Transcript Memory and Thought

Memory and Thought
Explain
the three processes of memory
Describe the information-processing model of
memory
Identify several memory retrieval processes
Explain the processes involved in forgetting
Section 1: Taking in and Storing
Information
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Vocabulary
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Memory
Encoding
Storage
Retrieval
Sensory Memory
Short-term Memory
Maintenance
Rehearsal
o Chunking
o Semantic Memory
o Episodic Memory
o Declarative Memory
o Procedural Memory
The Processes of Memory
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Memory- the storage and retrieval of what
has been learned or experienced
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Encoding- the transforming of information
so the nervous system can process it
Storage- the process by which information
is maintained over a period of time
Retrieval- the process of obtaining
information that has been stored in memory
Encoding
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Use of our senses to encode and
establish memory
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Acoustic codes - sense of hearing is used
Visual codes - sense of sight (picture)
Semantic codes - use a system
Sense of Smell is a very powerful way to
encode. People can’t retrieve distant
memories when they smell something
associated with it.
Storage and Retrieval
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Effective storage of information
depends a lot on how much effort was
put into encoding the information and
how important the information is.
Effective retrieval of information
depends on how efficiently it was
encoded and stored. (Kind of like a
well organized file cabinet)
Three Stages of Memory
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Sensory Memory- very brief memory
storage immediately following initial
stimulation of a receptor
Short-Term Memory- memory that is
limited in capacity to about seven items and
in duration by the subject’s active rehearsal
Long-Term Memory- refers to the storage
of information over extended periods of time
according to categories and features
Sensory Memory
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Capacity – Virtually everything you see or hear
at one instant
Duration- Fraction of a second
Examples
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Iconic Memory – Visual sensory memory
Echoic Memory- Auditory sensory memory
Functions of Sensory Memory
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It prevents you from being overwhelmed
It gives you some decision time to choose to pay
attention or not
Allows for continuity and stability
Short-Term Memory
(Working Memory)
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Capacity – About 7 items in healthy adults
Duration – Less than 20 seconds if not
rehearsed
Characteristics
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The things you have in your conscious mind at
any one moment.
Does not necessarily involve paying attention
Working Memory - serves as a system for
processing and working with current
information in short-term memory.
Methods for retaining information beyond
short-term memory capacity and duration
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Maintenance Rehearsal- a system for
remembering that involves repeating information
to oneself without attempting to find meaning in it
Chunking- the process of grouping items to make
them easier to remember
The Primacy-Recency Effect- being able to
recall information presented at the beginning and
the end of a list easier than information in the
middle.
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Primacy Effect- 1st Part because you had more time
to rehearse
Recency Effect- Last Part because it was the last
thing you saw
Long-Term Memory
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Capacity – Vast, uncountable, limitless
Duration – Perhaps a lifetime
Contains representations of countless facts,
experiences, and sensations
Types of Long-Term Memory
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Semantic Memory
Episodic Memory
Declarative Memory
Procedural Memory
Types of Long-Term Memory
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Semantic- knowledge of language, including its
rules, words, and meanings
Episodic- memory of one’s life, including time of
occurrence
Declarative- memory of knowledge that can be
called forth consciously as needed and includes
both semantic and episodic
Procedural- memory of learned skills that does not
require conscious recollection
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Skills
Habits
Memory and the Brain
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Amygdala: Emotional Associations
Cortex: Long-Term and Short-Term
Memory (ability to remember words, facts,
and events from the past)
Hippocampus: Long-Term Memory (ability
to transfer words, facts, and events from
short to long term memory
Thalamus: Information Processing ( ability
to process sensory information, crucial to
creating memories)
Section 2: Retrieving
Information
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Vocabulary
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Recognition
Recall
Reconstructive
Processes
Confabulation
Schemas
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Eidetic Memory
Decay
Interference
Elaborative
Rehearsal
Mnemonic Devices
Recognition
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Memory retrieval in which a person
identifies an object, idea, or situation
as one he or she has or has not
experienced before
Information in the brain can be stored
or indexed under several different
headings so that it can be reached in
many ways.
Recall
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Memory retrieval in which a person
actively reconstructs previously learned
material
Involves a person’s knowledge,
attitudes, and expectations
Remembering is an active process
guided by our experiences, knowledge,
and cues from the environment
Reconstructive Processes of Recall
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Reconstructive Processes- the
alteration of a recalled memory that
may be simplified, enriched, or
distorted, depending on an individual’s
experiences, attitudes, or inferences
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Confabulation – the act of filling in
memory gaps (may be correct or not)
Restructuring in terms of Schemas
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Schemas- conceptual frameworks a
person uses to make sense of the world
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Sets of expectations about something that is
based on our past experiences
See study on the crash and the use of words
and how they influenced the story
See Eyewitness Testimony box (page284)
Eidetic Memory / Photographic
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Eidetic memory is a form of photographic
memory in which one can recall very
specific details from a picture, a page, or
scene briefly viewed. About 5% of children
Photographic memory is very rare in adults
and involves the ability to form sharp visual
images after examining a picture or page
for a short time and then recalling the
entire image later.
Flashbulb Memories
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Involve events that are very shocking,
emotional, or have serious
consequences.
Involve special kinds of encoding that
occur when events are extreme and/or
personal
J.F.K. Assassination, Pearl Harbor, 911,
etc.
State Dependent Learning
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Occurs when you recall information
easily when you are in the same
physiological or emotional state or
setting as you were when you
originally encoded the information.
Relearning
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A measure of both declarative and
procedural memory.
If you take information you learned
once and the second time around it will
take less time and effort to learn it
again.
Forgetting
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Decay – fading away of memory over time
Interference – blockage of a memory by previous or
subsequent memories
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Proactive – an earlier memory blocks you from remembering
related new information
Retroactive – a later memory or new information blocks you from
remembering information learned earlier
Repression – the material still exists in the person’s
memory, but it has been made inaccessible because it is
so disturbing
Amnesia – loss of memory that may occur after a blow to
the head ,as a result of brain damage, drug use, or severe
psychological stress
Infant Amnesia – relative lack of early declarative
memories
Improving Memory
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Meaningfulness and Association
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Elaborative Rehearsal – linking of new
information to material that is already known
Overlearning – keep rehearsing it even after
you think you know it well
Avoid studying similar materials together
Distributed Practice – space out learning over
time
Mnemonic Devices – Techniques for using
associations to memorize information