AP PSYCH: Memory

How can the way a question is asked about a car accident cause mistaken memories?

(1) If a lawyer wants a witness to remember the cars as going faster than they were, he asks: "How fast were the cars going when they SMASHED into each other?" (2) If a lawyer wants a witness to remember the cars as going slower than they were, he asks: "How fast were the cars going when they BUMPED into each other?" - The witness is less likely to remember correctly because of the way the question is framed (worded).

Every day as she walks to school, Susana passes a mural painted on the side of a building. However, when asked, she says she does not remember ever seeing it. Which of the following is the best explanation for this occurrence?

* Susana has not paid attention to the incoming information so it was not encoded into long-term memory

Tim, a third-grader, learns the sentence "George Eats Old Gray Rats And Paints Houses Yellow" to help him remember the spelling of "geography." Tim is using

* a mnemonic device

Rachelle's car would not start. To find the problem, she decided to go alphabetically through the repair checklist of all the possible reasons that the car will not start. Rachelle's strategy best demonstrates.

* an algorithm

Encoding that occurs with no effort of a minimal level of conscious attention is known as

* automatic processing

Which one deals with making a decision (probably incorrectly) by using the easiest memory?

* availability heuristic

Which one deals with an incorrect belief, but not with making a decision?

* belief perserverance

Barry cites his cousin Felicity's many car accidents as evidence that women are worse drivers than men. He overlooks the fact that his wife and three daughters have had far fewer car accidents than he and his two sons. Barry's prejudicial conclusion about women's driving skills best illustrates the effects of

* confirmation bias

Effortful processing can occur only with

* conscious attention

The process of getting information into memory is called

* encoding

Brainstorming sessions that encourage people to spontaneously suggest new and unusual solutions to a problem are designed to avoid

* fixations

Which one deals with trying to solve a problem but not being able to do so because you can't see a new way to use a familiar object?

* functional fixedness

The address for obtaining tickets to a popular quiz show flashes on the TV screen, but the image disappears before Sergei has had a chance to write down the complete address. To his surprise, however, he has retained a momentary mental image of the five-digit zip code. His experience best illustrates ________ memory.

* iconic

The sudden comprehension of the double meaning of a humorous pun best illustrates

* insight

In elementary school and high school, Ivan got away with copying his test answers from classmates. Because the college has test proctors who are very observant, Ivan spends as many hours devising new ways to cheat as it would take him to study and perform well in an honest fashion. Ivan's strategy for passing tests illustrates the consequences of

* mental set

Which one deals with trying to solve a problem by using the same method, even though it is inefficient and not the best way, because it does eventually work?

* mental set

The various vowel sounds that can be placed between a t and an n produce words such as tan, ten, tin, and ton. These various vowel sounds represent different

* phonemes

When someone mentions hamburgers, Trisha immediately thinks of McDonald's. In this instance, McDonald's is a

* prototype

The process of getting information out of memory is called

* retrieval

The use of heuristics rather than algorithms is most likely to

* save time in arriving at solutions to problems

Which of the following was cited by Whorf as evidence in support of the linguistic determinism hypothesis?

* the Hopi cannot readily think about the past because their language has no past tense for verbs.

Memory is best defined as

* the persistence of learning through the storage and retrieval of information

Miss Jan De Jong is orderly, neat, fairly quiet, and shy. She enjoys reading in her spare time and belongs to a social club that includes three librarians, nine real estate agents, and eight social workers. A tendency to conclude that Jan must be one of the three librarians would illustrate the powerful influence of

* the representative heuristic

Cognitive psychologists are most directly concerned with ____________.

* thinking

While your Mom is lecturing you about cleaning your room, you lose concentration. Then, suddenly you hear the significant words, "no car keys." When she asks, "Are you listening to me?" you are able to repeat the last few things she said before mentioning car keys. Which of the following best explains this phenomenon?

* words stored in echoic memory will last for 3 to 4 seconds, so you can still recall her words

How large is short-term memory?

7 plus or minus 2 "bits" of information - You can take in about 7 numbers or short words at one time, but not much more. This is why old 7-digit phone numbers were easy to remember, but most people have to write down 10-digit numbers with area codes.

If a meat manufacturer wants to sell a package of meat that is 15% percent fat to a health-conscious public, how should the manufacturer advertise his product?

85% fat free - Sounds much better than 15% fat, even though they're the same

How long do memories last in short-term memory?

A few seconds

Forgetting curve

As time elapses since learning, the retention (%) declines.

If a first grader decides "I'm not very smart," how might belief perseverance keep her from changing her mind?

Belief perseverance will keep her from changing her mind because she will not believe that she is smart even if she gets a perfect score. Even though this evidence contradicts her beliefs, it can strengthen them.

How can repeated questioning cause mistaken memories?

Children believe that if a police officer keeps asking something, it must be true. So they unconsciously create false memories. Ex. "Remember" child abuse that never happened

Which is usually more effective, massed practice ("cramming") or distributed practice (the spacing effect)?

Distributed practice is usually better - Studying over several sessions usually works better than on all-night "cramming" session

Recall

ESSAY EXAM - You must recreate the answer from memory

Effortful processing

Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort. Most memory requires effortful processing ex. Study for an exam

Another name for episodic memory is _________ memory.

Explicit

Another name for semantic memory is _________ memory.

Explicit

Sensory Memory

For a few seconds, your eyes and your eyes take in and remember a large number of stimuli - much more than you realize.

Anterograde amnesia?

Forget current events. Ex. Young man keeps forgetting he is now in a hospital.

Retrograde amnesia?

Forget past events. Ex. Young man forgets his friend drowned 2 weeks ago.

How can imagery help when you're studying?

Forming a mental picture (image) of what you are trying to memorize can help you remember it better.

How long do memories last in long-term memory?

From a handful of seconds, to years, to your entire life.

In problem-solving, what does fixation mean?

Getting stuck on one way to solve a problem and not finding a much better way.

Relearning

HOW MUCH TIME IT TAKES TO RELEARN MATERIAL YOU LEARNED IN THE PAST BUT HAVE FORGOTTEN - Review fro the AP Psych exam or midterm exam. If you learned it better, it will take less time to relearn it.

The amygdala

Helps you remember emotions and what causes them. Ex. You know you are afraid of spiders. Little Albert knows he is afraid of tame rabbits, rats, and fur coats.

The cerebellum

Helps you remember how to do something (procedural memory, implicit memory) - When you make the right play in your sport without thinking about it, you're using your cerebellum. - Thus there are three different kinds of memory controlled by different parts of your brain.

Framing

How a question or statement is worded (framed) will influence your decision.

How large is long-term memory?

Huge. It has room for everything you'll ever need to remember. - You NEVER forget something because you ran out of room in your long-term memory.

Chomsky's concept of a language acquisition device argues that the ability to learn language is _________: our ability to learn language is facilitated by a sort of "switch box," where what we learn (e.g., adjectives come first in English but second in Spanish) flips the appropriate switch. Skinner disagrees; he believes that language can be explained entirely by ________ and operant conditioning.

INBORN, LEARNING

The two kinds of sensory memory are ____________ and ___________.

Iconic (visual), echoic (hearing)

Another name for procedural memory is _______ memory.

Implicit

Overgeneralization (overregulation) of language?

Incorrectly applying a rule of grammar. Ex. "I goed to school." "I saw the mouses." - These are mistakes that young children often make.

What is short-term memory (working memory, primary memory) used for?

It is a processing area. Information is here for a very short time while you decide whether or not to memorize it. Short-term memory is not used to store (keep) information. - It is where you currently think and work with your thoughts so working memory is a better term

What is long-term memory (secondary memory) used for?

It is where you store (keep information). It is your only storage area. - Any time you remember something longer than a few seconds, it is in your long-term memory

What is amnesia?

Loss of memory. Forget events in your life. - Amnesia may be caused by physical injury to the brain or caused by a traumatic event. Physical injuries are less likely to be cured, although this depends on their severity.

Recognition

MULTIPLE CHOICE EXAM - The right answer is on the page, and you must recognize it

Schema

Mental frameworks for organizing and interpreting information - Often involves putting things into categories: Ex. 4-year old: "All 4-legged animals are dogs." She sees a golden retriever for the first time a and says "doggy." She sees a cat for the first time and says "doggy." 6-year old child: "Some 4-legged animals are dogs, some are cats." 10-year old child: "Some dogs are safe to pet, some are dangerous."

How do you get material to go from sensory memory into short-term memory?

Pay attention to it Ex. When you look at this sentence, it goes from your sensory memory to your short-term memory. Other sentences for the moment are ignored.

Suppose you learn French as a freshmen and Spanish as a junior. When you take a Spanish test, you make the mistake of using a French word. What kind of interference is this?

Proactive interference

The hippocampus

Processes recent memories (from the past month) dealing with facts or events (explicit memory). Ex. Memorizing a definition. Remembering what you did last Saturday.

What is chunking? How can it help when you're studying?

Putting things in more meaningful units helps you remember them. Ex. (1) Remembering multiple single digits as larger numbers (e.g. 1, 7, 7, 6 as 1776) (2) Organizing a shopping list by forming categories. Meats: steak, chicken, hamburger; Vegetables: potatoes, peas, broccoli; Beverages: lemonade, milk * It is easier to remember fewer things, which will help when studying. Remembering three small lists can be easier than remembering one large one.

Give an example of how cues can help retrieve information from long-term memory?

ROYGBIV. This acronym helps you encode (acquire) the 7 colors of the spectrum, and it also helps you retrieve the right colors. You will say Red (R is a cue) but you won't say purple.

How do you get material that you are studying to go from short-term memory into long-term memory?

Rehearse it. Overlearn it. Use chunking. Use acronyms like ROYGBIV, use the method of loci.

Episodic memory

Remember an event Ex. You remember what happened at a party or game

Procedural memory?

Remember how to do something. Ex. You remember how to make the right play in a sport of how to play your musical instrument.

Semantic memory

Remember what something means Ex. Remember (and understand) definitions or facts for an exam.

What is rehearsal? How can it help when you're studying?

Repeating information (perhaps out loud) over and over again. - The more you rehearse, the better you'll remember something, as for an exam. Active studying (rehearsing, taking notes) is more effective than passively reading.

Suppose you learn French as a freshman and Spanish as a junior. When you visit France, you make the mistake of using a Spanish word. What kind of interference is this?

Retroactive interference

Grammar

Rules of language that enable us to understand each other. - Semantics and syntax are rules of grammar.

What is the difference between semantics and syntax?

SEMANTICS: Rules of meaning SYNTAX: Rules of order Ex. In English we say "white house" In Spanish we say "casa blanca

Insight

Suddenly realizing the answer to a problem "EUREKA!" Ex. Kohler's experiment with a monkey in a cage. Outside the cage are a banana that's too far away to reach and short and a long stick: CAGE SHORT STICK LONG STICK BANANA -----> Monkey must use a short stick to pull in a long stick, and then use the long stick to pull in the banana. The monkey's face lights up just before it solves the problem, suggesting insight in animals.

Prototype

The best example of a category. Ex. Genius ----> Einstein

According to Whorf's linguistic relativity (linguistic determinism) hypothesis, how do the different languages used in different cultures affect how people think and form ideas?

The more words a language has for a concept, the most sophisticated ways we can think about it. Ex. Eskimos has 5 words for "snow" If there is no word for a concept in a language, you can't even think about it.

Morpheme

The smallest unit of meaning in a language - Memory aid: morpheme = memory Ex. "ed" added to many verbs forms the past tense "s" added to words makes them plural

Phoneme

The smallest unit of sound in language. "Phoentic" refers to sound. Ex. The word "cat" has 3 phonemes: - hard k sound (c) - "ah" sound (a) - "t" sound (t)

Cognition means ___________.

Thinking

Heuristic

Use a short cut when solving a problem to save time. - Example of a good heuristic: "HRIAC." Do NOT write down any combinations beginning with HR or HC. No 5-letter English word begins with these letters. - Example of a bad heuristic: Do NOT write down any combinations that begin with 2 consonants. Saves time but will omit the correct answer, which DOES begin with 2 consonants (CHAIR). * Heuristics save time (compared to algorithms) but risk getting the wrong answer.

Misinformation effect

When repeatedly given false information by someone you trust, you may unconsciously create memories of something that never happened. Ex. (1) Jean Piaget: Told by a maid he saved her from being kidnapped when he was five years old, he eventually "remembered" it. (2) Elizabeth Loftus: Told her she found her mother's dead body in her swimming pool by her uncle, she eventually remembered it.

Confirmation bias

When seeking an answer or doing research, you only accept information that you already agree with and reject good information that you disagree with.

What is overlearning? How can it help when you're studying?

When you rehearse something you already know. - It's important to overlearn in order to retain material and execute tasks successfully.

Synapses between nerves in the brain and the neurotransmitter acetylcholine

When you remember things, the nerve cells in your brain communicate more effectively (like cell phones where reception is excellent). *Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter that helps memory (Acetylcholine is lacking in Alzheimer's disease) Ex. When you remember a definition very well, it is easier for nerve #1 to communication with nerve #2, nerve #2 with nerve #3, etc. Memory is usually NOT a specific location or "mailbox."

Hormones produced when emotional or excited

When you're emotional, hormones "burn" information into your brain, so it is easier to remember.

Algorithm

Write down every possible answer to a problem. - Guarantees getting the correct answer but it takes a long time. Ex. What 5-letter word is "HRIAC?" Write down all 120 combinations of the 5 letters. One will be right.

Representative heuristic

You have a decision by comparing something to a prototype. If it matches the prototype, you do one thing. If it doesn't, you do something else. - May lead to a correct or incorrect decision

Belief perserverance

You keep believing something that is incorrect, even though you are given good evidence to the contrary. - Differs from confirmation bias in that you're not seeking an answer or doing research.

Mental set

You keep using the same inefficient method because it eventually does work, and you overlook a much better method. Ex. "I can only make a left turn from the left turn lane."

Automatic processing

You made no effort to memorize this, but you remember this. ex. You remember what you had for dinner last night.

Avaliability heuristic

You make a decision based on what is easiest to remember (what is most available in your memory) Ex. You vote against a candidate based on a very negative AD you recently saw on TV. - It usually leads to an incorrect decision because you don't think clearly enough

How can source amnesia cause mistaken memories?

You may remember an event correctly, but attribute it to the wrong source. Ex. Ronald Reagan: Believed a heroic pilot in WWII voluntarily died in a crash to keep trapped gunner company and was awarded the Metal of Honor for doing so.

If you're a general manager for a professional sports team, how might the representative heuristic cause you to make a mistake when selecting a player for your team in the college draft?

You refuse to draft a short basketball player. - The prototype of a basketball player is tall, and the short player does not match the prototype. ----> You will often be right. But sometimes you'll be wrong: Muggsy Bogues and Calvin Murphy were good (and short).

What is a flashbulb memory?

You remember a single scene for a long time. Ex. You remember the moment when you first heard about 9/11.

If you decide the first time you meet someone that he/she is someone you won't like, how might confirmation bias prevent you from discovering that you're wrong?

You remember the few things he/she does wrong, and ignore the many things he/she does right.

Functional fixedness

You see an object as having only its usual use, so you overlook a creative way to use the object that would solve your problem. Ex. You don't realize you can use a coin as a screwdriver.

Retroactive interference

You want to say something you learned a long time ago, but you incorrectly say something you learned recently. Error = NEW material

Proactive interference

You want to say something you learned recently, but you incorrectly say something you learned long ago. Error = OLD material. Ex. You just moved to California. You give someone your Miami telephone number instead of your California number. Error = OLD phone number.

Why might a psychologist who wants to study memory prefer to use nonsense syllables such as JIH, BAZ, and FUB rather than actual words?

a. If you use non words, you are testing new memories, if you use familiar words, you are testing recalled memories b. If real words like "cat" are used, people who like cats will remember that words more easily

Memory

a. When learning last for a period of time b. The ability to store and retrieve information

Mnemonics are

aids to memory ex. rehearsal, overlearning, acronyms like ROYGBIV, creating songs, creating a story

The serial position effect means that right after you have learned a list of nonsense syllables or words, you'll remember best the items at the _________, and at the ________ if the list. Remembering the items at the beginning of a list is called the _________ effect. Remembering the items at the end of a list is called the _________ effect.

beginning, end, primacy, recency

In the information-processing model, the process of getting information into memory is called __________ or _________. Maintaining information in memory is called _________. Getting information our of memory is called _________.

encoding, acquisition, storage, retrieval

When you use semantic encoding, you process something into memory by learning its ________, which will help you remember it better.

meaning

Reconstructive memory

unconsciously filling in the gaps in your memory with incorrect information. Ex. Psychologist remembers hearing a baseball game interrupted in 1941 with an announcement that Pearl Harbor had just been attacked by the Japanese.