Module 31

Discuss how the self-reference effect aids recall.

Information deemed "relevant to me" is processed more deeply and remains more accessible.

Explain how organizing new material into categories helps us recall it.

It is easier to retrieve information organized into categories (remember the hanging file folder "Mythical winter figures"). When words are organized into categories, recall is two to three times better.

Define sensory memory.

It is the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system. This is often "fleeting." It comes before processing into short-term memory.

which of the following is the most accurate description of the capacity of short-term and working memory?

can handle about a half dozen items total

shallow processing

encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words

deep processing

encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the words; tends to yield the best retention

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

testing effect

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information

chunking

organizing items into familiar, manageable units

implicit memory

retention independent of conscious recollection

***Compare the definition of memory to the definition of learning

that memory is the persistence of learning.

parallel processing

the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrasts with the step-by-step (serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving.

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system

retrieval

the process of getting information out of memory storage

How do the terms declarative and nondeclarative apply to explicit and implicit memory? Provide your own example for each category.

Declarative memories are those we can consciously know and declare—these are explicit memories, such as episodic memory (my 6th birthday party) and semantic memory (George Washington was president of the United States). Nondeclarative memories are those that happen without our awareness and are implicit memories and could include procedural memory (how to ride a bike).

Define and give an example of parallel processing.

Parallel processing is the brain's natural mode of information processing. Here, you process many aspects of a problem or situation simultaneously, and sometimes partly unconsciously.

Explain, using examples and definitions, how shallow processing differs from deep processing.

Shallow processing encodes on a very basic level—using a word's letters or sounds, for instance. Deep processing encodes semantically, based on the meaning of the words or connections that can be made with the words to previous experiences, memories, and so on.

How does the spacing effect relate to distributed practice and recall?

Spacing study sessions regularly throughout the course—distributing practice of the material—leads to greater recall. Massed practice (cramming) can produce speedy short-term learning but also results in speedy forgetting. To actually LEARN, slow, steady review of material over a long period of time = mastery and recall.

Discuss why it is more advantageous to practice retrieval of information than to reread material.

The testing effect shows that challenging the brain to retrieve information is a more successful way to learn. Rereading over and over lulls you into thinking you "know" the material but the only way to en- sure you KNOW it is to try to retrieve it—if you can, you DO!

How can effortful processing become more automatic over time?

Through practice and experience

How does meaning help aid retrieval or reduce the encoding time and effort?

We need context to be better able to retrieve information—knowing the meaning of an arbitrary paragraph, for example, better enabled students to recall the text of the paragraph.

What have we learned about our ability to focus on more than one event at a time? Support your answer with an example from your own life.

When we do two things at once, we don't do either of them as well as when we do one thing at a time.

echoic memory

a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimu- li; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds

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

working memory

a newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial informa- tion, and of information retrieved from long-term memory

sensory memory

the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system

memory

the persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information

Your memory of which of the following is an example of implicit memory?

which way to turn the car key to start the engine

Imagine you are trying to remember a math formula. Using Figure 31.2, show how each of the stages in the model would be applied to memorize the math formula.

• External event: being presented with the formula and moving it to sensory memory; the components of the formula being the sensory input • Encoding the formula by attending to the information and moving it to the STM/working memory, where you will see how it would be applied to a problem, compare it to other formulas you have learned, label it, and so on • Storing the formula in LTM and then retrieving it for use in the STM/working memory while you use it for an exam problem, for example

Devise a mnemonic device to remember the four lobes of the brain (learned in Unit II).

Anything that includes frontal, temporal, occipital and parietal would be accepted.

Define the Atkinson and Shiffrin model of memory and the information-processing model. Compare how Atkinson and Shiffrin's model of memory is similar to and dissimilar from the information-processing model. Which model do you most agree with and why?

Atkinson and Shiffrin: Record information as sensory memory, process it into short-term memory, move it into long-term memory Information-processing: Get information in (encode), retain it (storage), get it out (retrieval) The information-processing model is similar in that it requires encoding to move material from the sensory memory to the STM and the LTM and retrieving still occurs from LTM to STM. Storage in the information-processing model is LTM in the Atkinson and Shiffrin model.

List and give three examples of effortful processing strategies.

Chunking, mnemonics, hierarchies, and distributed practice.

Discuss how echoic and iconic memory operate in sensory memory. Provide examples of each in your own life.

Echoic memory is a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli where sounds and words can still be recalled within 3-4 seconds even if your attention is elsewhere. Iconic memory is a momentary sen- sory memory of visual stimuli where you can recall a photographic or picture-image memory.

Katrina is a talkative student in your class. The teacher is halfway through a detailed explanation of the causes of the Civil War when Katrina leans over to tell you about a joke she saw online. The teacher stops in the middle of her explanation and accuses Katrina of not listening. Katrina defensively retorts, "I was listen- ing and I can prove it. You just said the most significant cause of the Civil War was the inequity in wealth between the slave-holding states and the non-slave-holding states." The teacher apologized because that was indeed what she had just said. Katrina smirked in victory, but as a psychology student, you understand that something else occurred. Explain why Katrina was able to repeat word-for-word what the teacher had been saying.

Echoic memory. Katrina is actually still hearing the echoes of the teacher's words. Auditory echoes tend to linger for 3 or 4 seconds.

Explain why "working memory" is a more useful term for the way we process memory.

Explain why "working memory" is a more useful term for the way we process memory. The term working memory reflects what we are doing to move memory from the sensory register to the LTM—we have to work with it, make connections, rehearse it, and actively process it. It also reflects what we are doing with the retrieved information. As with the file folder analogy, this file is out and open on the desk and we are using it for the project or exam or conversation we are having and when we are done working with it, we will file it away again (LTM).

Explain how explicit and implicit memories are produced and processed. Be sure to discuss how the two types of memory are different.

Explicit memories for the facts and experiences we know are processed through conscious, effortful processing. Implicit memories for the skills and conditioning we have acquired are processed automatically.

Teachers are sometimes asked to put their classroom lecture notes online for students to view later. According to Sparrow et al., why might this result in decreased memory for the material?

In an experiment where people typed new information they would need later and knew the information would be available online later, they invested less energy in remembering and then remembered the ma- terial less well. They did not "work" with the new information in order to move it from working memory to LTM.

Compare the capacity of short-term memory to that of working memory.

In short-term memory, we can recall about seven information bits (give or take two) if nothing distracts us. Working-memory capacity varies by age and other factors. Young adults have more working-memory capacity compared with children and older adults.

Janice, a classmate in your psychology class, wants to improve her memory for the material in the course. She has been staying up late, pulling all-night study sessions the night before tests, and getting up early to reread the chapter before quizzes. Use the concepts of the spacing effect, the testing effect, and deep processing to advise Janice of a better way to study

Spacing effect: She should study smaller portions of the material each day. Spacing out her studying instead of cramming gives more time for encoding and produces better long-term recall. Testing effect: She should repeatedly test herself. Practicing retrieving material rather than just rereading it results in higher recall. Deep processing: She should study the material based on the meaning of the words—or semantically.

How has research on memory's extremes helped us understand how memory works?

Studying cases of people with high and low functioning memory gives us clues to what is possible and also what is lacking when certain structures are impacted, such as with a stroke.

Explain how chunking could be used to remember this long string of letters: TSAFBICIAIRSNSADOJDOE

TSA FBI CIA IRS NSA DOJ DOE These are all acronyms for government agencies and if chunked in groups of three they will make only seven items to remember, which is well within the capacity of the 7 +/- 2 limits of the short-term memory.

short-term memory

activated memory that holds a few items briefly before the information is stored or forgotten

Explain why chunking and mnemonic devices are useful in aiding memory.

chucking organizes items into familiar, manageable units which enables us to recall it more easily; mnemonics are memory aids-ex HOMES- Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior (Great Lakes)

The analogy of a computer system is often used to illustrate the different parts of memory. The keyboard is where we encode new information, the CPU (or main hard drive) is where we store information, and the monitor is where we retrieve information. How could a file cabinet full of file folders fit the analogy above?

encoding: keyboard- encoding: Write on a piece of paper and place it into a manila file folder Example: a poem about Santa Claus storage: CPU-Label the folder and place it into a file cabinet in a hanging file folder labeled with the subject Example: Label the folder Santa Clause and place it into a hanging file folder labeled "Mythical winter figures" retrieval: monitor-Open the file cabinet, flip to the appropriate hanging file, and go to the specific manila file folder to access the paper. Example: Flip to "mythical winter figures" and browse through files until you locate "Santa Claus," then pull it out to read the poem. Define and give an example of parallel processing.

mnemonics

memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices

explicit memory

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare"

Caitlin, a fifth grader, is asked to remember her second-grade teacher's name. What measure of retention will Caitlin use to answer this question?

recall

Working memory is most active during which portion of the information-processing model?

short-term memory

explain how we automatically process: space, time, frequency. How can effortful processing become more automatic over time?

space time frequency Effortful processing can become automatic through practice and experience.

storage

the process of retaining encoded information over time

encoding

the processing of information into the memory system—for example, by extracting meaning.

spacing effect

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice

which of the following is most likely to lead to semantic encoding of a list of words?

thinking about how the words likely to lead to semantic encoding of a list of words

automatic processing

unconscious encoding of incidental information such as time, space and frequency