Chapter 8

Blocking

Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon is also known as _____.

Information is encoded through automatic or effortful processing. Automatic processing refers to all information that enters long-term memory without conscious effort. This includes things such as time, space, and frequency—for example, your ability to remember what you ate for breakfast today or the fact that you remember that you ran into your best friend in the supermarket twice this week. Effortful processing refers to encoding information through conscious attention and effort. Material that you study for a test requires effortful processing.

Compare and contrast the two ways in which we encode information.

Because your hippocampus seems to be more of a processing area for your explicit memories, injury to this area could leave you unable to process new declarative (explicit) memories; however, even with this loss, you would be able to create implicit memories (procedural memory, motor learning and classical conditioning).

What might happen to your memory system if you sustained damage to your hippocampus?

Engram

This physical trace of memory is known as the _____.

a traumatic life experience

According to a study by Yogo and Fujihara (2008), if you want to improve your short-term memory, you should spend time writing about ______.

Flashbulb memory

An exceptionally clear recollection of an important event is a _______.

Both are types of long-term memory. Explicit memories are memories we consciously try to remember and recall. Explicit memory is also called declarative memory and is subdivided into episodic memory (life events) and semantic memory (words, ideas, and concepts). Implicit memories are memories that are not part of our consciousness; they are memories formed from behaviors. Implicit memory is also called non-declarative memory and includes procedural memory as well as things learned through classical conditioning.

Compare and contrast implicit and explicit memory.

There are two types of amnesia: retrograde and anterograde. Both involve the loss of long-term memory that occurs as the result of disease, physical trauma, or psychological trauma. With anterograde amnesia, you cannot remember new information; however, you can remember information and events that happened prior to your injury. Retrograde amnesia is the exact opposite: you experience loss of memory for events that occurred before the trauma.

Compare and contrast the two types of amnesia.

Mnemonic devices

Memory aids that hep organize information for encoding are _____.

Construction; reconstruction

The formulation of new memories is sometimes called ______, and the process of bringing up old memories is called ______.

Making the material you are trying to memorize personal meaningful to you

The self-referencing effect refers to ______.

essentially limitless

The storage capacity of long-term memory is ______.

Encoding, storage and retrieval

The three functions of memory are _____.

The self-reference effect is the tendency an individual to have better memory for information that relates to oneself than information that is not personally relevant. You can use the self-reference effect to relate the material to something you have already learned for another class, or think how you can apply the concepts to your life. When you do this, you are building a web of retrieval cues that will help you access the material when you want to remember it.

What is the self-reference effect, and how can it help you study more effectively?

Acrostic

When you are learning how to play the piano, the statement "Every good boy does fine" can help you remember the notes E, G, B, D, and F for the lines of the treble clef. This is an example of an _______.

Short-term memory

______ is another name for short-term memory.

Egocentric bias

______ is when our recollections of the past are done in a self-enhancing manner.

According to the Atkinson-Shiffrin model, memory is processed in three stages. The first is sensory memory; this is very brief: 1-2 seconds. Anything not attended to is ignored. The stimuli we pay attention to then move into our short-term memory. Short-term memory can hold approximately 7 bits of information for around 20 seconds. Information here is either forgotten, or it is encoded into long-term memory through the process of rehearsal. Long-term memory is the permanent storage of information—its capacity is basically unlimited.

. According to the Atkinson-Shiffrin model, name and describe the three stages of memory. Answer

There are two types of interference: retroactive and proactive. Both are types of forgetting caused by a failure to retrieve information. With retroactive interference, new information hinders the ability to recall older information. With proactive interference, it's the opposite: old information hinders the recall of newly learned information.

Compare and contrast the two types of interference.

You remind her about Ebbinghaus's forgetting curve: the information you learn drops off rapidly with time. Even if you think you know the material, you should study it again right before test time to increase the likelihood the information will remain in your memory. Overlearning can help prevent storage decay.

You and your roommate spent all of last night studying for your psychology test. You think you know the material; however, you suggest that you study again the next morning an hour prior to the test. Your roommate asks you to explain why you think this is a good idea. What do you tell her?