Quiz 8 (Memory)

What is the 'encoding specificity principle?'

If the situation or context when you are trying to retrieve a memory is similar to the situation or context when you first encoded these memories then you'll be better at remembering those things.

What are 'context effects?' How might this be applied to your own memory?

If, When you're trying to retrieve a memory, you are in the same kind of context that you were when you first encoded that memory then you will be better at retrieving that memory. Being in this context we have lots of retrieval cues that might help you remember better Example: going back to olivet for my 10 year reunion. By being in Perry I will be able to remember the memories I made here.

What is the first type of amnesia that can occur due to brain damage?

Retrograde amnesia: people are no longer able to recall the events of the past few days or week when they suffer a major brain injury. All new memories after their accident they will be able to remember. They only forget the few days or week leading up to the incident.

What is 'interference' theory of forgetting?

Says that you have a bunch of memories in your brain but the reason why you can't get to one specific memory sometimes is because all those other memories are there too and sometimes, they get in the way. Proper retrieval tools will help an individual to recall their memories.

What are the three stages of memory in the information processing model?

Sensory memory: your brain holds onto the last thing it hears and gives you a chance to pay attention to what was just said Short term memory: Is just your memory system for whatever youre thinking about at any given moment (memorizing cat, bat, rat, and hat). Long term memory:All of your memories that are older than a few minutes.

Is your memory like a true recording of your life?

No it is not. Our memories is like a reconstruction of the past. We PIECE TOGETHER elements AS WELL AS WE CAN. IT ISNT GOING TO BE PERFECTLY CORRECT. It is really common to create false memories.

Are flashbulb memories different from other memories?

No. Although you might be able to remember your emotions on that day because your memory and emotion areas are located in your temporal lobe, they do not differ from other memories. Flashbulb memories are like all others in the sense that they are a reconstruction.

Is it difficult to get someone to create a false memory? Know a couple examples that support your answer.

No. Elizabeth loftus shows us that it is very easy to get a person to change their memory or create an entirely new memory just from suggestion. (suggesting something happened) o She Showed people that had recently came back from Disney world, flyers and pictures and got people to feel like they remembered buggs bunny. Even though he isn't a Disney character. People still remembered seeing her. o she also conducted the slideshow of the car accident

Do we forget in the "decay" theory of forgetting? How do we know?

No. We asked old people about random stuff from the past that they did and they at first had a hard time remembering this. However if we had some retrieval cues, such as pictures, we often find that they do remember it. That memory, even though they didn't use it for many years, it did not just decay away

How might false memories be particularly problematic in eyewitness testimony?

Police bring an eyewitness and have them pick who they thought was the criminal out of a lineup. Person picks someone from the lineup and the cop says "oh good that's the guy we brought in" Confirming feedback makes the eyewitness change their memory of what they saw before. Going to be confident that it is the same person as before, but how confident they are doesn't mean that they are going to be accurate

What are the three types of long term memory?

Procedural memory (unconscious): A procedural memory is a memory for how to perform a certain action. (how to ride a bike, walk, etc.). These procedural memories are kind of like muscle memory. Semantic memories (conscious): Semantic memories are memories for facts and general information (like who the president of the US is, or what is two plus two). Episodic memories (conscious): an episodic memory is not really as memory for a fact or piece of information as much as it is a memory for an episode of your life. (a memory from the time you went on a fun trip).

What is the 'testing effect?'

The idea that Testing (taking tests) is like practice for your memory system... It helps you remember better.

What is the capacity limitation of short term memory?

The main limitation in the capacity of your short term memory is called THE MAGIC NUMBER 7 (PLUS OR MINUS TWO). What this means is that you can hold about 7 items in your short term memory plus or minus two. We call it the magic number seven because it comes up so often and is so consistent.

What are flashbulb memories?

A flashbulb memory is when a group of people has the same emotional experience. Example. Dales generation remembers where they were and what they were doing on 9/11.

What is the DRM test?

ACTUALLY, A TEST OF FALSE MEMORIES. ABOUT HALF OF ALL PEOPLE WILL FALSELY REMEMBER SOMETHING EVEN THOUGH IT WAS NEVER SAID

What applications of false memories have been particularly unusual in pop-culture?

Alien abductions: People thought that they were coming into contact with aliens when in reality they were just experiencing sleep paralysis. Repressed memory therapy: people were receiving repressed memory treatment for anxiety or depression. From this they claimed that they had repressed traumatic experiences which were leading to their feelings of either depression or anxiety.

What is a false memory?

An instance where you remember something that didn't happen

What is the second type of amnesia that can occur due to brain damage?

Anterograde amnesia: Your memory from the past is mostly okay but what you lose is your ability to form any new memories after that brain damage occurs.

Something else that can improve your memory is a retrieval cue. What is this?

Anything in the environment that helps you remember a memory.

What is confirmation bias in memory? Why might this be a problem?

Bias relates to the idea that you believe a lot of things and sometimes things you believe aren't necessarily compatible with your memories. This could be a problem because if you have someone who is sexist or rascist, they will be less likely to remember the instances in their life where these biases were not true (majority of time). Instead they will only choose to remember events that go along with their bias (minority of time)

What could potentially make false memories worse?

Confirming feedback or suggestions after you have formed that memory.

Example of an inappropriate bias:

Dwight makes it clear that he believes women are bad drivers. He has a stereotype about women.

What type of brain damage (what areas) caused HM's memory loss? What type of amnesia did he have?

HM experienced brain damage from surgery that removed his hippocampus (responsible for forming all of your new memories) from his temporal lobe. As a result of this surgery he was no longer able to form new memories. He was left with Anterograde amnesia.

Describe Elizabeth Loftus' 'red datsun studies' and what they demonstrated about memory.

Had people watch a slideshow of a car getting in an accident. Afterwards provides them with misinformation (such as the sign that the car was stopped at). They then later present the slideshow to the participants and ask them what sign was in the slideshow. Almost all participants chose the sign that was incorrectly given to the participant (as opposed to the sign that was actually in the video) This shows how suggestible people are, and how easy it is to modify a persons memory with a simple suggestion

Does it seem that highly emotional memories can be 'repressed' and 'recovered' later?

In general, we don't think that this is the way that your brain treats traumatic memories. Typically, people who experience traumatic things, can't get them out of their head. They have flashbacks, they avoid things that are associated with those memories, dreaming about them. We don't think its possible to take a traumatic memory and actually intentionally repress it deep in your unconscious mind.

What are 'state dependency effects?' How might these be applied to your own memory?

Internal state. If your Psychological or psychological state when you're trying to retrieve a memory matches your physiological or psychological state from when you first encoded that memory you'll be better at retrieving that memory. Example: if you're really happy when forming a memory, you will be more likely to recall that memory if you are happy in the present moment.

What is the Primacy affect?

Tendency to remember the First of a list of things

What is the Recency affect?

Tendency to remember the last item on a list

Does the "interference" theory do a better job explaining why we forget things than decay theory?

Yes. You do forget things but in this instance, it is because you've had so many memories. Getting to once specific memory can often times be hard.

What is 'decay' theory of forgetting?

You forget things because your memory is just going to decay away over time. The active ingredient here is just time going by. As time goes by your memories will just kind of fade away, dissipate, or decay away until there is nothing there.

what is "a courage to heal"

a book written with no factual support that claims that a person could be feeling anxious or depressed because they have repressed traumatic memories deep into their unconscious mind.

Memory suggestibility:

creating false memories based on things that happen after you form that memory.

What is short term memory?

is just basically what youre thinking about in the present moment

What is chunking?

is where we break information off into groups in order to hold more information into your short term memory.