Module 23: Studying and Encoding Memories

George Sperling's Experiment

-Exposed people to a 1/20th of-a-second view of a grid of letters, followed by a tone which told them which row of letters to pull from iconic memory and recall; -Suggested a capacity of 9 - 12 items

How are our memories different that a computer's?

-Our memories are less literal and more fragile than a computer's. -Most computers process information sequentially, even while alternating tasks; our agile brain processes many things simultaneously (some of them unconsciously) by means of parallel processing.

Wechsler Memory Scale

-first developed by David Wechsler in 1945 and is now in its fourth edition (WMS-IV) -includes a global assessment of memory functioning

Fergus Craig and Endel Tulving (1975)

-flashed words at viewers and asked questions that would elicit different levels of processing -the deeper, semantic processing triggered by the 3rd question yielded a much better memory than did the shallower processing elicited by the 2nd question or the very shallow processing elicited by the 1st.

encoding

-get information into our brain the process of getting information into the memory system—for example, by extracting meaning. (p. 294)

recognition

-identifying items as previously learned ex. multiple-choice a measure of memory in which the person identifies items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test. (p. 293)

retrieval

-later get the information back out the process of getting information out of memory storage. (p. 294)

relearning

-learning something more quickly when you learn it a second or later time. ex. when you review the first weeks of course work to prepare for your final exam, or engage a language used in early childhood, it will be easier to relearn the material than when you first learned it. a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material again. (p. 293)

massed practice (cramming)

-practice that can produce speedy, short-term learning and an inflated feeling of confidence -those who learn quickly also forget quickly

distributed practice

-produces better long-term recall -technique in which items to be learned are repeated at intervals over a period of time. -after you've studied long enough to master the material, further study at that time becomes insufficient.

What is the benefit of organizing knowledge in hierarchies?

-recall was 2-3x better -retrieval of information is more efficient

storage

-retain that information the process of retaining encoded information over time. (p. 294)

recall

-retrieving information that is not currently in your conscious awareness but that was learned at an earlier time. ex. fill-in-the-blank a measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test. (p. 293)

What two ways can information enter sensory memory and then working memory?

-through vision -auditory rehearsal

examples of mnemonics

-visualizing abstract words and facts -HOMES (Great Lakes) -My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Noodles (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune)

What was Atkinson & Shiffrin's three-stage information processing model?

1. We first record to-be-remembered information as a fleeting sensory memory. 2. From there, we process information into short-term memory, where we encode it through rehearsal. 3. Finally, information moves into long-term memory for later retrieval.

Without conscious effort you automatically process information about:

1. space: while studying, you often encode the place where certain material appears; later, when you want to retrieve the information, you may visualize its location. 2. time: while going about your day, you unintentionally note the sequence of its events. Later, realizing you've left your phone somewhere, the event sequence your brain automatically encoded will enable you to retrace your steps. 3. frequency: you effortlessly keep track of how many times things happen, as when you realize, "This is the third time I've run into her today!"

How many faces does the average person permanently store and recognize?

5000

Findings of Ebbinghaus's memory experiment

Additional rehearsal (overlearning) of verbal information increases retention, especially when practice is distributed over time. -for students, this means that it helps to rehearse course material over time, even after you know it. -better to rehearse and overlearn than relax and remember too little.

Atkinson and Shiffrin saw short-term memory merely as a space for briefly storing recent thoughts and experiences. Who extended our understanding?

Alan Baddeley and others (Barrouillet, Engle) began calling this stage working memory because it resembled an active "scratch pad" where our brain makes sense of new experiences and links them with our long-term memories. -This "system for holding information in mind and working on it" also functions in the opposite direction, by retrieving and processing previously stored information.

RP-7 Which strategies are better for long-term retention: cramming and rereading material, or spreading out learning over time and repeatedly testing yourself?

Although cramming and rereading may lead to short-term gains in knowledge, distributed practice and repeated self-testing will result in the greatest long-term retention.

Baddeley's model of working memory

As you integrate new information with your existing long-term memory, your attention is focused. -a central executive coordinates this focused processing. -without focused attention, information typically fades. if you think you can look something up later, you attend to it less and forget it more quickly.

RP-5 What is the difference between automatic and effortful processing, and what are some examples of each?

Automatic processing occurs unconsciously (automatically) for such things as the sequence and frequency of a day's events, and reading and comprehending words in our own language(s). Effortful processing requires attentive awareness and happens, for example, when we work hard to learn new material in class, or new lines for a play.

LOQ 23-8: How do distributed practice, deep processing, and making new material personally meaningful aid memory?

Distributed practice sessions (the spacing effect) produce better long-term recall. The testing effect is the finding that consciously retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information enhances memory. Depth of processing also affects long-term retention. In shallow processing, we encode words based on their structure or appearance. Retention is best when we use deep processing, encoding words based on their meaning. We also more easily remember material when we learn and rephrase it into personally meaningful terms—the self-reference effect.

Ebbinghaus's retention curve

Ebbinghaus found that the more times he practiced a list of nonsense syllables on Day 1, the less time he required to relearn it on Day 2. Speed of relearning is one measure of memory retention.

LOQ 23-7: What are some effortful processing strategies that can help us remember new information?

Effective effortful processing strategies include chunking, mnemonics, and hierarchies. Each boosts our ability to form new memories.

Who did an experiment with hierarchies?

Gordon Bower and colleagues (1969)

"those who learn quickly also forget quickly" can be attributed to

Hermann Ebbinghaus (1885)

LOQ 23-4: What information do we process automatically?

In addition to skills and classically conditioned associations, we automatically process incidental information about space, time, and frequency.

RP-2 If you want to be sure to remember what you're learning for an upcoming test, would it be better to use recall or recognition to check your memory? Why?

It would be better to test your memory with recall (such as with short-answer or fill-in-the-blank self-test questions) rather than recognition (such as with multiple-choice questions). Recalling information is harder than recognizing it. So if you can recall it, that means your retention of the material is better than if you could only recognize it. Your chances of test success are therefore greater.

Who performed the short-term memory experiment?

Lloyd and Margaret Peterson (1959)

George Miller (1956)

Magical Number Seven -proposed that people can store about seven bits of information (give or take two) -the number varies by task; we tend to remember about six letters and only about 5 words

RP-8 If you try to make the material you are learning personally meaningful, are you processing at a shallow or a deep level? Which level leads to greater retention?

Making material personally meaningful involves processing at a deep level, because you are processing semantically—based on the meaning of the words. Deep processing leads to greater retention.

LOQ 23-1: What is memory, and how is it measured?

Memory is learning that has persisted over time, through the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information. Evidence of memory may be seen in an ability to recall information, recognize it, or relearn it more easily on a later attempt. Psychologists can measure these different forms of memory separately.

most people excel at remembering

Personally relevant information (self-reference effect)

LOQ 23-2: How do memory models help us study memory, and how has later research updated the three-stage information-processing model?

Psychologists use memory models to think about and explain how our brain forms and retrieves memories. Information-processing models involve three processes: encoding, storage, and retrieval. Our agile brain processes many things simultaneously by means of parallel processing. The connectionism information-processing model focuses on this multitrack processing, viewing memories as products of interconnected neural networks. The three processing stages in the Atkinson-Shiffrin model are sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory. This model has since been updated to include two important concepts: (1) automatic processing, which occurs behind the scenes to allow information to slip into long-term memory without the need to consciously attend to it; and (2) working memory, the active "scratch pad" processing that occurs in the short-term memory stage.

LOQ 23-5: How does sensory memory work?

Sensory memory feeds some information into working memory for active processing there. An iconic memory is a very brief (a few tenths of a second) sensory memory of visual stimuli; an echoic memory is a three- or four-second sensory memory of auditory stimuli.

LOQ 23-6: What is our short-term memory capacity?

Short-term memory capacity is about seven bits of information, plus or minus two, but this information disappears from memory quickly without rehearsal. Our working memory capacity for active processing varies, depending on age and other factors, but everyone does better and more efficient work by avoiding task-switching.

TRUE OR FALSE: Spaced study and self-assessment beat cramming and rereading

TRUE

What does research tell us about remembering vs recalling?

Tests of recognition and of time spent relearning demonstrate that we remember more than we can recall.

RP-3 How does the working memory concept update the classic Atkinson-Shiffrin three-stage information-processing model?

The Atkinson-Shiffrin model viewed short-term memory as a temporary holding space for briefly storing recent thoughts and experiences. The newer idea of working memory expands our understanding of Atkinson-Shiffrin's short-term memory stage, emphasizing the conscious, active processing that takes place as the brain makes sense of new experiences and links them with our long-term memories.

LOQ 23-3: How do explicit and implicit memories differ?

The human brain processes information on dual tracks, consciously and unconsciously. Many explicit (declarative) memories—our conscious memories of facts and experiences—form through effortful processing, which requires conscious effort and attention. Implicit (nondeclarative) memories—of learned skills and classically conditioned associations—happen without our awareness, through automatic processing.

Is Atkinson and Shiffrin's model still relevant?

The model has been updated with newer concepts, including working memory and automatic processing.

How long does our working memory last?

Working memory capacity varies, depending on age and other factors. *Young adults tend to have greater working memory capacity- the ability to juggle multiple items while processing information -than do children and adults. -this helps young adults to better retain information and to solve problems creatively

RP-4 What are two basic functions of working memory?

Working memory's two basic functions are active integration of new information with existing long-term memories and focusing of our spotlight of attention.

How can you maximize your studying/learning?

You can profit from taking time to find personal meaning in what you are studying. -the time you spend thinking about material you are reading and relating it to previously stored material is about the most useful thing you can do in learning any new subject matter.

mnemonics [nih-MON-iks]

[nih-MON-iks] memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices. (p. 298)

echoic memory

a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds. (p. 296)

iconic memory

a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second. (p. 296)

working memory

a newer understanding of short-term memory that adds conscious, active processing of both incoming sensory information and of information retrieved from long-term memory. (p. 295)

Alzheimer's disease

a progressive and irreversible brain disorder characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, language, and, finally, physical functioning - begins as difficulty remembering new information - progresses to an inability to do everyday tasks

The concept of working memory: a. clarifies the idea of short-term memory by focusing on the active processing that occurs in this stage. b. splits short-term memory into two substages—sensory memory and iconic memory. c. splits short-term memory into two types: implicit and explicit memory. d. clarifies the idea of short-term memory by focusing on space, time, and frequency.

a.

connectionism

an information-processing model that views memories as products of interconnected neural networks -specific memories arise from particular activation patterns within these networks -every time you learn something new, your brain's neural connections change (neuroplasticity) forming and strengthening pathways that allow you to interact with and learn from your constantly changing environment.

What kind of processing is not conscious, and what kind of memories does it produce?

automatic processing, implicit (nondeclarative) memories

short-term memory

briefly activated memory of a few items (such as digits of a phone number while calling) that is later stored or forgotten. (p. 294)

hierarchies

composed of a few broad concepts divided and subdivided into narrower concepts and facts

We retain information better when our encoding is

distributed over time

Automatic processing happens...

effortlessly ex. seeing words on a truck and reading/registering them -learning to read wasn't automatic, but with experience and practice, it became automatic

shallow processing

encoding on a basic level, based on the structure or appearance of words. (p. 301) -encodes on an elementary level, such as a word's letters or, at a more intermediate level, a word's sound. -we may type there when we mean their, write when we mean right, and two when we mean too.

deep processing

encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the words; tends to yield the best retention. (p. 301) -the deeper (more meaningful) the processing, the better our retention

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort. (p. 296)

Three stages of information processing

encoding, storage, retrieval

The psychological terms for taking in information, retaining it, and later getting it back out are _________ , __________ , and _________ .

encoding; storage; retrieval.

testing effect

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information. Also referred to as a retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning. (pp. 17, 298)

Atkinson and Shiffrin's model focuses on how we process

explicit memories

What does our two-track mind do?

helps us encode, retain, and retrieve information through both effortful and automatic tracks.

What kind of memory did Sperling's experiment demonstrate?

iconic memory -a fleeting sensory memory of visual stimuli -for a few tenths of a second, our eyes register a picture-image memory of a scene, and we can recall any part of it in amazing detail, but delaying the tone signal by more than half a second caused the image to fade and memory to suffer.

Sensory memory may be visual ( __________ memory) or auditory ( _________ memory).

iconic; echoic.

example of echoic memory

if you haven't been paying close attention, and your teacher says "What did I just say?" you maybe able to recall the last few words though you were not consciously listening to them -auditory echoes tend to linger for 3 or 4 seconds

What does working memory reflect?

intelligence level -those who can juggle the most metal balls tended in everyday life to exhibit high intelligence and an ability to maintain their focus.

Ebbinghaus's memory experiment

memorizing 3 letter nonsense syllables, measure time to learn/relearn. -the more frequently he repeated the list aloud on Day 1, the less time he required to relearn the list on Day 2.

What does our response speed when recalling, recognizing, or relearning information indicate?

memory strength

Memory aids that use visual imagery or other organizational devices are called _________ .

mnemonics.

information processing model

model of memory that assumes the processing of information for memory storage is similar to the way a computer processes memory in a series of three stages

What impacts working memory?

nature and nurture Nature: heredity is thought to explain about half the person-to-person variation in working memory Nurture: children exposed to stressful situations tend to have poorer working memory as adults. Even momentary mental fatigue can reduce our working memory capacity.

What does chunking do?

organizes items into familiar, manageable units and enables us to recall it more easily

chunking

organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically. (p. 298)

Hermann Ebbinghaus (1850-1909)

pioneered memory research

our implicit memories include

procedural memory for automatic skills (such as how to ride a bike) and classically conditioned associations among stimuli.

parallel processing

processing many aspects of a stimulus or problem simultaneously. (pp. 93, 228, 294)

Richard Atkinson and Richard Shiffrin (1968, 2016)

proposed a three-stage information-processing model

What are two qualities of our recognition memory?

quick and vast

What are the three retention measures?

recall, recognition, relearning

A psychologist who asks you to write down as many objects as you can remember having seen a few minutes earlier is testing your _________ .

recall.

RP-1 Multiple-choice questions test our . Fill-in-the-blank questions test our _________ .

recognition; recall.

One effective way to distribute practice is

repeated self-testing (testing effect)

How can we avoid significant mismatches in recalling/remembering information?

rephrase what we hear and see into meaningful terms

explicit (declarative) memory

retention of facts and experiences that we can consciously know and "declare." (Also called declarative memory.) (p. 296)

implicit memory

retention of learned skills or classically conditioned associations independent of conscious recollection. (Also called nondeclarative memory.) (p. 296)

People from collectivist Eastern cultures tend to remember

self-relevant and family relevant information equally well

RP-6 At which of Atkinson-Shiffrin's three memory stages would iconic and echoic memory occur?

sensory memory.

Our short-term memory for new information is limited to about ________ bits of information.

seven.

How does our brain process information?

simultaneously (some things unconsciously), by means of parallel processing

What reduces working memory for everyone?

task-switching -everyone does better and more efficient work when focused, without distractions, on one task at a time.

self-reference effect

tendency to better remember information relevant to ourselves -especially strong in individualist Western cultures

sensory memory

the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system. (p. 294)

memory

the persistence of learning over time through the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information. (p. 293)

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless archive of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences. (p. 294)

spacing effect

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice. (p. 298)

What evidence suggests that learning persists?

three retention measures

How do we encode explicit memories?

through conscious effortful processing

automatic processing

unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of familiar or well-learned information, such as sounds, smells, and word meanings. (p. 296)

How long does our short-term memory last?

unless rehearsed, verbal information may be quickly forgotten

If new information is neither meaningful nor related to our experience, how does it affect our processing?

we have trouble processing it

When asked later what we heard/read,

we recall not the literal text but what we encoded -you may remember your lecture notes rather than the lecture itself