Lecture 6 – Long Term Memory (2) 1

1. Do we learn only with intention – or also without intention?

We learn with and without intention.

2. Is learning influenced by what we already know? And if so, how?

Questions about Memory

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WWAK could influence new learning through: 1. Associations2. Construction

#2 will be the topic in Chapters 8, 9, 11. Today, we'll focus on #1 - Associations.

What we already know (WWAK)

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A. Associations - some history

B. How do associations influence learning?1. Levels of Processing theory

• Levels of Processing effect• Maintenance vs. Elaborative Rehearsal

2. Criticisms of Levels of Processing Theory• Baddeley – circularity• Bransford – Transfer Appropriate Training

3. The role of newly-formed associations (Tulving)

Outline

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Basic idea: one thing makes you think of another.

Aristotle's three grounds for association:

• Similarity – e.g. gold coins, golden retrievers• Contrast – e.g., night and day• Contiguity – graduate students and beer

Associations

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More recently:

• J.S. Mill & the British Empiricists All knowledge is association

• Behaviourism Response associated with reward

• Neural Networks. Pattern associators

Associations

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1. Levels of Processing theory – Craik & Lockhart (1972)

• In early 1970’s Cognitive Psychology was interested in process rather than structure

• C & L said, ability to recall a stimulus depends upon how you processed it.

How do associations influence learning?

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• Kind of code generated depends on your purpose when you first process the information.

E.g., are you looking for a red thing among green things? Then generate visual codes.

• Ability to retrieve that information later depends upon type of code generated.

Craik & Lockhart (1972)

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Orienting task - subjects read a list of words and answer one of three questions: • Which words in list contain letter 'e'?• Which words in list rhyme with CANE?• Which words in list name animate objects?

On surprise recall test, success varied with orienting task. Semantic > Rhyme > Spelling

Craik & Lockhart (1972)

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This is the basic Levels of Processing Effect 

Probability of recall varies with type of code generated when learning.

See also studies described in text (pp. 153 - 156)

 Why does this effect happen?

Levels of Processing – The Effect

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Craik & Lockhart – 2 types of rehearsal: Maintenance Rehearsal

• uses articulatory loop• simply saying words over and over

 Elaborative Rehearsal

• uses the meaning of the object or event• requires establishing associations

Levels of Processing – The theory

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Compare sound [banana] vs. meaning "banana" - what associations can be made? 

• Semantic associations are richer, more distinctive – therefore more memorable.

Craik & Lockhart – this explains Levels of Processing effect: deeper processing permits richer associations.

Maintenance vs. Elaborative Rehearsal

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2. Problems with Levels of Processing Theory

Baddeley – L.O.P Theory is circular

Which levels produce best memory? DeepestWhich levels are deepest? Those that produce best memory.

• No independent way of assessing depth.

How do associations influence learning?

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Problems with Levels of Processing Theory

Baddeley – result does not generalize to other tasks.

• E.g., Glenberg, Smith, & Green (1972) – LoP effect not found for recognition task.

• Recognition – subject shown “old” and “new” stimuli, asked to say which is which.

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Problems with Levels of Processing Theory

Bransford – Transfer Appropriate Training

• LoP – memory performance depends upon conditions under which encoding occurs.

• Bransford – memory performance also depends upon conditions under which retrieval occurs.

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Transfer Appropriate Training

Morris, Bransford, & Franks (1977)

• used semantic & rhyme orienting tasks

• at retrieval, some subjects asked to recall words seen during orienting task.

• others asked to detect words that rhymed with words seen during orienting task.

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Morris, Bransford, & Franks (1977)

Group Orientation Retrieval task task

1 Semantic Recall2 Semantic Rhyme3 Rhyme Recall4 Rhyme Rhyme

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Transfer Appropriate Training

Morris, Bransford, & Franks (1977) – findings:

Recall task – semantic orienting led to better performance than rhyme orienting.

Rhyme task – rhyme orienting led to better performance than semantic orienting did.

Encode for the way you plan to use the information.

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The role of newly-formed associations

Bransford’s idea was that retrieval success depends upon the match between what happens at retrieval and what happens at encoding.

Tulving had come to the same conclusion (Tulving & Osler, 1968).

At the time, it was a radical idea…

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Why was this a radical idea?

For some years after Cognitive Psychology replaced Behaviourism, some Behaviourist prejudices maintained their hold on the field.

In particular, most researchers still believed that behaviour was governed by pre-existing learning.

What happened before subjects got to the lab was more important than what happened in the lab.

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Tulving’s Encoding Specificity Theory

Thomson & Tulving (1970)

• Subjects learned a list of words for later recall.

• Some subjects got words without a context.

• Subjects who got words in a context, got either strong or weak contexts.

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Thomson & Tulving (1970)

Examples:

Condition Learn Recall Cue

No context COLD --Strong context 1 COLD-hot hotStrong context 2 COLD-hot blowWeak context 3 COLD-blow hotWeak context 4 COLD-blow blow

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Thomson & Tulving (1970)

Predictions:

If long-term learning is most important, then hot should have been a better cue for COLD than blow, regardless of learning condition.

If blow is a better cue (when it is presented at learning), that means that context matters.

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Thomson & Tulving (1970)

Predictions:

Strong context 1 COLD-hot hotStrong context 2 COLD-hot blowWeak context 3 COLD-blow hotWeak context 4 COLD-blow blow

If long-term learning is most important, then 3 > 4.If learning current context is important, then 4 > 3.

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Thomson & Tulving (1970)

Finding:

Probability of recall with blow as cue was higher than with hot as cue, when blow was presented at learning. (4 > 3).

A cue is effective only if it re-establishes the learning context. This was a radical idea at the time.

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Review – Craik & Lockhart

Type of code you generate when you process a stimulus varies with your purpose.

Ability to retrieve a stimulus later varies with type of code you generated.

Maintenance Rehearsal involves simply repeating the stimulus, without creating new connnections.

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Review – Craik & Lockhart

Elaborative Rehearsal involves working out connections between the new stimulus and WWAK.

Deeper processing permits more elaboration. Greater elaboration leads to better memory.

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Review – Criticisms of Craik & Lockhart

Baddeley:

LoP theory is circular. LoP effects do not generalize well to tasks other than recall.

Bransford:

Conditions at retrieval are important as well as conditions at encoding.

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Review – Encoding Specificity

Tulving:

You encode aspects of context when you learn new information.

Cues help in retrieval only if they re-establish the learning context.