Chapter 11: Visual Knowledge

When do people use one type of imagery over the other?

1) either form of imagery will work generally 2) depends on task 3) depends on individual's ability level (ex. poor spatializers, good visualizers)

Why does imagery help memory?

1) imagery provides means of organizing materials 2) dual coding: imageable material such as high-imagery words will be doubly represented in memory (word & "pic")

An image preserves the spatial layout of the represented scene and this rather directly represents the geometry go the scene. This suggest that mental imagery is more similar to (description or depiction)?

Depiction

What have chronometric studies shown about the difference between prominent features given a description or depiction?

Description: features that are prominent will be those that are distinctive and strongly assoc. with the object being described Depiction: size and position will determine what features are prominent

(T/F) Percepts (mental representations of the stimuli we are perceiving) are completely like pictures.

False; percepts can be like pictures, but they are also different.

it takes (more, less, or equal) amount of time to imagine something rotating 80 degrees , than it does to imagine it rotating 40 degrees

More

What are chronometric studies?

Studies that allow us to ask what sorts of information is prominent in a mental image and what sorts are not; how picture-like are mental images

How are percepts like pictures?

They show directly what a stimulus looks like

(T/F) Are there mental processes that are involved in both perceiving and imaging?

True

(T/F) Do people differ in their capability of forming visual images?

True

(T/F) Does travel in the imaged world resemble travel in the real world (in regard to timing)?

True

(T/F) People can imagine 3D rotations as easily as they can imagine 2D rotations.

True

(T/F) People who claim to have vivid imagery do perform better on visual tasks.

True

(T/F) Visualization primes perception? Perception primes visualization?

True

How does an imager know how to construct the image?

Use of image files in long-term memory; each file contains information necessary to construct the image; this information is in form of "sentences" /instructions (so not pictorial)

Do people actually use the strategy of reflecting time through sequence by imaging a line with past events to the left and future events to the right? (Y/N)? What observation tells us this?

Yes, people with neglect syndrome consistently failed to remember past events because they overlooked events in the left side of the line

What is demand character?

cues that might signal how they (participants)are supposed behave in a particular situation

Imagery mnemonics are only helpful if they show the objects ----

interacting

What is one way imagery can help memory?

materials that evoke imagery is considerable easier to remember than that that doesn't

It has been suggested that there are two types of memories stored in long term memory. What are they?

memories that represent symbolic (or verbal) material and memories that represents imaged-based materials

Imaging (visualization) and perception (vision) both rely on tissue located in the --- cortex

occipital (pg 400-401)

What is eidetic imagery?

photographic imagery

Visual information in long-term memory is represented via...

propositions that provide a "recipe"/set of instructions to construct the image OR verbal labels

Forming a visual image interferes with --- and forming an auditory image interferes with ---.

seeing; hearing

Blind people use (visual or spatial) imagery?

spatial

(T/F) Visual memory (like memory in general) is heavily influenced by schema-based generic knowledge.

true

What is binocular rivalry?

when a different stimulus/pattern is presented to each eye, your visual system is unable to combine the inputs so your awareness of the patterns jumps from one pattern to the other; the sequence of this awareness can be shaped by visualization

What is boundary extension? How does it relate to picture memory?

Boundary extension is when people remember a picture as including more than it actually did, in effect extending the boundaries of the picture

Normal-eyesight people use (visual or spatial) imagery?

Both

Which mode of presentation (description or depiction) is used for mental imagery?

Both; people have the option of thinking about an object via imagery (depiction) and also without imagery (description); as the mode of representation changes, so does the pattern of info availability

How can verbal labels influence visual memory?

If a person is presented with a figure and a verbal label, they will likely remember the verbal label and not the drawing itself; when asked to recreate the picture, they are likely to base their drawing on the verbal label

How does visualization affect binocular rivalry?

If you visualize a specific pattern , this pattern will dominate (be perceived earlier/longer) in subsequent binocular rivalry presentation

There are exception to the notion that a disruption in perception will cause a disruption in imagery. Why are there exceptions?

Imagery can be divided into two types: visual and spatial. Visual imagery relies on brain areas also needed for vision, therefore a problem in visual perception will cause a problem in visual imagery. HOWEVER, spatial imagery relies on different areas of the brain than visual perception, therefore, damage to visual areas will not interfere with spatial imagery

Explain how images are stored in memory.

Images are stored in memory in a piecemeal (piece-by-piece) fashion: 1) activation of nodes specifying the "image frame" which depicts the form's global shape 2) Elaboration are added to the frame to create the full/detailed image

What are some observations that support the claim that images are stored in memory in a piecemeal fashion?

Images containing more parts take longer to create; images containing more detail take longer to create; imagers have some degree of control over how complete or detailed their images will be

If a task can be done either spatially or visually, then is there a difference in the ability of mental imaging between vivid imagers and nonimagers? (Y/N)

No

Do visual imagery and spatial imagery use the same brain areas?(Y/N)

No; brain areas activated for visual tasks are different from different from those activated by spatial tasks

Are visual images like pictures? (Y/N) Explain why.

No; what people see in their image is not a "picture" -- as in it is NOT neutral with regard to interpretation and open to interpretation-- Visual images are like percepts in that they are organized and unambiguous and resistant to reinterpretation

How are percepts not like pictures?

Percepts are organized and not ambiguous.

Can memories be influenced by the knowledge of what "should" be in a specific scene or picture? (Y/N)

Yes

Do the blind have normal imagery function? (Y/N)

Yes

Does neglect syndrome also affect visual imagery? (Y/N)

Yes

If brain damage causes you to lose the ability to visually perceive something (ex. fine detail/color), then can your ability to visualize this be affected?

Yes, if you lose your ability to perceive color/fine detail, then you may not be able to visualize these aspects either