Transcript Yates Memory Summary

 Items of memory are like physical objects. The IMAGE
is of a Storehouse…
 Consists of Items – facts, lists, the enumerated points
of a speech, etc.
 Items of memory are like physical objects. The IMAGE
is of a Storehouse…
 Consists of Items – facts, lists, the enumerated points
of a speech, etc.
 Forgetting occurs IF the item is left alone… i.e., this
item can be LOST in the clutter like any physical
object… so you have to “hunt” for it
 Items of memory are like physical objects. The IMAGE
is of a Storehouse…
 Consists of Items – facts, lists, the enumerated points
of a speech, etc.
 Forgetting occurs IF the item is left alone… i.e., this
item can be LOST in the clutter like any physical
object… so you have to “hunt” for it
 Memories fade (like other things stored away and
never dusted off and used… or like an old picture or
like old wallpaper) UNLESS repetition occurs
 Important or emotional memories are stored better
(differential storage… some things store better than
others).
 Important or emotional memories are stored better
(differential storage… some things store better than
others).
 Mostly accurate, like a record; may be incomplete or 2
memories can be confused, but are generally
trustworthy.
 Important or emotional memories are stored better
(differential storage… some things store better than
others).
 Mostly accurate, like a record; may be incomplete or 2
memories can be confused, but are generally
trustworthy.
 Memories don’t change drastically over time (except
for fading).

Simple things are easier to remember than
complex (differential storage again).
 Explicit, active memory events are the culture’s typical
memory example– trying to store (effortful), trying to
recall (typical situations -- studying for or taking a
test, grocery list, other lists, remembering to do
something; atypical – riding a bike, following a route,
acting appropriately in class, typing, speaking)
 Memory functions are controlled by “you”… by your
conscious mind… what to store, what to recall.
Memory is under our voluntary, conscious control.
 Memory requires effort… we have to work at it (both
storage and retrieval).
 Repetition and rehearsal aid memory or may even be
necessary for memory.
 Forgetting: the culture recognizes 2 forms: loss and
retrieval failure.
 The culture lacks a clear distinction between storage of
information and retrieval of that information. Both
are called memory. (Example: did you “forget”
something? If so, most people don’t ask themselves if
this was a failure to store the information or a failure to
retrieve the information. The response is simply “I
forgot”). Try this: when someone says “I forgot” or “I
can’t remember”… what do they mean? (probably
either no storage or no retrieval).
 For most of the examples people think of (grocery list,
studying for a test) the cultural belief is that
INTENTION to remember is important. It helps to
INTEND and TRY to store the information.
 Most of the above cultural beliefs suggest a specific
image of memory. Test this IMAGE: e.g. a dark pantry
or file drawer or desk drawer or large box or a junk
store…
 Most of the above cultural beliefs suggest a specific
image of memory. Test this IMAGE: e.g. a dark pantry
or file drawer or desk drawer or large box or a junk
store…
 Like any physical container, you can fill this one with
ITEMS (things)
 Most of the above cultural beliefs suggest a specific
image of memory. Test this IMAGE: e.g. a dark pantry
or file drawer or desk drawer or large box or a junk
store…
 Like any physical container, you can fill this one with
ITEMS (things)
 you have to intend to store things (items) there… you
have to consciously put
 them there…
 you have to rummage around to find things. Some
things are easy to find because they are at the front,
but there are places in the pantry that are full of
cobwebs because you don’t go there much, so it is
harder to find things. In other words,
 your memory may or may NOT be organized, BUT
organization aids retrieval BECAUSE memory is like a
STOREHOUSE filled with ITEMS.
 Some items (important, emotional, distinct) are more
SALIENT in the storage space, and thus (like a salient
physical object being searched for by someone looking
around in a storehouse) are easier to recall.
 “Simpler” items take up less storage space, can be
easier organized, and take less work to store than
“complex” items.
 Just like things in a storehouse, memories in this
physical space don’t change by themselves… they are
expected to be accurate (aren’t people SURPRISED
when memories are shown to be inaccurate?), but only
some things get stored so memory is incomplete.
 Repetition/rehearsal and the putative effects of
emotion seem to be related to another common
physical metaphor… of IMPRESSING something on a
blank surface.
 The fact that so many cultural beliefs are consistent
with a couple of visual images is evidence that these
images control how we think about memory… they
constitute a CULTURAL THEORY of memory. This
suggests two things:
 the arbitrariness of these images. Why not construct
other images that might do a better job of capturing the
properties of memory?
 these images may have limited how psychologists and
others have studied memory. Awareness of them can
help us critically examine them and “escape” them.
Students in Memory & Language are free to critically
examine Yates’ “theory of the cultural theory” offered
here; if there are ways it inaccurately depicts the
cultural view, bring them up in class or in your paper.
Are there strongly-held cultural beliefs about memory
that do NOT fit into the images suggested above?