Chapter 6: Memory In this Chapter we consider 1. The Nature of Memory 2. Ways in which information is stored 3. That there are several separate types.

Chapter 6: MemoryChapter 6: Memory

In this Chapter we consider

1. The Nature of Memory

2. Ways in which information is stored

3. That there are several separate types of memory

4. Each type functions in a slightly different manner.

5. Problems of retrieving information from memory, the accuracy of memories varies, & the reasons information is sometimes forgotten.

6. What are the biological foundations of memory?

7. How can we increase memory capacity in a some practical way?

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Memory

The process by which we encode, store, and retrieve information


Encoding

Refers to the process by which information is initially recorded in a form usable to memory

Storage

The maintenance of material saved in the memory system

Retrieval

Material in memory storage is located, brought into awareness, and used


The Three Systems of Memory: Sensory Memory

The initial, momentary storage of information, lasting only an instant

Iconic memory– Reflects

information from our visual system

Echoic memory– Stores

auditory information coming from the ears


The Three Systems of Memory: Short-Term Memory

Memory store in which information first has meaning

May hold approximately 7 (plus or minus 2) chunks of information– A chunk is a meaningful

grouping of stimuli that can be stored as a unit in short-term memory

Holds information for approximately 15 to 20 seconds

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The Three Systems of Memory: Short-Term Memory

Two kinds of Rehearsal– Repetition rehearsal

• Occurs when information is repeated and this keeps it in short-term memory.

– Elaborative rehearsal• Occurs when information

is considered and organized in some fashion resulting in a greater likelihood to be transferred into long-term memory

Mnemonics– Formal techniques for

organizing information in a way that makes it more likely to be remembered


The Three Systems of Memory: Long-Term Memory

A storehouse of almost unlimited capacity

Information in long-term memory is filed and coded so that we can retrieve it when we need it


Contemporary Approaches To Memory

Working memory– View of short-term

memory as an active “workspace” in which information is retrieved and manipulated, and in which information is held through rehearsal


Working Memory

Central Executive Processor

(reasoning and decision making)

Visual store

(visual & spatial information)

Verbal store

(speech, words, & numbers)



Models of Memory

Associative model– Memory consists of

mental representations of clusters of interconnected information

Priming– Phenomenon in which

exposure to a word or concept later makes it easier to recall related information

Spreading activation– Activating one memory

triggers the activation of related memories


Modules of Memory

Explicit memory– Intentional or conscious

recollection of information Implicit memory

– Memories of which people are not consciously aware, but which can affect subsequent performance and behaviour


Biological Bases of Memory

Long-term potentiation– Certain neural pathways

become easily excited while a new response is being learned

Consolidation– Changes in the number

of synapses between neurons as the dendrites branch out to receive messages and memories become fixed and stable in long-term memory


Recalling Long-Term Memories

Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon– Inability to recall

information that one realizes one knows

Retrieval cue– Stimulus that allows

us to recall more easily information that is located in long-term memory



Levels-of-processing theory– Emphasizes the degree

to which new material is mentally analyzed

Flashbulb memories– Memories around a

specific, important, or surprising event that are so vivid they represent a virtual snapshot of the event


Constructive Process in Memory

Constructive process– Processes in which

memories are influenced by the meaning that we give to events

Schemas– Organized bodies of

information stored in memory that bias the way new information is interpreted, stored, and recalled



Memory in the courtroom– Repressed memory– False memory

Autobiographical memory– Recollections of

circumstances and episodes from our own lives


Forgetting: Herman Ebbinghaus


Forgetting: When Memory Fails

Decay– Loss of information

through nonuse– Assumes that when new

material is learned a memory trace appears (actual physical change in the brain

Interference– Information in memory

displaces or blocks out other information, preventing its recall


Proactive Interference

Information learned earlier interferes with recall of newer material


Retroactive Interference

Difficulty in recall of information because of later exposure to different material


Memory Dysfunctions

Alzheimer’s disease– An illness that

includes among its symptoms severe memory problems

Korsakoff’s syndrome– A disease afflicting

long-term alcoholics


Memory Dysfunctions

Amnesia– Memory loss that occurs

without other mental difficulties

Retrograde amnesia– Memory is lost for

occurrences prior to a certain event

Anterograde amnesia– Loss of memory occurs

for events following an injury

Chapter 6: Memory In this Chapter we consider 1. The Nature of Memory 2. Ways in which information is stored 3. That there are several separate types.

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