Download Ch. 7 Memory for Learning Web

Introducing:
Memory
AKA:
Why Did I Come in Here??
Chapter 7
Introduction to Psychology Quiz
Question #3
Fact or Fiction: If you are unsure of an
answer on an exam, stick with your
initial hunch.
Introduction to Psychology Quiz
Question #4
Fact or Fiction: Memorizing things is the
BEST way to learn and remember
them.
Defining Memory
Memory: an active system that:
1. receives information from the senses
2. organizes it into a useable form (encoding)
3. stores (storage) and retrieves it (retrieval)
-Brain physiology changes when we learn new skills
Popular Models of Memory
1. Information Processing Model
-memory viewed as similar to a computer in the way that it
handles (processes) information
-incoming information is said to be handled in 3 stages:
-encoding: getting information into memory
-storage: keeping information in memory
-retrieval: getting information out of memory
2. Levels-of-Processing Model
-information is remembered BETTER (longer, more efficiently)
when it is processed on a deeper level (processed via
meaning, personal usefulness, etc.)
Types of Long Term Memory
50 First Dates: A Critical Look
INACCURACIES:
-no such thing as ‘Goldfield’s Syndrome’
-what is portrayed is called ‘anterograde amnesia’
-most individuals are hospitalized; inability to cope with the world
-individuals CAN ENCODE AND STORE memories, but can not RETRIEVE
THEM
ACCURATE PORTRAYAL OF:
-the existence of such a condition
-usually a result of brain damage to the hippocampus
-individuals really stuck in time
-10 second Tom! There was a 7 second Clive (Clive Wearing)
POINT OF INTEREST:
-because memories are encoded and stored, individuals CAN be affected
by them even though they do not realize it!!!
-e.g., Clive kept a journal and knew where he kept it but would say
that no such journal exists if asked about keeping a journal
Amnesia
HM and Anterograde Amnesia (video)
Retrograde Amnesia:
-inability to remember events from the point of trauma
BACKWARD (not remembering events PRIOR to the
trauma)
Infantile Amnesia: inability to remember events prior to 2 years of age
-brain structures immature (not completely developed)
-lack of a complete sense of self
-lack of sufficient language skills to synthesize early
experiences
-protective mechanism: forgetting traumatic events
Processes of Memory Retrieval
Recognition
-cues present to help
-choosing from options
-e.g., multiple-choice exams
-retrieval cues:
-encoding specificity:
-context-dependent learning
-state-dependent learning
Recall
-pulling out of memory
-no options provided
-e.g., essays, short answer
Processes of Memory Retrieval
Recognition
-cues present to help
-choosing from options
-e.g., multiple-choice exams
-retrieval cues:
-encoding specificity:
-context-dependent learning
-state-dependent learning
Recall
-pulling out of memory
-no options provided
-e.g., essays, short answer
-serial position effects:
-primacy effect
-recency effect
Processes of Memory Retrieval
Long Term Memory
Self-Reference Effect: information is remembered longer
and is easier to retrieve when processed in relation
to the self; a type of elaborative rehearsal
Applications to Daily Life
-Eyewitness Testimony
-Eyewitness testimony: notoriously unreliable!
-Memories are RECONSTRUCTIVE: we add, re-shape, and change our
memories based on new information
-Other biases involved as well:
-Weapon effect: focus on a weapon which takes away from
focusing on other parts of the situation
Applications to Daily Life
-Hunches on exams? Stick with your first answer?
-First instinct fallacy
-NOT backed by research
-Over 60 studies have found that statistically, students were
MORE likely to change from a wrong to a RIGHT answer
than the other way around (as long as you had a reason
for the change and not random guessing; Lilienfeld, Lynn,
Ruscio, & Beyerstein, 2009)
-Myth
persists because we remember NEGATIVE things
better than POSITIVE things (survival value!)
-We are more likely to remember changing a correct answer
to a wrong one than the other way around!
Introduction to Psychology Quiz
Question #3
Fact or Fiction: If you are unsure of an
answer on an exam, stick with your
initial hunch.
Introduction to Psychology Quiz
Question #4
Fact or Fiction: Memorizing things is the
BEST way to learn and remember
them.
Questions, Comments, Confusions?