Exam #3 - Chapter 4
Atkinson-Shiffrin Model
A model for describing memory in which there are three distinguishable kinds of memory (sensory, short term, long term) through which info passes in a sequential way as it is processed.
Executes memory rehearsal.
Central Executive
Suppresses irrelevant information from being processed
Central Executive
Which working memory component would be most active if you are trying to ignore a distracting conversation in the library while studying for your next exam?
Central Executive
Component where information from other working memory parts is combined.
Episodic Buffer
What advantage does working memory present in our lives?
It allows us to process multiple sources of information within a short period of time.
What does the episodic buffer in Baddeley's working memory model do?
It briefly holds material coming from the phonological loop, the visuospatial sketchpad, and long-term memory.
Which of the following is a true statement about the neuroscience research on the central executive?
It is primarily controlled by portions of the frontal lobe.
Semantics
Meaning of words and sentences
Active during subvocalization.
Phonological Loop
Part of this component may be located in the left temporal lobe.
Phonological Loop
While studying the vocabulary in your cognitive psychology class, you find it harder and harder to learn and remember new terms encounter. This could be an example of what type of memory problem?
Proactive interference
information-processing approach
The approach to psychology, developed beginning in the 1950s, in which the mind is described as processing information through a sequence of stages.
According to the research, people with ADHD are especially likely to have difficulty with which of the following components of working memory?
The central executive
What is the serial position effect in memory research?
The finding that people are best at remembering the first few and last few items on a list.
In Baddeley's working memory model, which component would you expect to be most active when auditory task like trying to remember the lines to a play?
The phonological loop
While building some furniture, you try to remember each necessary step in the instructions. You can easily remember the first three steps but then struggle to remember what to do next.
The primacy effect.
How does the earlier view of short-term memory differ from the current view of working memory?
Unlike short-term memory, working memory is continuously manipulating information, not just storing it.
Active during mental imagery.
Visuospatial Sketchpad
Necessary to navigate from one place to another.
Visuospatial Sketchpad
Possible location of this process is in the right hemisphere of the cortex.
Visuospatial Sketchpad
The first short-term memory experiments used backward counting by threes, or a similar task, in order to: a) ensure that a person is not able to rehearse during the delay. b) ensure that sufficient decay has occurred during the delay. c) expand the capacity of the short-term memory system. d) provide the person with an easy way to chunk the information.
a) ensure that a person is not able to rehearse during the delay.
The region of the brain that it most strongly activated when a person works on tasks that require the central-executive component of working memory is the: a) frontal lobe. b) temporal lobe. c) parietal lobe. d) occipital lobe.
a) frontal lobe.
Compared to people who are not depressed, people suffering from major depression: a) have difficulty with some working memory tasks. b) show a surprising increase in ability to concentrate on tasks. c) show an increased span on short-term memory tasks. d) All of the above are correct.
a) have difficulty with some working memory tasks.
On a short-term (working) memory task, release from proactive interference (PI) on the final trial occurred when: a) previous trials required a person to remember words from a different semantic category. b) the final trial required a person to remember words from the same semantic category as on previous trials. c) the capacity of short-term (working) memory on the final trial was greater than about seven items. d) All of the above are correct.
a) previous trials required a person to remember words from a different semantic category.
According to a famous article by Miller (1956), short-term memory (or working memory) has a capacity limitation of about: a) 2 or 3 bits of information. b) 7 ± 2 chunks of information. c) 10 ± 2 meaningful items. d) 15-20 energy chunks.
b) 7 ± 2 chunks of information.
Visual information cannot be rehearsed in working memory without being transformed into a verbal code. a) True b) False
b) False
A subject is shown an image of a turtle and asked to keep that item in their WM. After waiting silently for 2 mins, the subject is asked what they remember seeing. The subject responds "a turtle". Which of the following is likely true? a) The study shows the Visuospatial Sketchpad has a duration of 2 mins. b) The subject may have converted the image to a verbal code to rehearse it. c) The subject could not have performed this tasked while simultaneously singing "row row your boat" d) Visuospatial Sketchpad duration would have been longer if the subject had to maintain two images in WM.
b) The subject may have converted the image to a verbal code to rehearse it.
If people are presented a series of items, their percent recalled typically shows a U-shaped function across serial positions. The recency effect seen in such data is usually attributed to information that: a) was transferred to long-term memory at the time of presentation. b) remains in short-term (working) memory at the time of recall. c) was extremely well remembered because it was associated with earlier information in the series. d) All of the above are correct.
b) remains in short-term (working) memory at the time of recall.
If people are presented a series of items (such as words), their percent recalled typically shows a U-shaped function across serial positions. The recency effect seen in such data is usually attributed to information that: a) was transferred to long-term memory at the time of presentation. b) remains in short-term memory at the time of recall. c) was extremely well remembered because it was associated with earlier information in the series. d) All of the above are correct.
b) remains in short-term memory at the time of recall.
The part of the brain that it most strongly activated when a person performs visual and spatial tasks is the: a) left cerebral hemisphere, especially the frontal and occipital lobes, but including the cerebellum. b) right cerebral hemisphere, especially the frontal and parietal lobes, but including the occipital lobe. c) cerebellum. d) lateral hypothalamus.
b) right cerebral hemisphere, especially the frontal and parietal lobes, but including the occipital lobe.
A driver who is listening to a football game on the radio and forming clear images of the action may experience difficulty driving. This interference may be attributable to the limited capacity of a working-memory component called the: a) central executive. b) visuospatial sketchpad. c) episodic buffer. d) phonological loop.
b) visuospatial sketchpad.
Carry is trying to memorize her PantherID number. She is having trouble because the number is 9 digits long. _____________ would BEST help Carry learn the number. a) Repeating the digits over and over to himself b) Saying the digits out loud c) Chunking the digits d) Reading the digits to a friend
c) Chunking the digits
According to a recent approach proposed (Baddeley, 2000, 2006), working memory: a) involves procedural memory, even for information that may also be encoded semantically. b) is not influenced by attention, by consciousness, or by long-term memory processes. c) consists of a central executive, a visuospatial sketchpad, an episodic buffer, and a phonological loop. d) maintains all information in a phonological loop, even if the information is visual or meaningful.
c) consists of a central executive, a visuospatial sketchpad, an episodic buffer, and a phonological loop.
The component of the working-memory system that combines information from the phonological loop, the visuospatial sketchpad, and long-term memory, which is involved in interpreting earlier experiences, solving new problems, and planning future activities, is called the: a) perceptual buffer b) visuospatial sketchpad c) episodic buffer d) phonological loop
c) episodic buffer
ADHD populations exhibit differences in working memory, relative to a control group, in which components of the working memory system: a) phonological loop deficit. b) central-executive functioning. c) visuospatial sketchpad deficit. d) All of the above are correct.
d) All of the above are correct.
Research reveals that people scores on working-memory tasks are correlated with: a) overall intelligence and grades in school b) verbal fluency and reasoning ability. c) reading ability. d) All of the above are correct.
d) All of the above are correct.
The functioning of the phonological loop: a) may give rise to acoustic confusions in working-memory tasks, especially when rehearsal is involved. b) is related to a person's "inner voice," or his or her use of subvocalization to perform a task. c) involves activation or information storage in the left hemisphere of the brain, including frontal, temporal, and parietal lobes d) All of the above are correct.
d) All of the above are correct.
The functioning of the phonological loop: a) may give rise to acoustic confusions in working-memory tasks, especially when rehearsal is involved. b) is related to a person's "inner voice," or his or her use of subvocalization to perform a task. c) involves activation or information storage in the left hemisphere of the brain, including frontal, temporal, and parietal lobes. d) All of the above are correct.
d) All of the above are correct.
Working memory is: a) brief memory for information that a person is currently processing. b) involved in coordinating a person's cognitive activities. c) a term that is now used more often instead of a similar term—short-term memory. d) All of the above are correct.
d) All of the above are correct.
In Baddeley's (2000, 2006) working-memory model, the component that plays a major role in attending to stimuli, planning one's strategies, and coordinating one's behavior is the: a) phonological loop. b) visuospatial sketchpad. c) episodic buffer. d) central executive.
d) central executive.
The effects of proactive interference are decreased if: a) you know more information at the beginning. b) you keep studying the same list. c) you learn different items from the same category. d) you shift to a different category of items to learn.
d) you shift to a different category of items to learn.
control processes
intentional strategies-such as rehearsal-that people may use to improve their memory.
Working Memory Model
our immediate memory is a multipart system that temporarily holds and manipulates information while we perform cognitive tasks.
serial position effect
our tendency to recall best the last (a recency effect) and first items (a primacy effect) in a list
Brown/Peterson and Peterson technique
presented some items that students were instructed to remember; then the students performed a distracting task; and finally they were asked to recall the original items
If a person is struggling to learn new material they are studying because previous material they learned is making it more difficult, they may be experiencing
proactive interference.
primacy effect
tendency to remember words at the beginning of a list especially well
recency effect
tendency to remember words at the end of a list especially well
proactive interference
the disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information
sensory memory
the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system
transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
the use of strong magnets to briefly interrupt normal brain activity as a way to study brain regions
The book discusses research on the working memory capacities of people with and without major depressions. They found that, in general, depressed people performed
worse on most tasks involving any working memory component.