PSYC Chapter 7

procedural memory

refers to memory for motor skills and habits

What are the two dimensions that each memory systems vary along?

1. span 2. duration

What is the digit span of most adults?

between 5 and 9

Selective attention is important for getting relevant information into ___________________

short-term/working memory

engram

-Karl Lashley wanted to find this -the physical trace of each memory in the brain -when searching for this Lashley found that memory isn't located in a single space

information processing model of memory

-Encoding: put it into memory -Storage: Hold in memory -Retrieval: recover from memory

Explain SM and WS

-SM suffered damage to the amygdala -WS suffered damage to the hippocampus -SM remembered facts about the fear-producing event, but did not experience the fear -WS experienced the fear, but did not remember the facts surrounding the fear-producing experience -shows that the amygdala helps us recall the emotions associated with fear-provoking events and the hippocampus helps us recall the events themselves

What did Rovee-Collier study?

-Studied if infants could remember things using a mobile above a crib and the infants would kick it to make the mobile move. -Found that they could remember the operant conditioning of kicking and moving the mobile for a couple days, and if they were older weeks

memory illusion

-a false but subjectively compelling memory -most likely by-products of our brain's generally adaptive tendency to go beyond the information available to it

mnemonic

-a learning aid, strategy, or device that enhances recall -example: please excuse my dear aunt sally -helps us encode memories in a way that makes them easier to recall

short-term memory

-a second memory system that retains information for brief periods of time -a key component is working memory -probably no longer than about 20 seconds (found this in the Peterson and Peterson study) -unrehearsed information is lost in about 15-30 seconds

What are some ways you can improve your memory?

-activate retrieval cues -minimize interference -test your own knowledge

schema

-an organized knowledge structure or mental model that we've stored in memory -equips us with frames of reference for interpreting new situations -sometimes oversimplify, which can produce memory illusions

echoic memory

-auditory sensory memory -can last as long as 5-10 seconds

sensory memory

-brief storage of perceptual information before it is passed to short term memory -helpful system because it buys our brains a bit of extra time to process incoming sensations -it allows us to "fill in the blanks" n our perceptions and see the world as an unbroken stream of events -each sense has its own form of sensory memory -all information is lost within a second or so -each sense has a sensory memory associated with it

Why do children's memories become increasingly sophisticated over time?

-children's memory spans increases -children's conceptual understanding increases -develop enhanced meta-memory skills

misinformation effect

-creation of fictitious memories by providing misleading information about an event after it takes place

What are some causes of senility?

-dementia -Alzheimer's -multiple small strokes in the brain -deterioration in the frontal and temporal lobes

levels of processing

-depth of transforming information, which influences how easily we remember it -visual (shallow) -phonological (sound, a little less shallow) -semantic (meaning, deep) -deeper levels of processing tend to produce more enduring long-term memories

flashbulb memories

-emotional memories that seem so vivid that people appear to recount them in remarkable, even photographic detail -Neisser and March showed that these memories are false with Challenger recollections, which they called phantom flashbulb memory -fade at the same rate as regular memories -seem to be similar to regular memories just more intense

What are some reasons we forget?

-encoding failure -storage (cramming) -interference -retroactive interference

declarative memory

-episodic and semantic -includes what can be brought to mind as a fact

recall

-generating previously remembered information on our own -harder than recognition

serial position curve

-graph depicting both primacy and recency effects on people's ability to recall items on a list -how the material is presented can play a role in how well you will remember the items

procedural memory

-habits and skills -includes cognitive, perceptual, and motor skills

What part of the brain is critical to memory?

-hippocampus -the prefrontal cortex also seems to b one of the major "banks" from which we withdraw our memories

Explain Clive Wearing

-his hippocampus was destroyed by a herpes virus -he had virtually complete anterograde amnesia -showed that damage to the hippocampus impairs explicit memory, but leaves implicit memory intact

proactive interference

-interference with acquisition of new information due to previous learning of information

elaborative rehearsal

-linking stimuli to each other in a meaningful way to improve retention of information in short term memory -usually works better than maintenance rehearsal

hyperthymestic syndrome

-memory of life events in very great detail -example: AJ who can remember exactly what she did years ago on a specific date

Patient KC

-motorcycle accident -intact semantic memory: retained "world knowledge" but had no personal memories -no longer had any autobiographical memory -knew how to play bridge but he has no memory of ever actually playing bridge

semantic memory

-our knowledge of facts about the world -activates more in the let frontal cortex than the right

episodic memory

-our recollection of events in our lives -activates more in the right frontal cortex than the left

eidetic imagery

-photographic memory -mostly in children

suggestive memory techniques

-procedures that strongly encourage people to recall memories -often create recollection that were never present to begin with -Elizabeth Loftus was able to show this (^) with the study of car accidents and people recalling them after watching them

relearning

-reacquiring knowledge that we'd previously learned but largely forgotten over time -more sensitive measure of memory than recall or recognition because it allows us to asses memory using a relative amount rather than simple right or wrong

retrieval

-reactivation or reconstruction of experiences from our memory stores -what we retrieve doesn't always match what we put in

Long-term potentiation (LTP)

-refers to gradual strengthening of the connections among neurons by repetitive stimulation over time -plays a key role in learning -tends to occur at synapses where the sending neuron releases the neurotransmitter glutamate which can result in enhanced learning

working memory

-refers to our ability to hold on to information we're currently thinking about, attending to, or processing actively -more modern view of short-term memory -more than simple storage -takes into account active processes, such as mental math

source monitoring

-refers to our efforts to identify the origins (sources) of a memory -helps us avoid confusing our memories with our fantasies

encoding

-refers to the process of getting information into our memory banks -if we lose the chance to encode an event, we will never remember it -in order to encode something, you have to attend to it

storage

-refers to the process of keeping info in memory -how we store our experiences in memory depends on our interpretations and expectations of these events

long-term memory

-relatively enduring retention of information regarding our facts, experiences, and skills -can probable hold about as much information as 500 huge online encyclopedias -can last hours, days, weeks, months, years, or even permanently

memory

-retention of information over time -an active system -receives information -organizes and alters that information -retrieves the information

recognition

-selecting previously remembered information from an array of options

Hermann Ebbinghaus discovered the law of __________, which says that people tend to remember information better when they spread their learning out over long intervals rather than cram it into short ones. a. distributed versus massed practice b. temporal memorization c. strategic short-term retention d. memory sensitivity over time

a. distributed versus massed practice

We can use mnemonics to help us __________ information we want to retain in our memories a. encode b. retrieve c. comprehend d. store

a. encode

Long-term potentiation enhances the release of which neurotransmitter into the synaptic cleft, resulting in enhanced learning? a. glutamate b. anadamide c. aspartate d. GABA

a. glutamate

The connections among neurons gradually strengthen over time, and do so by means of repetitive stimulation. This process is known as __________. a. long-term potentiation b. lateral processing c. elaborative rehearsal d. connective synchrony

a. long-term potentiation

A memory that is actually false but "feels real" and can be triggered by, for example, looking at a list of associated words, is called a(n) __________. a. memory illusion b. representative heuristic c. paradoxical memory d. active reconstruction

a. memory illusion

The brains of people with Alzheimer's disease contain senile plaques and __________, abnormalities that contribute to both synapse loss and the death of hippocampal and cerebral cortex cells. a. propranolol b. amygdala cells c. neurofibrillary tangles d. beta-adrenergic receptors

c. neurofibrillary tangles

When we have encountered a stimulus before, we are able to identify it more quickly and easily. The term for this subtype of implicit memory is __________. a. conditioning b. sensitization c. priming d. habituation

c. priming

Under most circumstances, which is a comparatively easier memory retrieval task to perform? a. recall b. encoding c. recognition d. rehearsal

c. recognition

In which memory system is information retained for the shortest amount of time? a. long-term memory b. short-term memory c. sensory memory d. working memory

c. sensory memory

Which of the following is one of the three processes of memory? a. schema b. pegword c. literacy d. retrieval

d. retrieval

When we are not sure where a memory really came from ("Did it actually happen? Or was it all a dream?") we can use cues such as how vivid and detailed the memory is to determine the answer. This process is called __________. a. cryptomnesia b. considered recollection c. initial recollection d. source monitoring

d. source monitoring

Because younger children have not developed their meta-memory skills to the extent that older children have, younger children can be mistaken about __________. a. reports of abuse b. conditioning experiences c. eyewitness accounts d. their own memory abilities

d. their own memory abilities

tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) phenomenon

experience of knowing that we know something but being unable to access it

decay

fading of information of memory over time

cryptomnesia

failure to recognize that our ideas originated with someone else

retrieval cues

hints that make it easier to recall information

duration

how long a period of time that memory system can hold information

span

how much information each memory system can hold

Does decay or interference play a larger role in short-term memory loss?

interference plays a larger role but both interference and decay play role

retroactive interference

interference with retention of old information due to acquisition of new information

maintenance rehearsal

involves repeating the stimuli in their original form

meta-memory

knowledge about our own memory abilities and limitations

source monitoring confusion

lack of clarity about the origin of a memory

interference

loss of information from memory because of competition from additional incoming information

paradox memory

our memories are surprisingly good in some situations and surprisingly poor in others

encoding specificity

phenomenon of remembering something better when the conditions under which we retrieve information are similar to the condition under which we encoded

What has been associated with reduced risk of cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease?

physical activity and strong social networks

priming

refers to our ability to identify a stimulus more easily or more quickly when we've previously encountered similar stimuli

rehearsal

repeating the information mentally, or even aloud in order to remember it

You see someone you have met before, and you learned their name last time you met, but it's just not coming to you. You have problem with ___________

retrieval

Long-term memory errors tend to be ______________

semantic

context-dependent learning

superior retrieval of memories when the external context of the original memories matches the retrieval context

state-dependent learning

superior retrieval of memories when the organism is in the same physiological or psychological state as it was during encoding

What did Donal Hebb suggest about engram?

that engram is located in assemblies (groups) of neurons in the brains

infantile amnesia

the inability of adults to retrieve accurate memories before an early age

Magic number

the span of short term memory, according to George Miller: seven plus or minus two pieces of information

primacy effect

the tendency to remember stimuli early in a list

recency effect

the tendency to remember stimuli later in a list

guided imagery

therapist ask client to imagine past events

hypnotic age regression

therapists use hypnosis to "return" to the psychological state of our childhood

permastone

type of long-term memory that appears to be permanent

retrograde amnesia

we lose some memories of our past

weapon focus

when a crime involves a weapon, and people tend to focus on the weapon rather than the criminal's appearance

calendar calculator

you give them any past or future date, and they would be able to give you the day of the week that date falls on within seconds

next-in-line effect

your memory was especially poor for what someone said right before your turn because you were so focused and nervous on what you were going to say when it was your turn

Alzheimer's disease

-impairments in memory and language-related -loss of synapses and death of cells in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex -can contribute to intellectual decline

Sperling's procedure

-showed people an array of letters very fast -too many to remember -cued to remember a certain row AFTER seeing the letters -people could remember almost the whole row -showed that people could remember more than they could report

distributed versus massed practice

-studying information in small increments over time versus in large increments over a brief amount of time

Explain HM

-suffered from a seizure disorder -removed large chunks of his temporal lobe, including the left and right hippocampi -following the surgery he could recall almost no new information -He was 26 and lost about the past 11 years of his life, but the first 15 years of memories remained intact -he lost his explicit memory but he seem to still have implicit memory

Why is the first memory usually between 3-5 years?

-the hippocampus (which plays a key role in long-term memory, especially episodic memory) is only partially developed in infancy -infants possess little or not concept of self

explicit memory

-the process of recalling information intentionally -example: semantic and episodic memory

implicit memory

-the process of recalling information we don't remember deliberately -example: procedural memory and priming

keyword method

-type of mnemonic -depends on your ability to think of an English word that reminds you of the word you're trying to remember -useful in learning a new language

music

-type of mnemonic -learning information put to a melody can improve long-term retention

pegword method

-type of mnemonic -often used to recall ordered lists of words -first associate each number in a list with a word that rhymes with the number -then you create an image that associates the word you want to remember with the pegword -helpful for improving vocabulary

method of loci

-type of mnemonic -relies on imagery of places -think of a path with which your familiar and can remember vividly -associate a location along that path with one of the words you're supposed to remember -can be used to help depressed individuals recall positive, self-affirming memories to lift their moods

iconic memory

-visual sensory memory -George Sperling conducted a study on iconic memory -lasts only a couple of seconds -contributes to eidetic imagery

chunking

-way to expand our ability to memorize things -organizing materials into meaningful groups

anterograde amnesia

-we lose the capacity to form new memories -more common than retrograde amnesia

When are eyewitness testimonies shown to be more inaccurate?

-when people observe other individuals of races different from their own -when they talk to other witnesses -when they catch only a brief glimpse of the criminal -when they view a crime under stressful circumstances -when weapon focus occurs

When are eyewitness testimonies more accurate?

-when the person has lots of time to observe the criminal under good lighting -when the criminal isn't disguised -when little time elapses between witnessing the crime and identifying the guilty party

What are the two major features that most mnemonics share?

1. can apply them to just about anything and everything 2. depend on our having a store of knowledge to begin with

What are the three major processes of memory?

1. encoding 2. storage 3. retrieval

What are the two types of rehearsal?

1. maintenance rehearsal 2. elaborative rehearsal

What are the 3 ways we assess people's memory?

1. recall 2. recognition 3. relearning

What are the 2 different kinds of interference?

1. retroactive interference 2. proactive interference -these are more likely to occur when the old and new stimuli are similar

What are the two common types of amnesia?

1. retrograde amnesia 2. anterograde amnesia

What are the 2 types of declarative long-term memory?

1. semantic memory 2. episodic memory

What are 3 major systems of memory?

1. sensory memory 2. short-term memory 3. long-term memory

ZAK, BOL, GID, YAF, and other nonsense syllables were used in some of the earliest studies of memory, conducted by __________. a. Hermann Ebbinghaus b. Herman van Helmholtz c. Arnold Swanson d. Martin Barre

a. Hermann Ebbinghaus

What is one likely reason why we cannot remember information and events from our own infancy? a. The hippocampus takes time to develop, and is only partially developed during infancy b. Most parents "talk around" their children, rather than "talking to" their children c. Infants operate in post-conventional state, and only gradually achieve the formal operations necessary for memory information d. Fetuses lack ears, and therefore cannot overhear conversations in the external world

a. The hippocampus takes time to develop, and is only partially developed during infancy

Which of the following describes the term "schema"? a. an organized knowledge structure or mental model that we have stored in memory b. the process of getting information into our memory banks c. the process of keeping information in memory d. a learning aid, strategy, or device that enhances recall

a. an organized knowledge structure or mental model that we have stored in memory

Without even noticing that you are doing it, what memory technique do you use to remember larger quantities of information, even though your short-term memory capacity only holds about nine bits of information? a. chunking b. elaborative rehearsal c. the Magic Number technique d. depth of processing

a. chunking

Unintentional plagiarism has been attributed to __________, which occurs when someone says they forgot having been exposed to the plagiarized material earlier and thought they had created it themselves. a. cryptomnesia b. monitoring failure c. suggested memory d. misinformation effect

a. cryptomnesia

The two primary reasons why short-term memories fade are __________ and __________. a. decay; interference b. substitution; migration c. reversal; proaction d. intrusion; obstruction

a. decay; interference

The memory technique that associates rhymes with a list of words in a particular order is called the __________. a. pegword method b. method of loci c. schema method d. keyword method

a. pegword method

Our memory for how to do things is called __________. a. procedural memory b. explicit memory c. mnemonic memory d. semantic memory

a. procedural memory

Psychologists measure people's memory abilities by assessing three capacities: __________. a. recall, recognition, and relearning b. recall, retrieval, and reconstruction c. relearning, receptivity, and retrieval d. retrieval, recall, and relearning

a. recall, recognition, and relearning

Although using __________ can sometimes lead to mistakes, they provide us with a frame of reference for interpreting new situations. a. schemas b. disambiguation tables c. interpretive expectations d. storage menus

a. schemas

Which of the following can account for the fact that some people believe they have engaged in a particular action when, in fact, they watched someone else perform that action? a. source monitoring failure b. memory retrieval error c. ego enhancing fantasy d. eidetic imagery error

a. source monitoring failure

When we try to recall an event we ______________ our memories using cues and information available to us

actively reconstruct

What is the general progression of memory loss for patients with Alzheimer's disease? a. Older memories are more easily corrupted, whereas recent memories remain intact b. Memory for recent events fades first, with distant memories usually being the last to go c. Memory loss is random, haphazard, and unpredictable d. short-term memory disappears within a month of diagnosis

b. Memory for recent events fades first, with distant memories usually being the last to go

That frustrating feeling of knowing you know something but cannot pull it out of your brain at the moment you want it is known as the TOT phenomenon, because __________. a. TOT stands for Too Old to Think b. TOT stands for "tip-of-the-tongue" c. it primarily happens to very young children or "tots" d. it was identified by the research team of Tattinger, Osprey, and Thomas

b. TOT stands for "tip-of-the-tongue"

In the 1920s, Karl Lashley hoped to discover the __________, the actual physical trace of a memory in the brain. He later concluded that memories are not stored this way. a. postsynaptic receptors b. engram c. hippocampus d. assembly

b. engram

Scientists devise __________ in order to ensure that the memories elicited in their false-memory-implantation experiments are actually false. a. statistical estimates b. cryptomnesia proofs c. existence proofs d. plausibility estimates

b. existence proofs

Although it is presented as the most common kind of memory loss in the popular media, with depictions of someone losing all memory of his or her past, __________ is not actually the most common kind of amnesia. a. retrograde amnesia b. generalized amnesia c. anterograde amnesia d. infantile amnesia

b. generalized amnesia

To remember information such as a telephone number until you can finish dialing it, you could just say the number over and over again until it is fixed in your mind. This memory technique is called __________. a. chunking b. maintenance rehearsal c. elaborative rehearsal d. processing level

b. maintenance rehearsal

Which mental phenomenon can be defined as "the retention of information over time"? a. knowledge b. memory c. thinking d. understanding

b. memory

When someone witnesses a crime in which a gun was involved, her or his description of the perpetrator's appearance can be flawed. This is often due to __________, a psychological process demonstrated in many experiments. a. forced testimony b. weapon focus c. segmentation d. sequentializing

b. weapon focus

Which of the following statements is true? a. It is nearly impossible to implant a false memory in a person, unless the person I high in suggestibility b. It is easier to implant a false memory from the recent past than a false memory from the distant past c. It is easier to implant a false memory that is plausible than one that is implausible d. Recovering repressed memories is like rewinding a video recording of one's life events

c. It is easier to implant a false memory that is plausible than one that is implausible

The fact that people usually correctly remember where they were when they learned of the September 11th, 2001, attacks but are less exact about what they were doing or who told them, leads researchers to believe that __________, although not completely reliable, contain "substantial kernels of accuracy." a. recovered memories b. source monitoring c. flashbulb memories d. initial recollection

c. flashbulb memories

The primary cognitive impairments in patients with Alzheimer's disease are related to __________. a. facial recognition and mathematical calculation b. multiple strokes and short-term memory loss c. language and memory d. long-term memory and problem solving

c. language and memory

In Elizabeth Loftus's "lost in the mall" study, approximately what percentage of people distinctly remembered being lost in a shopping mall after being told that this had happened to them, even though it did not really happen? a. 10 percent b. 67 percent c. 32 percent d. 25 percent

d. 25 percent

As they develop, children's memories become increasingly sophisticated. Which of the following is not a reason why this occurs? a. Meta-memory develops over time b. Memory spans increase with age c. Conceptual understanding increases with age d. The presence of siblings increases over time

d. The presence of siblings increases over time

Which of the following is a compelling argument against the existence of repressed traumatic memories? a. There are usually behavior manifestations of psychic trauma, suggesting that repression has not accomplished its goals in the memory system b. It is virtually impossible to implant false memories of an event in the mind of an individual, so there is nothing there for the mental system to repress c. Repression has been identified as one of Freud's "lesser defenses" in his writings, and therefore carries little weight in this memory process d. There is growing evidence that painful and disturbing memories are actually remembered well, and in fact, too well by the people plagued with them

d. There is growing evidence that painful and disturbing memories are actually remembered well, in fact, too well by the people plagued with them

When trying to recall an event, which of the following processes best describes how that takes place? a. we passively recall information that is stored in long-term memory b. We inevitably fall prey to biases, errors, and shortcomings when trying to recall even the simplest information c. We "rewind the tape" to review the details of what we originally stored in memory d. We actively reconstruct our memories using cues and information available to us

d. We actively reconstruct our memories using cues and information available to us

Which part of the brain plays an important role in remembering the emotional content of the memory of a frightening event? a. forebrain b. thalamus c. hippocampus d. amygdala

d. amygdala

Studies have shown the students perform slightly better on exams if they are tested in the same room where they learned the material. This is evidence for __________. a. state-dependent learning b. encoding specificity c. retrospective bias d. context-dependent learning

d. context-dependent learning

__________ allows you to remember auditory stimuli for up to 5 or 10 seconds. a. iconic memory b. eidetic memory c. recovered memory d. echoic memory

d. echoic memory

There are various techniques available to help people improve their ability to recall material. For example, when you remember something new by connecting it mentally to something you already know, you are using __________. a. a mnemonic device b. levels of processing c. distributed study d. elaborative rehearsal

d. elaborative rehearsal

More than 300 convicted prisoners to date have been released because DNA evidence showed they were innocent, despite confident testimony from __________. a. psychologists b. forensic specialists c. prosecutors d. eyewitnesses

d. eyewitnesses

Even before we are born, we can show signs of __________ memory through habituation. a. engrammatic b. explicit c. deliberate d. implicit

d. implicit

Most people cannot accurately remember anything they experienced in their earliest years of life. This phenomenon is known as __________. a. anterograde amnesia b. juvenile amnesia c. retrograde amnesia d. infantile amnesia

d. infantile amnesia

Over time, children develop greater knowledge of their own memory abilities and limitations. The term used to describe this is __________. a. comprehension b. habituation c. learning d. meta-memory

d. meta-memory

Dee Dee has to remember 4 items that he needs at the corner market, so he visualizes the path he will take to get there. He imagines a bar of soap hanging from a large tree, envisions a roll of paper towels next to a stoplight, "sees" a packet of gum on the newspaper rack, and imagines the fire hydrant spurting out soda. Which memory strategy is Dee Dee relying on? a. keyword technique b. means-end analysis c. pegword technique d. method of loci

d. method of loci

Zhenya remembers that St. Paul is the capital of Minnesota. Alina remembers that she lived in St. Paul when she was 12 years old. Zhenya is demonstrating __________ memory, whereas Alina is demonstrating __________ memory a. episodic; semantic b. semantic; procedural c. procedural; semantic d. semantic; episodic

d. semantic; episodic

George Sperling's partial report method studies from the 1960's demonstrated that when a display of 12 letters was viewed, participants retained all of the letters in __________ but not all of them could be transferred to short-term memory. a. episodic memory b. explicit memory c. semantic memory d. sensory memory

d. sensory memory

What type of graph would be used to illustrate the primacy and recency effects? a. enneagram b. historygram c. Ebbinghaus curve d. serial position curve

d. serial position curve