Revision Class - Memory

Revision Class - Memory

Memory basics

Memory is the process of encoding, storaage and retrieval of information.

Encoding

• —occurs when information is translated into a form that can be processed mentally so that this information can be stored in the memory system.

  —

• occurs through automatic processing and effortful processing.

Links to

• parts of the brain that process and consolidate STM to LTM

• state and context dependent cues

• LTP and LTD

• leading questions

• rehearsal - maintenance & elaborative

Types of encoding (not in SD)

—Structural encoding (shallow processing) This involves translating the visual information from written words into its physical structure; BaLl

—Phonemic encoding (medium processing) This involves translating the visual input from written words into sounds; Ball rhymes with wall

—Semantic encoding (deep) processing. This involves translating the visual information from written words into their meanings: T/F: -A ball is usually round.

Link: Elaborative rehearsal uses semantic encoding.

Storage

• of encoded information occurs when it is maintained (held) in memory for some period of time.

  —

• means that the information is available (providing it can be acccessed) in the future - i.e. retrieved.

Links to

• brain areas that process and store our LTMs.

• consolidation which can be influenced by organic reasons and brain trauma.

• neurotransmitters and neurohormones involved.

• observational learning (mental representation needs to be stored in retention phase).

• serial-position effect.

Retrieval

• involves accessing information which has been previously stored in LTM or still in the persons STM.

• of available information is not always possible and may not be accurate.

Links to

• state and context dependent cues.

• types of retrieval - recall, recognition, relearning and reconstruction.

• fallibility of memory

• leading questions

• Loftus research - leading questions

• Serial position effect

Mutli-store model of memory (MSM)

has three distinct memory stores - sensory, short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM)

Multi-store model of memory

• proposed by Atkinson - Shiffrin.

• with reference to the function, capacity and duration of sensory, STM and LTM

Main parts of the brain involved in memory process

Focus is on cerebral cortex, hippocampus, amygdala and cerebellum.

Cerebral cortex is the outermost layer of the brain.

Parts of the brain involved in memory processing and storage.

CEREBRAL CORTEX: storage of explicit memories

HIPPOCAMPUS: consolidation of explicit memories 

AMYGDALA: processing and consolidation of emotional aspect of memories 

CEREBELLUM: processing and storage of implicit memories.

Multiple Choice

Memories outside of conscious awareness are

called

• proactive memories.

• reactive

  memories.

• explicit

  memories.

• implicit

  memories.

Multiple Choice

________ determines what information moves from sensory

memory to short-term memory.

• encoding failure

• selective attention

• repression

• rehearsal

Multiple Choice

The part of the brain which encodes memories which are retreived without conscious awareness is the

• cerebral cortex

• hippocampus

• cerebellum

• hypothalamus

Open Ended

Outline a difference between implicit and explicit memory.

Differences between implicit and explicit memories

• Implicit memories are memories which can be retrieved without conscious effort whereas explicit memories require conscious effort to retrieve them.

• Implicit memories are mainly stored in the cerebellum whereas explicit memories are mainly stored in the cerebral cortex,

• Implicit memories can be described as non-declarative whereas explicit memories can be described as declarative.

Factors affecting memory

link back to encoding, storage, retrieval and the MSM.

1. Serial position effect
2. Cues - state and context dependedent
3. Rehearsal - maintenance and elaborative

Explaining the primacy effect with the MSM

According to the multi-­store model, the transfer of information from STM into LTM depends on the amount of attention and rehearsal that the information receives.

Words experienced earlier in the list will have more rehearsal, and therefore will have a greater chance of making it to LTM, therefore will be more likely to be recalled.

Explaining the recency effect with the MSM

During the presentation of the list of words, people are trying to keep these in their STM.

STM is limited in capacity to about 7 + 2 bits of information.

Therefore, as new words come into STM, older words must be displaced. At the end of the task, the only words that are left are the ones that have just been heard and therefore have not been displaced.

No recency effect if immediate recall is not used.

STM is limited in duration to 18-30 secs without rehearsal. If an interference task follows the list of words before the participants are asked to write the words down recency effect will not occur.

State dependent cues

• are aspects of the individual's psychological and/or physiological state when a memory was formed.

• returning to this same state acts as a prompt for accessing the available memory formed.

Context dependent cues

• are aspects of the physical environment where a memory was formed that act as a prompt to retrieve memories formed in that environment.

• are part of the reason why people are taken back to a scene of a crime during an investigation.

Maintenance rehearsal

• involves repeating the same information over and over again.

• increases the capacity of STM.

• may transfer the information to LTM especially if you are rote learning but may be harder to retrieve.

Elaborative rehearsal

• involves linking new information to previously stored information and/or giving it meaning.

• allows the new information to be transferred to LTM more easily.

• is very effective if the link made has personal salience or meaning.

Multiple Choice

The serial position effect is the phenomenon where recall

• of items towards the beginning and middle of the list are highest.

• of items towards the beginning and end of the list are highest.

• of items in the middle of the list is highest.

• is dependent of using serial recall.

Multiple Choice

Enhancing memory by weaving otherwise unrelated information into a meaningful story is an example of

• context dependent memory.

• maintenance rehearsal.

• elaborative rehearsal.

• the primacy effect.

Multiple Choice

What can help improve the accuracy of eye witness testimonies?

• serial position

• context dependent cues

• acronyms

• leading questions

Open Ended

Explain how primacy effect provides evidence for the existence of a LTM store as proposed by Atkinson-Shiffrin. (3 marks)

Primacy effect

• supports the idea that there is a separate LTM store, as proposed by the Atkinson-Shiffrin model, as the items at the beginning of the list a repeated and linked to existing memory more than the remaining items. These items are more accessible because they have been transferred to LTM.

Brain trauma and neurodegenerative disease.

Brain trauma, anterograde amnesia and Alzheimer's disease.

Brain trauma

• refers to brain trauma that is caused by external sources like brain surgery.

• occurred to HM and is a good example of how memory can be affected.

Potential effect on brain trauma

• CEREBRAL CORTEX: trouble with of explicit memories
  

• HIPPOCAMPUS: trouble with consolidation of explicit memories

• AMYGDALA: issues with encoding emotional aspect of memories

• CEREBELLUM: issue with encoding some types if implicit memories and storage of implicit memories.

Apply information

Experiments using people with damage to their hippocampus, amygdala of both

Classical conditioning

An emotional conditioning experiment was set up in which these patients were shown a series of colored lights, and each time a blue light was presented a loud unpleasant boat horn was blown (the figure on the right illustrates this conditioning).

Results

• After several trials, the blue light was shown (CS) by itself in order to measure the conditioning (implicit memory), and only the patient with hippocampus damage showed a conditioned response.

• Conversely, when the subjects were asked what had happened (explicit memory), only the patient with amygdala damage reported that the horn went off every time the blue light came on.

• NB - Remember HM could still store new procedural memories.

Anterograde amnesia

• can result from brain trauma to the hippocampus.

• is when explicit memories cannot be consolidated.

• results in the individual being unablle to remember events that occur after the trauma is experienced.

• occured in HM - could remember his past but not doing the experiment relating to procedural memory.

Neurodegenerative disease

• involves the progressive loss of neurons in the brain.

• is exemplified by Alzheimer's disease.

• links to the process of memory and areas of the brain related to memory

Alzheimer's disease

• produces loss of neurons in the brain particularly in the hippocampus at the start. What aspect of memory will this effect.

• eventually leads to damage and loss of other areas of the cerebral cortex

• is characterised by amyloid plaques that form around neurons inhibiting communication and tangles that accumulated within the neurons inhibiting their function.

• associated with low level of the neurotransmitter called acetylcholine.

Symptoms of Alzheimer's disease include

• a decrease in cognitive functioning.

• changes in mood.

• becoming confused and disorientated

• difficulty with language

• NB - can only be diagnosed by an autopsy.

Multiple Choice

Damage to the amygdala impairs the

• recall of STM.

• recall of emotional memories.

• consolidation of STM.

• recall of procedural memories.

Multiple Choice

The most prominent feature of dementia of the Alzheimer type is:

• impairment in learning new information and recalling previously learned information.

• short-term memory impairment.

• impairment in emotional memory.

• impairment in implicit memory.

BUGS - short and extended answer tool

• Box command term,

• Underline key psychology concepts,

• Glance at marks

• Scenario - mention name or context or with reference to etc.

BUGS - Box command term, Underline key psychology concepts, Glance at marks, Scenario

Open Ended

Sam has recently had surgery on her cerebellum after a serious fall from her bike. State if it is likely that Sam can ride her bike after recovering from the surgery? Justify your response. (2 marks)

Sam will not be able to ride her bike

as the cerebellum is a store of implicit memories including procedural memories required to ride a bike.

Note - BUGS

Happy studying

Almost there. :)

Memory retrieval

recall, recognition, relearning, recontruction

Open Ended

Give an example of cued recall. (2 marks)

Remember BUGS.

Cued recall is when the person is

given a prompt or hint to recall the required information from their LTM. An example is if you wanted someone to remember the five steps in observational learning you could give them the letter that starts each word - A, R, R, M and R. This would help them recall attention, retention etc.

Open Ended

What is the term for an individual's statement of the details of an event that they saw? (1 mark)

Open Ended

What is the name for questions that contain misleading information or a phrased in such a way that suggests the desired response? (1 mark)

Fallibility of memory

Loftus research, reconstructive nature of memory and leading questions

Research by Loftus emphasised

• the fallibility of eye-witness testimonies.

• the reconstructive nature of memory - every time we retrieve a memory we re-consolidate it

• that our memory is not an exact copy of what we witness and leading questions can influence its accuracy.

• the misinformation effect is very powerful.

Multiple Choice

What did Loftus and Palmer conclude about leading questions?

• They can influence the reliability of memory.

• They have no effect on memory reliability.

• They only effect eye-witnesses.

• They only work with car accidents.

Open Ended

Describe how leading questions can affect memory reconstruction during eye-witness testimonies. (2 marks)

BUGS

BUGS

• Box - describe, affect

• Underline key concepts - leading questions, memory reconstruction

• Glance at marks - 2 marks

• Scenario - context is eye-witness testimony.

Leading questions

are questions that imply a desired response or contain false information. The implication or false information is added to other information when the eye-witness is consolidating the memory of the event and when retrieved is likely to be an inaccurate reconstruction of this event.

Remember - you will

• be frequently asked to apply you knowledge to new situation - practice past questions.

• need to constantly link information to other areas of the course.

• need an understanding of broad and specific concepts.

• rarely have to give a generic answer.

  
  

• smash this exam!!!!!