is USUALLY more likely to lead to distinctive processing

Question 22

Winograd (1981) compared distinctiveness & elaboration by having pps look at faces.

Pps either:

1. Scanned each face (encoded features –> elaboration) + rated the most distinctive feature (distinctiveness)
2. Rated the most distinctive feature (distinctiveness)

Pps then identified which faces they had seen before.

What did they find?

Answer 22

There was no difference in memory performance between the two groups.

• distinctiveness is key (E+D was no better than just D)
• having elaboration may increase the likelihood of detecting a distinctive feature

Question 23

What are some criticisms of the Levels of Processing theory?

Answer 23

X no objective way to measure depth

X assumes that processing levels are linear & go from one stage to the next (appearance>sound>meaning); research suggests different types of processing occur in parallel (overlap)

X don’t know whether we can fully suppress semantic processing (must be overlap)

X benefit of semantic processing depends of the nature of the test

Question 24

What is ‘organisation’?

Answer 24

Relationships between items on a list, actions in an event, etc.

Question 25

What type of material is better remembered - organised or unorganised?

Answer 25

Organised material is better remembered

Question 26

Pps were shown 20 words in 5 categories - presented randomly (unorganised) OR the categories were grouped together (organised) Recall was highest for the organised group Who did this study?

Answer 26

Bousfield (1953)

Question 27

What is the generation effect?

Answer 27

Info that you generate yourself is better remembered than info that is presented to you

Question 28

How did Glisky & Rabinowitz (1985) study the generation effect?

Answer 28

Pps generated single words from word fragments then tried to recognise the words in a test Pps read words or generated their own words at BOTH encoding & retrieval Found that words generated at encoding (study) were better recognised than words read at encoding (= standard generation effect) Words generated at encoding AND test were better recognised than words generated at encoding & read at test

Question 29

What is the effect of transfer-appropriate processing

Answer 29

Recognition is best if the same fragments are generated at both study & test

Question 30

Morris, Bransford & Franks (1977) showed pps a list of words & had them use different types of encoding. What types of encoding did they use & what was involved?

Answer 30

Semantic - generated a word associated with a word on the list Phonological - generated a word that rhymed with a word on the list

Question 31

Morris, Bransford & Franks (1977) then show pps a new list of words (some were familiar, from the previous list) & gave them 2 types of recognition test, what were the tests?

Answer 31

Standard test - saw a list of words that had the previously-studied words + new words); pps had to select words they had seen before Rhyme test - saw a list of words that rhymed with previously-studied words + new words; pps had to select words that rhymed with words they had seen before

Question 32

What did Morris, Bransford & Franks (1977) find?

Answer 32

For the standard recognition test, performance was better after semantic processing For the rhyme recognition test, performance was better after phonological processing --> performance is best if the type of processing used at encoding matches the type of processing required at test

Question 33

What is the self-reference effect?

Answer 33

A tendency to encode info differently depending on the level in which the self is implicated in the info (how well it relates to you)

Question 34

What type of info is better remember - info that is personally relevant or personally irrelevant?

Answer 34

Personally relevant info is better remembered

Question 35

Pps were shown adjectives & used one type of encoding, either... Non-semantic - "does it rhyme with...?" Semantic - "does it mean the same as...?" Pps rated how descriptive each word was of themselves. Who did this study? What did they find?

Answer 35

Rogers, Kuiper & Kirker (1977) Found that pps recalled more self-rated than semantically-encoded words --> self-relevance lead to better processing (pps allocated more attention to self-relevant info)

Question 36

Why might retrieval fail?

Answer 36

Storage failure - decay - interference

Question 37

What is retrieval failure?

Answer 37

When info is present in memory but cannot be recalled

Question 38

What is decay?

Answer 38

Memories fade over time The older the memory trace, the more likely it will be forgotten Occurrence of other events & processing of new info at that time can cause storage failure (interference)

Question 39

What is interference?

Answer 39

When new info overwrites/replaces old info

Question 40

Pps learnt nonsense syllables & then slept or stayed awake for a period of time. Who did this study & what did they find?

Answer 40

Jenkins & Dallenbach (1924) found that memory for the nonsense syllables was better for the group who slept.

Question 41

Why is being asleep/staying awake better for memory consolidation?

Answer 41

Being awake exposes the memory to more interference Sleep protects memories from interference & helps consolidation

Question 42

What is consolidation?

Answer 42

New memories become established/consolidated in the hippocampus

Question 43

Which area of the brain are new memories consolidated/established?

Answer 43

The hippocampus

Question 44

Bruce & Pihl (1997) found what WHAT might help memory?

Answer 44

Memory may be enhanced when alcohol is consumed shortly after the memory is formed because it disrupts encoding of new memories which would impair consolidation

Question 45

What is retrieval failure?

Answer 45

When info is present in memory but can’t be recalled

Question 46

In relation to retrieval, what does successful memory performance depend on?

Answer 46

Info stored in LTM stays there permanently & so is available, but successful performance also depends on ACCESSIBILITY (= the degree to which the info can be retrieved)

Question 47

Why might retrieval cues help?

Answer 47

Forgetting may occur because items are stored (available) but inaccessible - items may be recalled if cues are used

Question 48

Pps were shown words in categories, then retrieved the words using free recall OR cued recall. Recall was higher with cued recall. Who did this study & what did they conclude?

Answer 48

Tulving & Pearlstone (1966) A person's ability to recall info depends on cues present at retrieval.

Question 49

How can we make medical instructions more memorable?

Answer 49

Ley (1988) found that patients forgot 50% of the info they were given by their doctor; there was a high correlation between the amount of info they recalled &... - their understanding of the info - satisfaction with their doctor - compliance - recovery from illness Ley (1988) asked doctors to change the way they presented the info --> explicitly categorising the way info was presented nearly doubled patients' recall

Question 50

How can mnemonic techniques aid memory?

Answer 50

‘One is a bun, two is a shoe, three is a tree’ - ‘bottle’ → bun - ‘table’ → shoe Use mental imagery to associate the first to-be-remembered item with a bun, shoe, etc. During recall, we use mneumonic → think of ‘one’ → bun → ‘bottle’ = acts as a retrieval cue Morris & Reid (1970) found that recall doubled when pps used this mnemonic

Question 51

Why might testing yourself aid memory?

Answer 51

Assesses what you do/don't know Enhances later retention Practicing retrieving enhances the accessibility of the info --> more likely to remember it

Question 52

What did Roediger & Karpicke (2006) find about the effect of being tested on memory performance?

Answer 52

Students who are tested showed more retention of the material than those just given further study