MEMORY

What is MEMORY? Definition – internal record of some prior event or experience - set of mental processes that receives, encodes, stores, organizes, alters, and retrieves information over time

Kinds of Memory

Semantic Memory: – factual information– do not remember when we

learned it Example learning your ABC’s

Episodic Memory: - memory of a specific event- event is “etched” in mind

Example day you got married

Implicit Memory: - skills or techniques learned- once learned, stay with you

for years to come Example how to ride a bike

Flashbulb Memories

• Where were you when you first heard:– That JFK was shot and killed?– That The WTC had been crashed into? – That the Browns won the Super Bowl?

Definition – memory of a significant event which has emotional ties to it - can remember it like “it was yesterday”

Three Stages of Memory

Stage 3 - Long-Term Memory (LTM) - large in capacity

- long duration

Stage 1 - Sensory Memory - brief representation of a stimulus while being processed in the senses - iconic (eyes/snapshots) - eidetic (eyes/photographic) - echoic (ears/sounds)

Stage 2 - Short-Term Memory (STM) - is working memory - limited capacity (7 items) - duration is about 30 seconds

The Memory Model

Integrated Model Concepts

• Encoding – process of translating info into neural codes (language) that will be retained in memory

• Storage – the process of retaining neural coded info over time

• Retrieval – the process of recovering info from memory storage

Three Processes of Memory

Integrated Model of Memory

Organization of Memory

Retrieval Cue – a clue or prompt that helps stimulate recall and retrieval of a stored piece of information from long-term memory

Two Types:1. Recognition ability to recognize previously encountered items/experiences2. Recall ability to remember information of experiences

Memory Measures• Recognition is when a specific cue (face or

name) is matched against LTM• Recall is when a general cue is used to

search memory• Relearning - situation where person learns

material a second time. • Quicker to learn material 2nd time

Tip-of the Tongue Phenomenon: - person can’t easily recall the item, but

shows some recall for its characteristics (“…it begins with the letter ….”)

Anatomy of

Memory

Amygdala: located in temporal lobe & associated with memory, emotions, & aggressionBasal Ganglia & Cerebellum: memory for skills, habits and Classical Conditioned responsesHippocampus: memory recognition, spatial, episodic memory, long-term memoriesThalamus: formation of new memories and working memoriesCortical Areas: encoding of facts, storage of episodic/semantic memories, skill learning, priming.

Forgetting Definition: the inability to recall

previously learned information

- Forgetting rate is steep just after learning and then becomes a gradual loss of recall

Theories of Forgetting Proactive Interference: - old information interferes w/recall of new information

Retrieval Failure: - information is still within LTM, but cannot be recalled because retrieval cue is absent

Motivated Forgetting:-involves loss of painful memories (protective memory loss)

Decay Theory: - memory trace fades w/time

Retroactive Interference:- new information interferes with recall of old

Serial Position EffectRecall immediatelyafter learning

Recall several hoursafter learning

Recall from Recall from LTM STM

LTM

Primacy Effect – remembering stuff at beginning of list better than middle

Recency Effect – remembering stuff at the end of list better than middle

Study Strategies

Distributed Practice: - refers to spacing learning periods

Massed Practice: - refers to learning that is “crammed” into a single session

VS.

Distributed practice leads to better retention

Memory StrategiesMnemonic Devices:- strategies to improve memory by organizing

information– Method of Loci: ideas are associated with a place or part of a building– Peg-Word system: peg words associated with ideas (e.g. “one is a bun”)– Word Associations: verbal associations

are created for items to be learned

Amnesia Definition: forgetting produced by brain

injury or by trauma Two Types:

– Retrograde Amnesia: problems with recall of information prior to a trauma

– Anterograde Amnesia: problems with recall of information after a trauma

Point of Trauma

Retrograde Amnesia Anterograde Amnesia

Issues in Memory• Reasons for inaccuracy of memory:

– Source Amnesia: attribution of a memory to the wrong source (e.g. a dream is recalled as an actual event)

– Sleeper Effect: a piece of information from an unreliable source is initially discounted, but is recalled after the source has been forgotten

– Misinformation Effect: we incorporate outside information into our own memories