Memory

Question 1

Memory

Answer 1

• An information processing system

* Set of processes used to encode, store and retrieve information over different different periods of time

Question 2

Encoding

Answer 2

• Input of information into the memory system
• Upon receiving sensory information from the environment, our brains label or code it
• Organise the information with other similar information and connect new concepts to existing concepts

Question 3

Automatic Processing

Answer 3

•Usually done without any conscious awareness

Question 4

Effortful Processing

Answer 4

•Requires alot of work and attention on your part in order to encode the information

Question 5

Semantic Encoding

Answer 5

•Refers to the encoding of words and their meaning; first demonstrated by William Bousfield

Question 6

Visual Encoding

Answer 6

• Refers to the encoding of images
• Ability to recall images (mentally) more easily than words alone
• High-imagery words are encoded both visually and semantically, thus building a stronger memory

Question 7

Acoustic Encoding

Answer 7

•Refers to the encoding of sounds, and words in particular

Question 8

Self-reference Effect

Answer 8

•The tendency for an individual to have better memory for information that relates to oneself in comparison to material that has less personal preference

Question 9

Richard Atkinson and Richard Shiffrin

Answer 9

•Came out with a human memory, called Atkinson-Shiffrin (A-S); based on the belief that we process memories in the same way that a computer processes information

Question 10

Storage

Answer 10

• The creation of a permanent record of information

* 3 stages – sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory

Question 11

Sensory Memory

Answer 11

• Storage of brief sensory events, such as sights, sounds, and tastes
• A very brief storage of up to a couple of seconds

Question 12

Short-term Memory (STM)

Answer 12

• A temporary storage system that processes incoming sensory memory
• Lasts about 20 seconds

Question 13

Long-term Memory (LTM)

Answer 13

• Continuous storage of information; storage capacity has no limits
• Divided into two terms – explicit and implicit

Question 14

Explicit (declarative) Memories

Episodic (experienced events)

Semantic (knowledge and concepts)

Answer 14

• Explicit – memories that we consciously try to remember and recall
• Episodic – information about events we have personally experienced; involves recollection of visual imagery as well as the feeling of familiarity
• Semantic – knowledge about words, concepts, and language-based knowledge and facts

Question 15

Implicit (non-declarative)

Procedural (skills and actions)

Emotional Conditioning

Answer 15

• Implicit – memories that are not part of our consciousness; formed from behaviors
• Procedural – it stores information about how to do things; aids the performance of particular types of tasks without conscious awareness of these previous experiences.
• Emotional Conditioning – storage of information about the emotional significance of events

Question 16

Definition of Retrieval and 3 Steps to do so

Answer 16

•The act of getting information out of memory storage and back to conscious awareness

3 ways to retrieve information:
Recall – refers to what we most often think about when we talk about memory retrieval; access information without cues

Recognition – happens when you identify information that you have previously learned after encountering it again; process of comparison

Relearning – involves learning information that you previously learned

Question 17

Amygdala

Answer 17

• Regulates emotions, such as fear and aggression
• Plays a part in how memories are stored because storage is influenced by stress hormones
• Involved in memory consolidation – the process of transferring new learning into long-term memory
• Facilitate encoding memories at a deeper level when the event is emotional arousing

Question 18

Hippocampus

Answer 18

• Involved in normal recognition memory as well as spatial memory
• Project information to cortical regions that give memories meaning and connect them with other connected memories
• Injury to this area will result in the inability to process new declarative memories

Question 19

Cerebellum and Prefrontal Cortex

Answer 19

• According to PET scans, there was much more activation in the left prefrontal cortex for the semantic tasks as compared to the perceptual task
• Encoding was associated with left frontal activity, while retrieval of information was associated with the right frontal region

Question 20

Neurotransmitters

Arousal Theory

Flashbulb Memory

Answer 20

• Specific neurotransmitters are involved with the process of memory, such as epinephrine, dopamine, serotonin, glutamate, and acetychlorine
• Arousal Theory – strong emotions trigger the formation of strong memories, and weaker emotional experiences form weaker memories
• Strong emotional experiences can trigger the release of neurotransmitters, as well as hormones, which strengthen memory
• Flashbulb Memory – an exceptionally clear recollection of an important event

Question 21

Amnesia

Answer 21

•The loss of long-term memory that occurs at the result of disease, physical trauma, or psychological trauma

Question 22

Anterograde Amnesia

Answer 22

• Inability to remember new information, although you are able to remember information and events that happened prior to your injury
• Hippocampus is usually affected – damage to the brain has resulted in the inability to transfer information from short-term to long-term memory
• Unable to forma episodic or semantic memories, but are still able to form new procedural memories

Question 23

Retrograde Amnesia

Answer 23

• Loss of memory for events that occurred prior to the trauma
• Difficulty remembering episodic memories

Question 24

Memory Construction and Reconstruction

Answer 24

• Construction – formation of new memories

* Reconstruction – bringing up old memories

Question 25

Suggestibility

Answer 25

* Describes the effects of misinformation from external sources that leads to the creation of false memories * We are vulnerable to the power of suggestion, simply based on something we see on the news or a suggestion that someone made

Question 26

Eyewitness Misidentification

Answer 26

•When a crime victim or eyewitness mistakenly identifies someone as the perpetrator of a crime even though that person did not commit the crime ``` Causes: –Limitation in human memory –Stress and anxiety –Suggestive police behavior –Cross-race biases –Focus on weapons ```

Question 27

Misinformation Effect, Elizabeth Loftus

Answer 27

* After exposure to incorrect information, a person may misremember the original event * According to Loftus, an eyewitness's memory of an event is very flexible due to the misinformation effect

Question 28

Controversies over Repressed and Recovered Memories False Memory Syndrome

Answer 28

* Researchers have described how whole events, not just words, can be falsely recalled, even when they did not happen * False Memory Syndrome – recall of false autobiographical memories; relates to memories of events that do not have independent witnesses; only witnesses to the abuse are the perpetrator and the victim

Question 29

Forgetting

Answer 29

•Refers to loss of information from long-term memory

Question 30

Encoding Failure

Answer 30

* When memory loss happens before the actual memory process begins * Often in order to remember something, we must pay attention to the details and actively work to process the information, however lots of times we don't do this

Question 31

Daniel Schacter

Answer 31

•Well-known memory researcher, offers seven ways our memories fail us; calls them the seven sins of memory and categorizes them into three groups – forgetting, distortion, and intrusion

Question 32

Transience

Answer 32

* Type – Forgetting * Description – Accessibility of memory decreases over time * Example – Forget events that occurred long ago

Question 33

Absentmindness

Answer 33

* Type – Forgetting * Description – Forgetting caused by lapses in attention * Example – Forget where your phone is

Question 34

Blocking

Answer 34

* Type – Forgetting * Description – Accessibility of information is temporarily blocked * Example – Tip of the tongue

Question 35

Misattribution

Answer 35

* Type – Distortion * Description – Source of memory is confused * Example – Recalling a dream memory as a waking memory

Question 36

Suggestibility

Answer 36

* Type – Distortion * Description – False memories * Example – Result from leading questions

Question 37

Bias

Answer 37

* Type – Distortion * Description – Memories distorted by current belief system * Example – Align memories to current beliefs

Question 38

Persistence

Answer 38

* Type – Intrusion * Description – Inability to forget undesirable memories * Example – Traumatic events

Question 39

Interference

Answer 39

•When information is stored in our memory, however for some reason it is inaccessible

Question 40

Proactive Interference

Answer 40

•When old information hinders the recall of newly learned information

Question 41

Retroactive Interference

Answer 41

•Happens when information learned more recently hinders the recall of older information

Question 42

Memory-enhancing Strategies

Answer 42

* Rehearsal – conscious repetition of information to be remembered * Chunking – organizing information into manageable bits or chunks * Elaborative Rehearsal –a technique in which you think about the meaning of the new information and its relation to knowledge is already stored in your memory * Mnemonic Devices (e.g. acronym) – memory aids that help us organize information for encoding; useful for recalling larger bits of information such as steps, stages, phases * Expressive Writing – boosts short-term memory * Saying words aloud

Question 43

Neurogensis

Answer 43

• The growth of new brain cells in the hippocampus, and area of the brain known to play a role in memory and learning