Download What is Memory?

What is Memory?
The Processes of encoding, storage & retrieval
What is Memory?
• The encoding, storage and later retrieval of
a response that was previously acquired.
• The Learning Process is made up of Two
Stages: Acquisition & Retention
Acquisition
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Acquisition – The initial learning of information.
Affected by…
1. Attention Process
2. Degree of Motivation
3. Preparedness of the Learner
4. Type of Practice Followed
5. Kind of Material to be Learned
6. Transfer of Training (Application)
Situational Factors that Influence
Acquisition
Attention
• Sensory Gating – process by which the brain sends
messages to some of the sensory systems to decrease the
amount of information they must deal with.
– Example: Feeling of clothes, “white” noise
• Parallel vs. Sequential Attention (parallel sensory
processing)
– Parallel – Useful only when receiving new info. Brain processes
several different stimuli simultaneously.
– Sequential Attention – Higher Level, treat each piece of info
separately in order.
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Factors Influencing Attention
• Feature Extraction (Decoding) – Sensory System
selects which incoming stimuli to process then
establishes meaning for these stimuli.
– Example: “r” is different from “f”
• Characteristics of the Learner:
– Individual Differences: development, motivation, expression
of emotions
• Preparedness – Time & Place. Example: Chimps can’t
speak but are prepared for signing.
• The Learning Curve: Performance is not always an
accurate indicator of learning.
Methods of Acquisition
• 1. Overlearning – any repetition over the point of acquisition
– Follows the law of diminishing returns – more is not always better.
• 2. Knowledge of Results: Feedback – any info about the effect of a
response.
– Leads to faster acquisition of new material
– Immediate feedback is more beneficial than delayed
• 3. Distribution of Practice – Study - Rest - Study – Rest. (Take
Breaks)
• 4. Whole-Part Distribution – Deciding whether to learn the entire
amount of material as a whole or divide it into parts to learn. Depends
on the task.
• 5. Active vs. Passive Approach – The more involved (active) you are
in your learning the better you will remember it.
• 6. Primacy & Recency Effects – Tend to remember info that came first
and last.
7. Content – We are better able to remember info that we can make
associations to and infer meaning from.
The InformationProcessing Model
Information Processing Model
• Encoding - getting information into
the memory system
• Storage - the retaining of encoded
information over time
• Retrieval - getting encoded
information out of memory storage
How is Our Memory Like a
Computer?
• Both encode, store, and retrieve data
• We can activate information from our long
term memory (hard drives)
• Information on the screen disappears if not
used right away – short term memory
Encoding:
Serial Position Effect
Serial Position Effect
• The tendency to recall the first and
last items in a list
• Primacy effect – the ability to recall
information near the beginning of a
list
• Recency effect – the ability to recall
information near the end of a list
Primacy/Recency Effect
or
Serial Position Effect
(From Craik & Watkins, 1973)
Encoding:
Spacing Effect
Spacing Effect
• The tendency for distributed practice
to yield better retention than is
achieved through massed practice
(cramming)
Distributed Practice
• Spreading rehearsal out in several
sessions separated by period of time
• Usually enhances the recalling of the
information
Massed Practice
• Putting all rehearsal together in one
long session (cramming)
• Not as effective as distributed practice
Encoding:
Encoding Meaning
Semantic Encoding
• The encoding of meaning
• Encoding information that is
meaningful enhances recall
Self-Reference Effect
• The enhanced semantic encoding of
information that is personally relevant
• Making information meaningful to a
person by making it relevant to one’s
life
Semantic Encoding
(From Craik & Tulving, 1975)
Acoustic Encoding
• Encoding information based on the
sounds of the information
Acoustic Encoding
(From Craik & Tulving, 1975)
Visual Encoding
• Encoding information based on the
images of the information
Visual Encoding
(From Craik & Tulving, 1975)
Encoding:
Organizing
Information
Chunking
• Organizing information into
meaningful units
• More information can be encoded if
organized into meaningful chunks.
Encoding:
Mnemonic Devices
Mnemonic Device
• A memory trick or technique for
remembering specific facts
• “Every good boy does fine” to remember
the notes on the lines of the scale
• “People say you could have odd lots of
good years” as a way to remember how to
spell “psychology”
Method of Loci
• A mnemonic device in which the
person associates items to be
remembered with imaginary places
Peg-Word System
• A mnemonic device in which the
person associates items to remember
with a list of peg words already
memorized
• Goal is to visualize the items to
remember with the items on the pegs
Peg Word System
Categorical Clustering
• Grouping items you want to remember by
categories
• Example: Grocery list organized by aisles
or food category.
Acronyms
• Set of letters from a word or phrase in
which each letter stands of a certain other
word or concept.
• Example: HOMES = Names of the Great
Lakes
Acrostics
• Initial letters that taken in order form a word
or phrase that trigger what you want to
remember.
• Example: Please Excuse My Dear Aunt
Sally (Math)
• Example: Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge
(Music)
Interactive Images
• Link a set of isolated words by creating
visual representations for the words and
then picturing interactions among the items.
• Example: If you had to remember a list of
random things like an aardvark, pencil,
table and book picture the aardvark sitting
on a table holding pencil in its claws and
writing in a book.
Keyword System
• Learning isolated words by linking sounds
and meanings together.
• Example: Elvis shook his pelvis
– Stalactite holds tight to the ceiling
– Fibula lies beneath the Tibula
– Tibula is on top of the fibula
Do Mnemonics Work?
• Watch this 8 minute video on how the
world’s best memory competitors use
mnemonics.
Storage
Three Storage Systems
• Three distinct storage systems :
– Sensory Memory
– Short-Term Memory (includes
Working Memory)
– Long-Term Memory
Storage:
Sensory Memory
Sensory Memory
• The brief, initial coding of sensory
information in the memory system
– Iconic store – visual information,
½ second
– Echoic store – sound information,
2-3 seconds
• Information held just long enough to make
a decision on its importance
Storage:
Short-Term Memory
Short-Term Memory
• Conscious, activated memory which holds
information briefly before it is stored or
forgotten
• Holds approximately seven, plus or minus
two, chunks of information
• Can retain the information as long as it is
rehearsed
• Also called “working memory”
Storage:
Long-Term Memory
Long-Term Memory
• The relatively permanent and
limitless storehouse of the memory
system
• Holds memories without conscious
effort
Take out a piece of paper
Name the Seven Dwarves
Retrieval
Retrieval
• The process of getting information
out of memory storage
• Two forms of retrieval
– Recall
– Recognition
Recall
• A measure of memory in which the person
must retrieve information learned earlier
• Example: Essay, fill-in-the-blank, and
short answer test questions test recall
• Recall Tests will do THIS to your head.
Recognition
• A measure of memory in which a
person must identify items learned
earlier
• Example: Multiple choice and
matching test questions test
recognition
Turn your paper over.
Now pick out the seven dwarves.
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
Seven Dwarves
Sleepy, Dopey, Grumpy, Sneezy, Happy, Doc and Bashful
Retrieval: Context
Context Effect
• The enhanced ability to retrieve
information when you are in an
environment similar to the one in
which you encoded the information
Context
Retrieval:
State Dependency
State Dependent Memory
• The enhanced ability to retrieve
information when the person is in the
same physical and emotional state
they were in when they encoded the
information
• The retrieval state is congruent with
the encoding state
Let’s Review
The Three Processes of Memory
Encoding
• The processing of information into the
memory system.
Typing info into a computer
Getting a girls name at a party
Storage
• The retention of encoded material over
time.
Pressing Ctrl S and
saving the info.
Trying to remember her name
when you leave the party.
Retrieval
• The process of getting the information out
of memory storage.
Finding your document
and opening it up.
Seeing her the next day
and calling her the wrong
name (retrieval failure).