Download Memory Interview

Memory Interview
Here are the questions to use in organizing your interviews of 2 informants. Spaces allow
you to put notes right after each question. You might want to print this out twice, once for each
informant.
Every time someone gives you some information, ask “What are you thinking of... do you
have an example?” (this is important for interpreting responses)
1.
give some examples of when you use your memory. What are some situations in which
you use memory? [note: use this information on following questions as examples to give
context. On this question, most informants will think of studying for a test, remembering
a short grocery list, or remembering a to-do list for the day. If they don’t name these,
ASK if these are good examples]
remembering names
routines
riding a bike
remembering the vocab… confusing English and Spanish
2.
have you heard of the idea that there are 2 memory systems? short and long term
memory? (if so, what is the difference... examples?)
all heard of it. LTM is a collection of stm, and stm can be LTM if rehearsed. Stm is just initial
things, may not be needed later. LTM… things you do everyday. 23 sec
stm may be a weaker concept that LTM
stm is daily activities, LTM other;
?stm is temporary and LTM is permanent
3.
Do memories fade? Are they lost? why?
(some possibilities:
++ they fade away,
++ they get lost in the jumble of things to remember,
++ important or relevant memories are stored better than ordinary memories, and they last longer
++ your memory can get too full so storing more becomes difficult, especially in older people
Sometimes the mem fades, but not necessarily lost. Sometimes memories can be retrieved, but
other times they might be really lost… brain damage. But what about when you were 7?
What fades the most are the details. Most people can’t recall the details of what they did a year
ago.
3a. does repetition help prevent loss?
Yes. Study? Practicing a sport leaning a routine.
Memorizing for a test may get you through the test but then it’s gone.
3b. can making associations help to store memories better? 10 commandments… peg system.
Use for homework. Tell a story
4.
Does storing something in memory usually involve effort?
To have a memory does NOT require effort. To put it into LTM requires effort.
Do you usually have to work to get something to stay in memory?
Depends on importance…. Car almost hit you? 9-`11, info for a test… have to work at it.
So emotional importance and test importance is different. Understanding is another
factor. If you don’t understand info, it is harder to remember.
Does recalling information often involve effort?
It depends on the memory… sometimes it happens automatically, other times it requires effort.
Environmental cues e.g., a smell, a color, that make it easier.
5.
Are some people better than others at memory? Are some cultures better?
Yes… a biological phenomenon, a bell curve. Cultures may be slightly different.
Memory ability is genetic…. You inherit it to some extent.
6.
Is the memory system organized? If so how?
Yes, but not sure how. Logically it HAS to have some organization. Otherwise it might be a
jumble.
Or it might be organized by significance.
How? Don’t know…
Alternative position: memory not organized, but works on the basis of similarity or association.
One thing makes you think of another.
7.
Is memory selective? Do you remember some things and not others? Explain the
selective aspect.
Yes, selective hearing, stuff interesting to you, e.g., remember sports more, not listening to mom,
v. friends
8.
Can memory be improved if you work at it? What helps? Does practice help? What
should you do?
Possibly, repetition, memory games, reading, keep brain active, or a brain injury might make
memory more difficult… therapy? Practice and repetition help. Practice might involve learning
different techniques or memory tricks.
9.
Do most people have a fairly accurate memory? About how often are peoples’ memories
inaccurate? [ask for %]
Yes, fairly accurate. But not every detail, but a fair amt. of accuracy. 25% inaccuracy.
a.
Give a couple of examples of the ways memories may be inaccurate
Something that happened a long time ago, same situation with 2 different people, and you
get the people confused, head injury or car accident and you are in shock. . The source
can be (a) Imprinting the memory v. (b) retrieving it. Thinking homework is due on day x
when it’s really day y.
… is it because they are incomplete? … or confuse two events? … or what else?
Yes
yes
Distort memories?
Yes, if you are in the wrong and you tell the story to make yourself look better
b.
10.
How often are memories completely false? (for ex., someone “remembers” doing
something they never did… or being someplace they were never at) [ask for a %]
Yes, 10-25 percent in a car accident, misremembering where people were sitting, the
location, memories of being young v. you’re parents’ version, family stories that you
“remember” after hearing many times
11.
What about your memory? Are most of your memories a fairly accurate record of your
experiences? [ask for %]
Extremely accurate… but our memories CAN fail us.
Most people exhibit the self-serving bias: they believe their memory is more accurate
than the memories of others.
12.
Freud believed unpleasant memories could be repressed. This is not a conscious process
but an involuntary process where the unconscious mind makes a memory inaccessible to
the conscious mind. Do you believe this can occur? Why?
Repression occurs (as a coping mechanism) v. repression does NOT occur
Or instead of repression, can you just “wipe” something out of your memory banks so it is not
there?
No … you cannot … a park where you almost died at is a retrieval cue
Or can you change an unpleasant memory into one less unpleasant? You cannot change pleasant
to unpleasant. Or can you just avoid recalling the memory? You can avoid a mem
13.
Are emotional events (such as 9-11 or a car accident or winning the lottery) better
remembered than ordinary events? For example?
Might be better remembered because they are important to you, but repression is a possibility.
The details may be gone. Confused about the order of events and details… more emotion means
that the memory is stronger imprinted in mind.
14.
Is complex information more difficult to store than simple information?
Not more difficult to store, but it takes effort and time to understand a complex concept.
2+2 = 4 v. theory of relativity
It may depend on impact
yes