Download Module 12 - Geo Queen Bee

Module 12
Remembering & Forgetting
Recall vs. Recognition


Recall
 Retrieving previously learned information without the aid
of or with very few external cues
Recognition
 Identifying previously learned information with the help of
more external cues
Organization of Memories

Network Theory
 We store related ideas in separate categories,
called nodes
 As we make associations between information, we
create links among thousands of nodes
 Nodes make up a huge interconnected network of
files
Network Hierarchy


Nodes
 Memory files that contain related information organized around a
specific topic
Network hierarchy
 Arrangement of nodes in a certain order
 At the bottom, are nodes with very concrete information
 These nodes are linked to more specific information, which is connected
to more general information
 1. ABSTRACT: animal
 2.MORE SPECIFIC: bird
 3. CONCRETE: blue jay
Forgetting Curve
Measures the amount of previously learned information
that subjects can recall across time


Ebbinghaus


One of the 1st psychologists to study memory & forgetting
He tested his own memory of nonsense syllables
4 Reasons for Forgetting
1) Repression

Mental process that automatically hides emotionally threatening
or anxiety-producing information in the unconscious
2) Poor Retrieval Cues

Retrieval cues are mental reminders that we create by forming
vivid mental images or creating associations between new
information & information we already know
3) Amnesia

Loss of memory due to a blow or damage to the brain after drug
use or after severe psychological stress
4) Interference

Recall of a memory is blocked by other related memories
2 Types of Interference


Proactive
 Old information blocks the remembering of new information
Retroactive
 New information blocks the remembering of old information
Retrieval Cues

Mental reminders that you create by forming vivid mental
images of information or associating new information with
information that you already know
Retrieval Cues (cont.)


State Dependent Learning
 It is easier to recall information when you are in the same
physiological or emotional state or setting as when you
originally learned the information
Tip-of-the-Tongue Phenomenon
 Strong feeling that a particular word can be recalled, but
despite a great deal of effort, we are temporarily unable to
recall the info.
 Poor encoding or interference
Location of Memories in the Brain



Cortex - short & long term memories
 Thin layer of brain cells that cover the surface of the forebrain
Amygdala – emotional memories
 Almond-shaped structure lying below the surface of the cortex in
the tip of the temporal lobe
 Plays a critical role in adding a wide range of emotions to our
memories
Hippocampus – transferring memories
 Curved, finger-like structure that lies beneath the cortex in the
temporal lobe
 Transfers declarative information (words, facts & events) from
STM into LTM
Location of Memories in the Brain (cont.)
Mnemonic Methods



Ways to improve encoding and create better retrieval cues by
forming vivid associations or images
Mr. MIMAL
2 Types
1) Method of Loci
 Create visual associations between already memorized
places & new items to be memorized
2) Peg Method
 Create associations between number-word rhymes and items
to be memorized
 One is a bun; two is a shoe; three is a tree; four is a door; five
is a hive
Can False Memories Be Implanted?



Researchers interviewed parents about events that occurred in
their children’s lives during the past 12 months
Each 3- to 6-year-old was read a list of these events including
some fictitious events
Children were asked to “think hard” & identify the events that
actually happened
Bar graph data from “Repeatedly Thinking About a Non-Event: Source Misattributions Among
Pre-Schoolers,” by S. J. Ceci, M. L. C. Huffman, E. Smith & E. Loftus, 1994, Consciousness and
Cognition, 3, 388-407.
How Accurate is an Eyewitness?

Own-Race Bias


Researchers found that an
eyewitness of one race is
less accurate when
identifying an accused
person of another race
Confidence

6 reviews of studies
concluded that there is a
weak relationship between
correct identification &
level of witness confidence