Memory

Memory: the persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information

Flashbulb memory: memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

How does memory work? The Seven Dwarves

Grouchy, Gabby, Fearful, Sleepy, Smiley, Jumpy, Hopeful, Shy, Droopy, Dopey, Sniffy, Wishful, Puffy, Dumpy, Sneezy, Lazy, Pop, Grumpy, Bashful, Cheerful, Teach, Shorty, Nifty, Happy, Doc, Wheezy, and Stubby

Sleepy Dopey Grumpy Sneezy, Happy Doc Bashful.

Encoding – memory in Storage – retain memory Retrieval – getting it back out If you had trouble remembering the

dwarves, at what point did your memory fail you?

Turn to a partner. Tell them what time you got up. What did you have (or not have) for breakfast? Who have you talked to today? What classes have you had so far? How did you get here? Do you remember the path you took?

Automatic processing – unconscious encoding of incidental information

Space – you know where you’ve been (more or less); words on a page

Time – sequence of events Frequency – how many times things have

happened We can learn to process things automatically

ereh tsomla si kaerb retniw

Effortful processing Effortful processing requires attention

and conscious attention It requires Rehearsal, the constant

repetition of information 12 Days of Christmas

12 drummers drumming 11 pipers piping 10 lords a leapin’ 9 ladies dancing 8 maids a milking 7 swans a singing 6 geece a laying 5 golden rings 4 calling birds 3 french hens 2 turtle doves 1 partridge, and also, 1 peartree

The amount remembered depends on time spent learning. Even if you forget, relearning is easier if you spent a lot of time remembering in the first place

How much psychology will you remember in 2 years?

Serial position effect Presidents

1. Washington 12. Taylor 23. Harrison 34. Eisenhower

2. J. Adams 13. Fillmore 24. Cleveland 35. Kennedy 3. Jefferson 14. Pierce 25. McKinley 36. L.

Johnson 4. Madison 15. Buchanan 26. T. Roosevelt 37. Nixon 5. Monroe 16. Lincoln 27. Taft 38. Ford 6. J. Q. Adams 17. A. Johnson 28. Wilson 39. Carter 7. Jackson 18. Grant 29. Harding 40. Reagan 8. Van Buren 19. Hayes 30. Coolidge 41. H. W. Bush 9. Harrison 20. Garfield 31. Hoover 42. Clinton 10. Tyler 21. Arthur 32. F. D. Roosevelt 43. W. Bush 11. Polk 22. Cleveland 33. Truman 44. Obama

Encoding- Serial Position Effect

12

Percentage of

words recalled

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Position of word in list1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Forgetting

• Ebbinghaus- forgetting curve over 30 days – initially

rapid, then levels off with time

12345 10 15 20 25 30

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0

Time in days since learning list

Percentage oflist retainedwhen relearning

Ebbinghaus Studied nonsense syllables

TUV YOF GEK XOZ Spacing Effect – distributed practice

yields better long-term retention than massed practice (studying a little every night is better than cramming) Study, wait, study, wait a little longer,

study, wait a little longer etc.

How memory is encoded Visual encoding – images Acoustic encoding – sounds Semantic encoding – meaning

contextA newspaper is better than a magazine. A seashore is abetter place than the street. At first it is better to run thanto walk. You may have to try several times. It takes someskill but is easy to learn. Even young children can enjoyit. Once successful, complications are minimal. Birds seldom get too close. Rain, however, soaks in very fast. Too many people doing the same thing can also cause problems. One needs lots of room. If there are no complications, it can be very peaceful. A rock will serve as an anchor. If things break loose from it, however, you will not get a second chance.

Encoding Meaning

Q: Did the word begin with a capital letter?

StructuralEncoding

Q: Did the word rhyme with the word “weight”?

Q: Would the word fit in the sentence? He met a __________ in the street.

PhonemicEncoding

SemanticEncoding

“Whale”

Craik and Lockhart (1972)

Intermediate

Deep

Shallow

Things that are represented visually in the mind are more easily remembered (as opposed to abstract things)

Rosy Retrospection We tend to recall events more positively

than we experienced them at the time Mnemonics

Acronyms (Kings Prefer Coke Over Flavored Grape Soda)

Peg word system

Chunking – organizing into meaningful units

Pledge of Allegiance

1-7-7-6-1-4-9-2-1-8-1-2-1-9-4-1

4-7-6-1-4-5-3-1-9-4-7-1-7-8-9

Storage Sensory Working/short-term Long-term

Sensory Memory Iconic memory: momentary

photographic memory (a few tenths of a sec.) Flashlight

Echoic memory: Like iconic memory. Sounds can be remembered for about 3-4 seconds. Iconic

0.5 sec. longEchoic

3-4 sec. longHepatic

< 1 sec. long

Working/Short-term memory Working/short-term memory Magical 7 (+-2) Only about 4 chunks without rehearsal

It is possible to memorize these numbers in short period of time? Can you do it?

71014172124283135

Long-Term Memory Essentially limitless “total memory

capacity of all the computers in the world is less than a single brain”

Where are our memories? Not in one spot Hippocampus and cerebellum are both

involved Synaptic changes- the more a memory

is rehearsed, the easier the synapses release serotonin, and the more receptor sites there are

Knockouts

Stress and memory – strong emotions contribute to memory; weak emotions mean weak memories

Extreme stress can impair memories

Explicit and Implicit memories Amnesia Implicit – learning how to do something Explicit – declaring that you know

Retrieval Recognition and recall (recognition tests provide

more retrieval cues) We remember more than we recall We re-learn things easier Context Effects – have you ever walked into a

room to do something, and then forgotten what you came to do? What often helps you remember?

déjà vu Mood congruence – affects how we recall events

and how see current events

Forgetting A.J. Forgetting curve Retrieval failure Interference Motivated forgetting Repression?

“Seven Sins” of ForgettingTransienceAbsent-mindednessBlockingMisattribution SuggestibilityBiasPersistence

1) transience

Transience: the impermanence of long-term memories-based on the idea that memories gradually fade in strength over time-also known as “decay theory.”

Ebbinghaus’s Forgetting Curve

For most memories, there is a sharp decline in memory, followed by declining rate of loss

2) Absent-mindedness

Absent-mindedness: forgetting caused by lapses in attention.

Ex. Forgetting where you parked; losing your keys

3) blocking

Blocking: forgetting when a memory cannot be retrieved because of interference. Proactive Interference: When an old memory

disrupts the learning and remembering of a new memory.

Ex. Trying to put the dishes away at a new house

Retroactive Memory: When a new memory blocks the retrieval of an old memory.

Ex. Driving an automatic after driving a manual

4) misattribution

Misattribution: Memory faults that occur when memories are retrieved, but are associated with the wrong time, place or person.

Ex. Psychologist Donald Thompson accused of rape. Alibi was airtight as he was giving a TV interview the victim had been watching just prior to the assault.

5) suggestibility

Suggestibility: The process of memory distortion as the result of deliberate or inadvertent suggestion.

Eyewitness accounts are one a large part of our legal system. Unfortunately they can be incredibly faulty.

With the misinformation effect, memories can be embellished or even created by cues and suggestions.

6) bias

Bias: The influence of personal beliefs, attitudes and experiences on memory.

Expectancy Bias: A memory tendency to distort recalled events to fit one’s expectations.

Self-consistency Bias: A commonly held idea that we are more consistent in our attitudes and beliefs, over time, than we actually are.

7) persistence

Persistence: A memory problem where unwanted memories cannot be put out of our mind.

Depressed people cannot stop thinking about how bad their life is and how unhappy they are. It can create a self-fulfilling problem.

Psychologists think that emotions strengthen the physical changes in the synapses that hold our memories, thus highly emotional memories can be harder to put out of mind.

Memory Construction Misinformation Imagination Effects Source amnesia/source misattribution

Loftus and Palmer: Methodology

Students watched a film of two cars colliding Collision was moderate with no broken glass Different students asked different questions: hit,

smashed, collided, bumped, contacted

Loftus and Palmer: Results

People reported the fastest speeds if the researchers had used the word “smashed” in the question

From fastest to slowest reported speeds: smashed, collided, bumped, hit, and contacted groups

VERB MEAN ESTIMATE OF SPEED (MPH)

Smashed 40.8

Collided 39.3

Bumped 38.1

Hit 34.0

Contacted 31.8

Loftus and Palmer: Results

One week later, subjects were asked if they had seen broken glass

32% of subjects asked the “smashed” question said yes; 14% of subjects asked the “hit” question said yes

Improving Memory

1. Study repeatedly to boost long-term recall.

2. Spend more time rehearsing or actively thinking about the material.

3. Make material personally meaningful.4. Use mnemonic devices:

associate with peg words — something already stored

make up a story chunk — acronyms

Improving Memory

5. Activate retrieval cues — mentally recreate the situation and mood.

6. Recall events while they are fresh — before you encounter misinformation.

7. Minimize interference:1. Test your own knowledge.2. Rehearse and then determine what you do

not yet know. © LW

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CHRISTMAS CAROLS FOR THE PSYCHIATRICALLY CHALLENGED Schizophrenia: Do You Hear What I Hear? Multiple Personality Disorder: We Three QueensDisoriented Are Amnesia: I Don't Know if I'll be Home for Christmas Narcissistic: Hark the Herald Angels Sing About Me Manic: Deck the Halls and Walls and House and Lawn andStreets and Stores and Office and Town and Cars andBuses and Trucks and Trees and Fire Hydrants and ... Paranoid: Santa Claus is Coming to Get Me Borderline Personality Disorder: Thoughts of Roastingon an Open Fire Personality Disorder: You Better Watch Out, I'm GonnaCry, I'm Gonna Pout, Maybe I'll tell You Why Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: Jingle Bells, JingleBells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells... Agoraphobia: I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day ButWouldn't Leave My House Autistic: Jingle Bell Rock and Rock and Rock and Rock... Senile Dementia: Walking in a Winter Wonderland MilesFrom My House in My Slippers and Robe Oppositional Defiant Disorder: I Saw Mommy KissingSanta Claus So I Burned Down the House Social Anxiety Disorder: Have Yourself a Merry LittleChristmas While I Sit Here and Hyperventilate

Tombstone

Snowman Funeral