Manipulation and improvement of memory Flashcards
Ebbinghause’s forgetting curve
§ Forgetting: the inability to retrieve previously stored information (not the disappearance of information from memory).
§ Forgetting curve: a curve that shoes the pattern of forgetting that occurs over time.
§ Herman Ebbinghaus was the first person to perform systematic research into forgetting.
§ Used only himself for his experiment which involved learning a list of nonsense syllables (pronounceable, 3-lettered) to avoid previous knowledge to interfere with his results.
§ Tested himself until he had perfectly remembered the entire list of ‘words’, and then waited for various period of time (from 20 minutes to a month) and then tested himself again to see how much he had retained.
§ Forgetting occurred most rapidly in the first 20 minutes, and until one hour had passed, the rate of memory loss gradually declined for the next 31 days.
Features of ebbinghause curve
§ Features of the curve:
o Most forgetting occurs immediately after learning the information where more than 50% of the material is forgotten within the first hour.
o If the information is overlearned (i.e. learning over and over even when already well-known), the material is more likely to be retained for longer.
o Complexity of material being learnt and intelligence of learner does not affect the rate of forgetting.
Measure of retention - recall
Recall: retrieving stored information with a minimal amount of cues; there are three main types:
o Free recall: recalling information in any order.
o Serial recall: recalling information in the order it was presented (e.g. items on a shopping list).
o Cued recall: recalling information with various prompts (cues) to assist in retrieval.
Measure of retention - recognition
. Recognition: involves identifying the correct information from among alternatives (e.g. multiple choice questions). .
Generally, more information can be retrieved through this method due to there being more cues to assist in retrieving information from long-term memory.
Measures of retention - relearning
- Relearning: learning again something that has previously been learned and stored in LTM, and thus is easier than learning material for the first time. .
- If information is learned more quickly the second time, this indicates that some information has been retained from the first learning experience..
- Most sensitive measure of retention (recall is the least), i.e. the one that provides most access to what has been retained in LTM. .
The effect of relearning is most evident in procedural memories (e.g. relearning a language, musical instrument, etc. and picking it up very quickly). .
Savings score: a score that shows how much faster it took to relearn something and thus indicating how much information was retained on the first trial of learning.
Encoding specificty principle
Encoding specificity principle: the more closely the cues present at the time of retrieval match those during the original learning condition, the more likely the information will be recalled (this is an effective way of enhancing retrieval from LTM).
State dependent cues
refers to the internal physiological and/or psychological state at the time the memory was formed, acting as a retrieval cue to help access those memories (e.g. mood, level of intoxication, level of anxiety).
Context dependent cues
the external environmental cues that were present when the memory was formed, thereby acting as a retrieval cue to help access memories that were formed in that context (includes sights, smells, and sounds).
Mnemonic devices define
Mnemonic devices: techniques that minimises forgetting and improves encoding and retrieval from LTM. They add meaning to the material being learned through the use of images, rhymes, and linking new information to existing information in LTM
Method of Loci
Method of loci: Involves associating different items to be remembered with a well-learned sequence of location. These locations act as a retrieval cue for each item to be remembered whereby the person forms a mental image of each item to be remembered and one of the locations. They then visualise themselves moving through each location and recalling each of the target item.
Peg-word method
Peg-word method: involves memorising a rhyme that includes mental pegs on which you ‘hang’ the material to be remembered. - Firstly, the peg-words must be memorised (names of objects that rhyme with numbers 1-10 such as ‘one is a bun’, ‘two is a shoe’, ‘three is a tree’, ‘four is a door, ‘five is a hive’, etc.). - The items to be recalled are then visually linked to the appropriate peg-word. - E.g. the first three items on a shopping list are sausages, tomato sauce and mustard. The person might then visualise a sausage in a bun, a shoe filled with tomato sauce, and then a mustard seed tree.
Narrative chaining
Narrative chaining: incorporates items to be remembered into a meaningful story in which the items to be learned form the key words in the story. Recalling the story provides cues for retrieval of the target items.
Acronyms
Acronym: using the first letter of each list of items to be learned to form a pronounceable word (e.g. NAB = National Australia Bank).
Acrostics
Acrostic: using the first letter of each list of items to be learned, and then forming a sentence or phrase of words that share the same first letters (e.g. Better Alive Than Dead) ensuring that serial order is maintained. Therefore the first letters become cues for the list of items to be recalled.
Effectiveness of mnemonics
o They are more effective for information that can be put into a word list form.
o Mnemonics tend to be used for smaller units of information, especially to remember points of distinction between similar concepts.
o Effective mnemonic techniques work by increasing meaningfulness.
o Techniques such as the method of loci and narrative chaining are very effective because of the increased meaningfulness and elaboration put o the material whilst the associated visual imagery adds to their power.
o They organise information, which provides extra meaning as the information has been given order and structure.
o Many mnemonics utilise the benefits of chunking, which can increase the capacity of information in STM.
