Unit 7A:

Cognition: Memory

Everything off your desk but

1 piece of paper…..

No this is not a pop quiz……

Introduction• Memory the persistence of learning

over time through the storage and

retrieval of information.

IntroductionAtkinson-Shiffrin Three-Stage Model

• Encoding the processing of information into

the memory systems

• Storage the retention of encoded

information over time.

• Retrieval the process of getting information

out of memory storage.

INFORMATION PROCESSING MODEL: COMPARES OUR MEMORY TO A COMPUTER

3 STEP PROCESS IN HOW MEMORY WORKS

Three step process….

1. Encoding: The processing of information into the memory system.

2. Storage: The retention of encoded material over time.

3. Retrieval: The process of getting the information out of memory storage.

Introduction–Sensory memory the immediate, very brief

recording of sensory information in the

memory system.

–Short-term memory activated memory that

holds a few items briefly, such as the seven

digits of a phone number while dialing before

the information is stored or forgotten.

–Long-term memory the relatively

permanent and limitless storehouse of the

memory system. Includes knowledge, skills,

and experiences.

Stage 1 - Sensory Memory is a brief representation

of a stimulus while being processed in the sensory system

Stage 2 - Short-Term Memory (STM) is working

memory

Limited capacity (7 items)

Duration is about 30 seconds

Stage 3 - Long-Term Memory (LTM) is large

capacity and long duration

Atikinson-Shiffrin three-stage model of memory, describes 3 different

memory systems characterized by time frames:

Introduction

–Working memory a newer

understanding of short-term memory

that focuses on conscious, active

processing of incoming auditory and

visual-spatial information, and of

information retrieved from long-term

memory.

Modified Three-stage Processing

Model of Memory

Encoding: Getting Information InHow We Encode

• Automatic Processing

–Parallel processing the processing of

many aspects of a problem

simultaneously

–Automatic processing unconscious

encoding of incidental information, such

as space, time and frequency, and of

well-learned information, such as word

meanings.

Encoding: Getting Information InHow We Encode

• Effortful Processing encoding that

requires attention and conscious effort.

• Rehearsal the conscious repetition of

information, either to maintain it in

consciousness or to encode it for storage.

Encoding: Getting Information InWhat We Encode

• Levels of Processing

–Visual encoding the encoding of picture

images

–Acoustic encoding the encoding of

sound, especially the sound of words

–Semantic encoding the encoding of

meaning, including the meaning of words.

ENCODING

SPACING EFFECT

We encode better when we study or practice over time.

DO NOT CRAM!!!!!

•The ways we encode:•Visual Encoding: the encoding of picture images. •Acoustic Encoding: the encoding of sound, especially the sounds of words.•Semantic Encoding: the encoding of meaning.

http://www.psychbytes.com/Flash/Encodin

g/Encoding.htm

Encoding: Getting Information InWhat We Encode

Encoding: Getting Information InWhat We Encode

• Visual Encoding

–Imagery mental pictures

–Mnemonics memory aids, especially

those techniques that use vivid imagery

and organizational devices.

–Chunking organizing items into familiar,

manageable units; often occurs

automatically.

Encoding: Getting Information InWhat We Encode

• Organizing Information for Encoding

–Hierarchies

Storage: Retaining InformationSensory Memory

• Iconic memory a momentary sensory

memory of visual stimuli; a photographic

or picture-image memory lasting no more

than a few tenths of a second.

• Echoic memory a momentary sensory

memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is

elsewhere, sounds and words can still be

recalled within 3 or 4 seconds.

Storage: Retaining InformationWorking/Short-Term Memory

• Magic number Seven

–Plus or minus 2

• The list of magic sevens– Seven wonders of world

– Seven seas

– Seven deadly sins

– Seven primary colors

– Seven musical scale notes

– Seven days of the week

Name the seven dwarves…..

Now name them…..

• It depends on several things….

• If you like Disney movies?

• When was the last time you have seen the movie?

• Are people around you being loud pain in the butts so you cannot concentrate?

Turn your paper over.

Grouchy Gabby Fearful

Sleepy Smiley Jumpy Hopeful

Shy Droopy Dopey Sniffy

Wishful Puffy Dumpy Sneezy

Pop Grumpy Bashful Cheerful

Teach Snorty Nifty Happy

Doc Wheezy Stubby Poopy

Sleepy, Dopey, Grumpy, Sneezy, Happy, Doc

and Bashful

Storage: Retaining InformationLong-Term Memory

• Unlimited nature of long-term memory

Storage: Retaining InformationStoring Memories in the Brain

Stress Hormones and Memory

–Emotions and memories

–Flashbulb memory a clear memory

of an emotionally significant

moment or event.

Flashbulb Memory• A clear moment

of an emotionally significant moment or event.

Where were you when?

1. You heard about 9/11

2. You heard about the death

of a family member

3. During the OJ chase

Storage: Retaining InformationStoring Memories in the Brain

• Storing Implicit and Explicit Memories

–Amnesia loss of memory

Storage: Retaining InformationStoring Memories in the Brain

Retrieval: Getting Information Out

• Recall a measure of memory in which the person

must retrieve information learning earlier, as on a

fill-in-the-blank test.

• Recognition a measure of memory in which

the person need only identify items previously

learned, as on a multiple-choice test.

• Relearning a measure of memory that

assesses the amount of time saved when learning

material for a second time.

Recall

you must retrieve the information from your memory

fill-in-the blank or essay tests

Recognition

you must identify the target from possible targets

multiple-choice tests

Retrieval is the process of getting information out of memory storage.

Retrieval: Getting Information OutRetrieval Cues

• Retrieval

cues

• Mnemonic

devices

• Priming the activation, often

unconsciously, of particular associations in

memory.

Priming

Retrieval: Getting Information OutContext Effects

• Context effects

• Déjà vu that eerie sense that “I’ve

experienced this before.” Cues from the

current situation may subconsciously

trigger retrieval of an earlier experience.

Retrieval: Getting Information OutMoods and Memories

• State dependent memory

• Mood congruent memory the

tendency to recall experiences that are

consistent with one’s current good or bad

mood.

Forgetting

Retrieval FailureInterference

• Proactive interference the disruptive

effect of prior learning on the recall of

new information.(forward acting)

• Retroactive interference the disruptive

effect of new learning on the recall of

old information.(backward-acting)

Retrieval FailureInterference

Primacy effect – remembering stuff at

beginning of list better than middle

Recency Effect – remembering stuff at the

end of list better than middle

Name all of the presidents

You go to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. You are seated at a table with a white tablecloth. You study the menu. You tell the female server you want Avocado Egg Rolls, extra sauce, Roadslide Sliders, Thai Lettuce Wraps, and Chino-Latino Steak (medium). You also order a Cherry Coke from the beverage list. A few minutes later the server returns with your Avocado Egg Rolls. Later the rest of the meal arrives. You enjoy it all, except the Chino-Latino Steak is a bit overdone.

How did you order the steak?

Was the red tablecloth checkered?

What did you order to drink?

Did a male server give you a menu?

Retrieval FailureMotivated Forgetting

• Repression the

basic defense

mechanism that

banishes from

consciousness

anxiety-arousing

thoughts, feelings,

and memories.

Memory Construction

MEMORY

Misinformation and Imagination

Effects• Loftus memory studies

–Misinformation effect incorporating

misleading information into one’s memory of

an event.

Source Amnesia

• Source amnesia (source

misattribution) attributing to the wrong

source an event we have experienced, heard

about, read about, or imagined.

Repressed or Constructed

Memories of Abuse

• Areas of agreement

– Sexual abuse happens

– Injustice happens

– Forgetting happens

– Recovered memories are incomplete

– Memories before 3 years are unreliable

– Hypnotic memories are unreliable

– Memories can be emotionally upsetting

Repressed or Constructed

Memories of Abuse?

• Loftus studies with children

Unit 7B:

Cognition: Thinking, Problem

Solving, Creativity, and

Language

Introduction

• Cognition the mental activities

associated with thinking, knowing,

remembering, and

communicating.

• Cognitive psychologists

Concepts• Concepts a mental grouping of

similar objects, events, ideas, or

people.

–Prototype a mental image or best

example of a category. Matching new

items to a prototype provides a quick

and easy method for sorting items into

categories

Development of Concepts:

Definitions

Prototypes

•Mental image or best example of a category

Solving ProblemsStrategies

• Algorithms a methodical, logical rule or

procedure that guarantees solving a particular

problem.

– Step-by-step

• Heuristic a simple thinking strategy that

often allows us to make judgments and solve

problems efficiently

• Insight a sudden and often novel realization

of the solution to a problem

Solving ProblemsCreativity

• Creativity the ability to produce novel

and valuable ideas.

• Strernberg’s five components

–Expertise

–Imaginative thinking skills

–A venturesome

personality

–Intrinsic motivation

–A creative environment

Solving ProblemsObstacles to Problem Solving

• Confirmation bias a tendency to search

for information that supports our preconceptions

and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence.

• Fixation the inability to see a problem from a

new perspective, by employing a different

mental set.

–Mental set a tendency to approach a

problem in one particular way

–Functional fixedness the tendency to

think of things only in terms of their usual

functions

Making Decisions and Forming Judgments

Using and Misusing Heuristics

• The Representative Heuristicjudging the likelihood of things in terms of

how well they seem to represent, or

match, particular prototypes; may lead us

to ignore other relevant information.

Making Decisions and Forming Judgments

Using and Misusing Heuristics

• The Availability Heuristic estimating the

likelihood of events based on their availability

in memory

Making Decisions and Forming Judgments

Overconfidence

• Overconfidence the tendency to be

more confident that correct – to over-

estimate the accuracy of our beliefs and

judgments

Making Decisions and Forming Judgments

The Belief Perseverance Phenomenon

• Belief perseverance clinging to

one’s initial conceptions after the

basis on which they are formed

has been discredited.

Making Decisions and Forming Judgments

The Perils and Powers of Intuition

• Intuition an effortless, immediate, automatic

feeling or thought, as contrasted with explicit,

conscious reasoning.

Making Decisions and Forming Judgments

The Effects of Framing

• Framing the way an issue is

posed; how an issue is framed

can significantly affect decisions

and judgments

Language

LanguageIntroduction

• Language our spoken, written, or

signed words and the ways we combine

them to communicate meaning

Language StructurePhonemes

• Phoneme in language, the smallest

distinctive sound unit.

–English about 40 phonemes

–Learning another language’s

phonemes

Language StructureMorphemes

• Morpheme in a language, the

smallest unit that carries

meaning; may be a word or a part

of a word

• Includes prefixes and suffixes

Language StructureGrammar

• Grammar a system of rules that enables us

to communicate with and understand others.

–Semantics the set of rules by which we

derive meaning from morphemes, words, and

sentences in a given language; also, the

study of meaning.

–Syntax the rules for combining words into

grammatically sensible sentences in a given

language.

Syntax

• The rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences.

• In English, adjectives come before nouns, but not in Spanish!!

Is this the White House of the House White?

Language DevelopmentWhen Do We Learn Language?

Language DevelopmentExplaining Language Development

• Skinner: Operant Learning

–Learning principles

• Association

• Imitation

• Reinforcement

Language Influences Thinking

• Whorf’s linguistic determinismWhorf’s hypothesis that language determines

the way we think.

Whorf’s Linguistic Relativity• The idea that

language determines the way we think (not vive versa).

•The Hopi tribe has no past tense in their language, so Whorf says they rarely think of the past.