PSY 191 Memory Notes

Ali Kilinc 11/8/2007 Scribd.com/people/view/6555-Ali-TekBoi

Memory Chapter Notes

Definition of Memory There are two different ways to define memory, both of which are separate thought processes:

A.) Remembering – Ability to recallB.) Forgetting – Inability to recall

** The lost memory: Different from forgetting – A memory you once had, but you lost it; never to get it back or retrieve it. This almost always happens after some sort of physical brain tissue loss. **

RememberingThe process of remembering is a three stage process:

1.) Encoding : Encode experience (transform event into some sort of storable form in the brain). Engram: Any memory trace encoded, in any way in the brain Auditory Engram: Also known as echo (a memory connection with some sort of sound) Visual Code: Also known as icon (a memory connection with some sort of imagery)

** The strongest of memories, are the ones where you, or your subconscious mind, put the most importance on (ex: mother’s death; first girlfriend). **

2.) Storage : Occurs in the outer brain: the cerebral cortex (in the FULL cerebral cortex, all over it The storage of memories in the brain is systematized (to aid stage three).

3.) Retrieval : Finding information that has been stored, and making them of use

** Views of Memory * *

How long does memory last?

Types of Memory Registers:

One.) Sensory Register: Memories in this register tend to last 3-5 secondsTwo.) Short Term Memory [STM]: Memories in this register can last up to 30 seconds

Also known as working memory Maintenance Rehearsal – Repeating a STM over and over again by “juggling” it to

remember it for a longer amount of time, not necessarily turning it into a LTMThree.) Long Term Memory [LTM]: Memories that can last up to a lifetime, (if necessary);

depending on importance put on memories upon you and your mind Elaborate Rehearsal – The process of adding “significance” or “importance” to STMs

in order to turn them into LTMs

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Long Term MemorySkill Memory:

Also known as Procedural Memory

All skill memories are implicit (automatic, or automatically retrieved)

Memories for:o Conditioned Responseso Learned Skills

Declarative Memory:

Memories for facts or factual informationo Dateso Nameso Ideaso Placeso Other things of this nature

A. Semantic Memory: a. Memories that are hard to forgetb. Must develop a strategy to forget

B. Episodic Memory:a. Memories for events or experiences in your

life that can be tied to places and/or times

Explicit Memory:

Memories that might difficult to recall

A person must work to retrieve them

Flash Bulb Memory:

Very specific memory image with details intact, tied to a specific event or place

Relearning:

The time it will take to relearn a skill or ability after one has forgotten, will be less, and/or shorter the second or third time around

Iedetic Imagery:

Also known as photographic memory

20% of all preschool children are believed to exhibit this ability

Theory on why this ability is lost later on in life: information interference

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Strategies for Remembering Using mnemonics: Associating images or other things with certain memories to increase the

ability to recall them**EBINGHOUSE**

He completed his research in 1885 Followed learning to a 100%

criterion; then study the rate of forgetting over a 30 day period.

Most of (a very high percentage) the forgetting of one’s memories happens within the FIRST HOUR; then ending gradually at about 30 days (forgetting after this time is insignificant)

Forgetting The explanation or discussion of how memories are forgotten, is almost always a elaboration on

THEORIES of how memories are forgotten

1.) Encoding Failure: The original experience was never originally “encoded” or stored2.) Decay Theory: (intuitively appealing theory) Time, and time alone, will be the end of all your memories

a. Very effective at explaining the cause of forgetting for sensory and STM memoriesb. Also, highly ineffective at explain forgetting for LTMs

3.) Disuse Theory: Similar to the “Use it or lose it” term; Not recalling on memories will eventually lead the mind to forget them

4.) Interference/Inhibition Theory: The inability to recall or difficulty to remember, is derived from too many other memories interfering the retrieval process

a. Proactive Interference/Inhibition*PAST* – Another, older memory is messing up the remembering process

b. Retroactive Interference/Inhibition*PRESENT* – A recent memory is interfering with the remembering process

5.) Amnesia: Loss of memories as a result of some sort of psychological trauma6.) Retrograde Amnesia*SHORT TERM*: Loss of memory and events leading UP TO a trauma

7.) Anterograde Amnesia*SHORT TERM*: Inability to form and make new memories after a trauma8.) State Dependent Learning: The process of learning and recalling based on a physical or mental

state (ex: Drunks remember events when they were drunk, but can’t when they are sober)9.) Cue Dependent Forgetting: Something, a cue, or stimuli that unleash a slew of memories or

emotions. This is due to the fact that the cue was present at the time of encoding, and without it, retrieval is highly unlikely. Also known as “retrieval failure”.

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Tips on how to IMPROVE MEMORYA. Anytime you can retrieve your “knowledge of results” [KR]: get them as soon as possibleB. Recite Recitation and Retrieval – Increasing the amount of times you recall a memory, will

increase your ability to recall this memory later on in the futureC. Whole/Part learning – Breaking up things into smaller pieces to learn remember them easierD. Serial Position Effect – When one forgets items in a list of things, the possibility to forget items

in the middle, are higher than forgetting items in the top/beginning and bottom/endE. Over-learning:

a. Learning a newly acquired skill well beyond initial masteryb. Study the material until you can confidently say to yourself “I kno dis shit”

F. Space/Mass Practice – Spacing out the learning process into intervals (ex: over time) G. Sleeping – Getting adequate sleep is essential; retrieval is much easier on the rested mind H. Eating – Eating healthy foods and eating often

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PSY 191 Memory Notes