memory

Question 1

what is the definition of memory?

Answer 1

the process by which we retain information about events that have happened in the past.

Question 2

what is the capacity, duration and coding of STM?

Answer 2

capacity= 7+2/-2 or 5-9
duration= 18-20 seconds
coding= acoustic

Question 3

what is the capacity, duration and coding of LTM?

Answer 3

capacity= infinite
duration= up to a lifetime
coding= semantic

Question 3

what are the levels of the multi-store model of memory?

Answer 3

Level 1 = sensory register
Level 2 = STM
Level 3 = LTM

Question 4

what is the capacity, duration and coding of the sensory register?

Answer 4

capacity= very large
duration= 250 milliseconds
coding= modality specific

Question 5

what will happen if information is not rehearsed is STM?

Answer 5

If information is not rehearsed it will decay from STM and be displaced by new information.

Question 6

what are the limitations of the multi-store model?

Answer 6

-too simple
-suggests STM and LTM are single “unitary” stores, research does not support this because HM was able to involve new skills involving LTM

Question 8

what does the working memory model contain?

Answer 8

-central executive
-phonological loop
-visuospatial sketchpad
-episodic buffer

Question 9

describe the episodic buffer

Answer 9

-added in 2000
-temporary storage system
-allows information from subsidiary systems to be combined with information from LTM

Question 10

describe the role of central executive

Answer 10

-controls attention
-controls subsidiary (slave) systems

Question 11

what is the role of the phonological loop?

Answer 11

-deals with auditory information
-divided into: phonological store & articulatory process

Question 12

what is the role of the visuospatial sketchpad?

Answer 12

-stores visual and spatial information
-“the inner eye”

Question 13

what are the 2 pieces of research supporting the working memory model?

Answer 13

-Shallice & Warrington study of KF
-Baddeley et al dual task performance

Question 14

describe the study of KF

Answer 14

-KF had brain damage
-his stm for auditory information was poor ut he could process visual stimuli normally
-supports WMM as it shows there are seperate stores for visual and acoustic information.

Question 15

describe the dual task performance study.

Answer 15

-baddeley et al
-participants found it harder to carry out two visual tasks at the same time than do a verbal and visual task together
-this is because both visual tasks compete for same subsystem, the visuospatial sketchpad gets overloaded
-shows there must be two subsystems that process visual and verbal information

Question 16

evaluate the working memory model.

Answer 16

strengths:
-explains how cognitive processes interact
-shows memory in active rather than passive
-provides explanations for processing deficits (KF)

limitations:
-central executive is vague and untestable
-supported by highly controlled lab studies (lacks ecological validity)
-some key evidence comes from patients with brain damage

Question 17

what are the 3 types of long term memory?

Answer 17

episodic
procedural
semantic

Question 18

describe episodic memory

Answer 18

personal memories of events.
eg. what you did yesterday
explicit

Question 19

describe procedural memory.

Answer 19

memory for how to do things
automatic memory
e.g riding a bike
implicit

Question 20

describe semantic memory.

Answer 20

shared memories for facts and knowledge
e.g knowing ice=water
explicit

Question 21

what is explicit and implicit memory?

Answer 21

explicit = conscious memory
implicit = unconscious memory

Question 22

describe Tulvings research support the the types of LTM.

Answer 22

-Tulving injected himself with particles of radioactive gold to track brain blood flow in a scanner
-he thought about historical facts and childhood experiences

findings:
-when thinking about historical facts, blood flow increased at the back of his brain
-when thinking about childhood memories blood flow increased at the front of his brain

Question 23

what is a limitation of the 3 types of LTM?

Answer 23

there may be more types eg “priming”
-priming describes how implicit memories influence the response a person makes to a stimulus.
-eg if a person is given a list of words including “yellow” and later asked to name a fruit the probability they will answer “banana” is greater.

Question 24

what is the definition of forgetting?

Answer 24

a persons loss of the ability to recall or recognise something they have previously learned

Question 25

what is interference?

Answer 25

-an explanation for forgetting -one memory disrupts the ability to recall another

Question 26

what is retroactive interference?

Answer 26

when a new memory disrupts an older memory

Question 27

what is proactive interference?

Answer 27

when an older memory disrupts a newer memory

Question 28

what is baddeley and hitch’s research support for interference?

Answer 28

-asked rugby players to recall the names of teams they had played against during rugby season -players did not play the same number of games -those who played the most games, had the poorest recall (more interference)

Question 29

what is retrieval failure?

Answer 29

when you cannot retrieve a memory, due to lack of cues

Question 30

what is the encoding specificity principle?

Answer 30

memory is most effective if cues are present at encoding and are available at retrieval

Question 31

what is context dependent forgetting?

Answer 31

environmental context during learning can be used as a cue

Question 32

what is state dependent forgetting?

Answer 32

the mental state you are in at the time of learning can act as a cue

Question 33

describe the study supporting context dependent forgetting.

Answer 33

procedure: condition 1: learn on land, recall on land condition 2: learn on land, recall underwater condition 3: learn underwater, recall on land condition 4: learn underwater, recall underwater findings: highest recall occurred when initial context matched recall environment

Question 34

describe the study supporting state dependent forgetting.

Answer 34

procedure: condition 1: learn on drug, recall on drug condition 2: learn on drug, recall sober condition 3: learn sober, recall on drug condition 3: learn sober, recall sober findings: recall was better when cues matched

Question 35

what is eye witness testimony?

Answer 35

evidence provided in court by a person who witnessed a crime

Question 36

what are two factors affecting eye witness testimony?

Answer 36

-leading questions -post event discussion

Question 37

describe the Loftus & Palmer study on leading questions.

Answer 37

procedure: -45 participants watched 7 film clips of car accidents, then were asked questions about the speed -critical question = “how fast were the cars going when they hit each other?” -participants were given a different verb for the critical question: hit, contacted, bumped, collided or smash findings: -highest speed = smashed -lowest speed = contacted -this shows the verb choice influences the answer given

Question 38

describe Gabbert et al study on post event discussion.

Answer 38

procedure: -paired participants watched a video of same crime, however each partners clips had differ elements the other did not -pairs discussed what they had witnessed before individually completing recall test findings: -71% of participants wrongly recalled items from the video

Question 39

what does the Yerkes-Dodson Law suggest?

Answer 39

memory is most accurate when anxiety is at a medium level.

Question 40

describe Loftus’s research on anxiety.

Answer 40

aim: to find out if anxiety during a witness incident affects accuracy of identification procedure: -condition 1: participants overhear a low-key discussion, a person then appears holding a pen covered in grease -condition 2: participants overhear a heated discussion, a person then appears holding a paper knife and covered in blood findings: -49% accurately identified man with pen -33% accurately identified man with knife WEAPON FOCUS PHENOMENON

Question 41

what is the research showing anxiety having a positive effect on EWT?

Answer 41

Yuille & Cutshall found witnesses in an armed robbery in Canada, who were the most distressed , gave most accurate reports of crime.

Question 42

what are the 4 steps of cognitive interviews?

Answer 42

-to report every detail -recreate the context -recall event in reverse order -change perspective