Chapter 7-9: Long Term Memory and Storage Flashcards Preview

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Flashcards in Chapter 7-9: Long Term Memory and Storage Deck (65)
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1
Q

Spreading activation theory of long term memory

A

that idea that memory is represented by related nodes, and each node represents a memory association. thinking about one node activates a related node.

2
Q

The ___ the association BETWEEN TWO OBJECTS in LTM the ___ the node, and thus the ___ the activation

A

The closer the association the closer the node and the stronger the activation.

3
Q

How long must the object be in memory for it to be considered encoded in LONG TERM MEMORY

A

30s

4
Q

in the spreading activation thoeyr, memories are represented as

A

nodes

5
Q

connections laid down in working memory establishe ___ ___ in the lTM.

A

retrieval paths.

6
Q

At the neuronal level, memories are represented by ___ ___ and ___ of __ ___

A

neural networks and PATTERNS of NEURONAL FIRING

7
Q

the strength of “activation” in the spreading activation theory is dependent on:

A

the strength of connection and response patterns.

8
Q

__ __ ___ occurs when 2 neurons continually fire together, creating a stronger connection between neurons

A

long term potentiaion

9
Q

In LTP, structural changes in neurons occur at the __

A

synapse

10
Q

Explain the Lexical Decision Task. What type of memory does this test? what conditions elicit the longest reaction times?

A

in this task, the person is given pairs of words and non words and asked if they are actually both “real words”. Some words in the list actually “go together” in a meaninful way, like “bread + butter” being a pair.

Researchers measure the reaction time of participants when they are determining whether the two pairs on the list are real words.

The longest reaction time is when a real word is paired with a non word

The shortest reaction time is when two real words GO TOGTHER.

11
Q

During the lexical decision task, researchers found out that words that “go together” elicited the fasted reaction times when asked “are both these words real words?”

In terms of spreading activation theory, why is this the case?

A

due to the fact that the wo words that go togehter are LOCATED closely together in terms of nodes.

That means the onnection is closer and the NEURONAL ACTIVATION/PATHWAY is FASTER.

12
Q

Explicit memory is aka

A

declarative memory (concious recollection)

13
Q

two types of explicit memory

A

semantic: general knowledge and facts

episodic memory: autobiographical time stamped personal experiences.

14
Q

Implicit memory is

A

procedural memory; like motor memory or muscle memory

15
Q

Implicit memory can be tested using implicit ___ tasks. Explain this task.

A

implicit PRIMING TASKS.

You are given a list of words with no explicit instruction to remember the word (ex/ given random words)

Then you give the person a surprise recall test; and you get very poor results

later, you are given a word stem completion task; fill in the blanks

the people will fill the blanks in with the words that they were primed with but couldn’t recall.

THIS IS SUBCONCIOUS, they couldn’t recall it during the surprise recall test.

16
Q

Implicit memory provides a sense of ____ which can alter perception.

Explain a scenario experiment where this was tested.

A

familitarity

During an experiment, participants were given a series of sentences and asked to judge the level of interest of the information.

Later, they were given a list of sentences and asked to judge truthfulness

Some sentences were factual while others were not. but some of the sentences were included from the previous task.

If it sounded familiar, people are more likely to say its true

17
Q

we give a bias of ___ ___ to familiar facts.

A

we give a bias of ASSUMED TRUTHFULNESS to familiar facts

18
Q

familiarity is associated with ___ memory

A

implicit memory

19
Q

Explain the Famous Names task. What does this test? Explain why the outcomes were the way they were

A

Source memory(episodic) vs familiarity

During this task, a person is presented with a list of names and the list contains both famous and non famous names.

5 minutes later, they were asked whether or not certain names were on the list. People were accurate with BOTH famous

a few HOURS later, they were asked the same question but people were only accurate with FAMOUS names, and NOT the nonfamous names.

they were able to recall famous names because they came with a sense of FAMILIARITY. The could not fully access their SOURCE memory

20
Q

Knowledge Network:

things we know are organized into __and ___ organized from ___ to ___

A

things we know are organized into CATEGORIES and CONCEPTS organized from GENERAL to SPECIFIC

21
Q

in our knowledge network,categories are defined by different ____

A

concepts.

ex/ fish category are defined by water, gills, swims (concepts)

22
Q

in our knowledge network, concepts are:

A

typical representations and features that apply to a specific object.

23
Q

membership in a categeory is ___-__-___.

A

ALL OR NONE: all members are equal.

ex/ bird category; there is not one type of bird that is more “birdish” than another breed.

24
Q

in sentence verification tasks, members of a cateogry that are “good” examples of that category have ___ reaction times than members of a category with ___ value

A

in sentence verification tasks, members of a cateogry that are “good” examples of that category have FASTER reaction times than members of a category with LOW value

ex/ people will respond faster to “eagle is a bird” vs “ostrich is a bird”

25
Q

Explaining atypical members of a category can be explained using:

A

Prototypes and exemplars

you compare your atypical member to an exemplar, which is a good example of a category member (ex/ robyn)

of you compare your atypical member to a PROTOTYPE; average knowledge of a category (a typical member has wings, can fly etc).

26
Q

Explain Ebbinghaus’s experiment and what he found out

A

Ebbinghaus learned and memorized nonsense syllables to study his long term memory

He saw this his ability to recall the syllables decayed over time, but they dcayed the most rapidly over the first hour.

There fore, he postulated that most info is forgotten very rapidly initially, and then what is left after the “initial” memory loss is retained for a long time.

27
Q

Ebbinghaus postulated that most info is forgotten____ ___ initially, and then what is left after the “initial” memory loss is retained for __ ___

A

Ebbinghaus postulated that most info is forgotten Very RAPIDLY initially, and then what is left after the “initial” memory loss is retained for a LONG TIME.

28
Q

when testing LTM vs STM, people were presented with different lists of words:

list 1) similar sounding but different meanings (mad/map/man)

2) different sounding/similar meaning (huge, big, great)

The participants were either asked to recall immediately (STM) or after 30 minutes (LTM).

When did STM confusion occur? When did LTM confusion occur? what does this mean?

A

STM confusion occurred on list 1: similar sounding but different meanings.

LTM confusion occurred on list 2: different sounding but similar meanings.

This means that info stored in LTM are able to be retrieved is MEANINGFUL, not just because the info sounds similar.

29
Q

proactive interference

A

when old information prevents the recall of newer information.

30
Q

When given a “first list-2nd list” pairing, what would results be of someone struggling with proactive interference

A

Recall: in a first list-2nd list, the first list consists of random word pairs:
flag-spoon, car-table etc.

the second list is made from the first list by taking the SAME first word but a different second word.
“flag-wrench” “car-fly”

Then, the participant is asked to recall the 2nd word from the 2nd list. (ie/ wrench, fly)

If a person is struggling with proactive intereference,

they would have a hard time recalling the associated 2nd word list because the first list is interfering

31
Q

retroactive interference.

A

when more recent information gets in the way of trying to recall older information.

32
Q

When given a “first list-2nd list” pairing, what would results be of someone struggling with RETROACTIVE interference

A

Recall: in a first list-2nd list, the first list consists of random word pairs:
flag-spoon, car-table etc.

the second list is made from the first list by taking the SAME first word but a different second word.
“flag-wrench” “car-fly”

if asked to recall the 2nd words from the first list, you’d recall the 2nd list instead because the newer info is getting in the way

ex/ you’d recall wrench and fly instead of recalling spoon and table

33
Q

Which is more common? Retro or proactive interference

A

neither. They occur at the same frequency

34
Q

the more closely related 2 sets of info, the more ___ between sets

A

the more interference between the two sets.

Ex/ it is harder to recall items if they come from two sets of synonyms on the first list-2nd list

35
Q

Explain category clustering. How does this relate to false memories?

A

people cluster information. People presented with random words or words divided into categories.

People will recall more words if theyre semantically related to each other.

The fact that people can recall words that are semantically linked even if they weren’t prsented on the list makes it possible to have false memories and recall words that are related but not truly listed.

36
Q

According to category clustering, people will recall more words if theyre ____ related to each other

A

semantically

37
Q

memory results from ___ input and ___

A

memory results from SENSORY INPUT and PERCEPTION

recalling a memory is essentially a mental reconstruction of a representation.

38
Q

2 errors that will result in memory not being the same as the actual event/fact

A

1) error made during encoding (sensation and perception

2) errors during retrieval

39
Q

why do retrieval errors occur?

A

because memories in LTM move back into working memory, where the material can become vulnerable to distortion.

40
Q

during a memory test, if a critical lure is recalled, then it is known as a ___ ___

A

false memory. In a memory test, the person is given a list of words, and then asked if a related but not listed word was on the said. This related but not listed word was the critical lure, and if the person says it was on the list, it is false and then us a false memory.

41
Q

What did Bartlett’s “war on the Ghost” story for children show? (he noticed three things)

A

when children were told the story then asked to retell it, they added aspects of
1)assimilation: children made the story more relatable and put their own experiences in the story

2) levelling: cut some info out
3) sharpening: may have enhanced and rearranged the story

42
Q

What did Elizabeth Loftus’s experiments with wording show?

A

She coined the MISINFORMATION EFFECT: that the type of word can induce a false memory. Ex/ collided vs smashed. Saying the cars smashed into each other induces the idea that the crash was worse than it was.

43
Q

2 types of lineups

A

1) simultaneous: everybody all at once (either in pictures or Hollywood style).
2) Sequential: shown one at a time.

44
Q

Which type of criminal lineup allows for the most accurate representation of the person

A

the sequential line up in which the suspects are shown one at a time are the most accurate

because it allows for absolute judgemen, you aren’t sitting and comparing.

45
Q

Simulatenous lineups risk ___ judgement, where as sequential line ups allow for ___ judgement.

A

Simulatenous lineups risk RELATIVE judgement: will just select the person who looks “most” like the perpetrator

where as sequantial line ups allow for ABSOLUTE judgement.

46
Q

What are system variables in a line up scenario? provide examples.

A

system variables are things that you can control during a line up.

1) do a “Pre line up admonition”: this person may or MAY NOT be in the line up” to avoid pressuring the victim to make a choice
2) control the line up presentation (ie/ sequential over simulatenous)
3) Can’t “go back” and compare faces, do not tell the victim how many faces they’ll be shown
4) double blind

47
Q

When should you ask for a confidence rating during a line up?

A

as soon as the person makes the decision. Do not get multiple ratings.

48
Q

When giving a line up, how many suspects should be in each line up?

A

there should only be one suspect line up. the rest should be innocent fillers that resemble the suspect in physical features.

49
Q

how do you ensure that the person who is looking at the line up has an accurate memory?

A

do a blank lineup; line up a bunch of non suspects. the person should say “none of the above” if their memory is accurate.

50
Q

innocent fillers are selected by ___ ___ controls

A

MOCK WITNESS. People who aren’t involved in the case at all pick innocent fillers by just physical characteristics.

51
Q

T/F: Eyewitness confidence is a predictor of accuracy. What is this known as?

A

True. Jump out ID; highest confidence often results to the highest accuracy. The person for sure knows the suspects face.

52
Q

what is the misinformation effect?

A

Like the loftus effect. the words you use to frame the question can promote false memories

53
Q

reality monitoring

A

constantly asking yourself what you did. “did I turn the oven off?”

54
Q

source monitoring

A

when you don’t know where the info came from.

55
Q

what is a destination error?

A

when you don’t remember who you told information to and it results in you teling the same person again.

56
Q

Karl Lashley searched for an ___ by studying spatial memory in rats.

A

Engram

57
Q

what is an engram

A

a hypothetical permanent change in the brain accounting for the existence of memory; a memory trace.

58
Q

what is mass action

A

creating lesion in rats wipes out the amount of memory proportional to the size of the lesions.

59
Q

lashley found that the ___ of lesion is MORE PROFOUND than the ___ of lesion

A

found that the LOCATION of lesion is MORE PROFOUND than the SIZE of lesion

60
Q

what is anterograde amnesia

A

can’t learn after an event. Ex/ hippocampus removal results in anterograde amnesia. Cannot learn new information or new episodic memories.

61
Q

HM, a guy who had is hippocampus removed due to epilepsy suffered from graded ____ amnesia

A

he had graded retrograde amneisa.

Memories from long ago were intact, but as you got closer tot he time of the surgery, things got more foggy.

62
Q

TF: procedural memory requires the hippocampus.

A

False. HM, a guy with the hippocampus removed, was still able to do physical tasks well, even if he couldn’t remember learning the task (no episodic or semantic memory, but he had procedural)

63
Q

the ___ transfers working memory into ___ for consolidation

A

transfers working memory into LTM for consolidation

64
Q

T/F: hippocampus is a memory storage space

A

false. HM was still able to recall memories from before his surgery, indicating that long term stored memories are not located in the hippocampus.

65
Q

2 theories about the role of the hippocampus in LTM

A

1) standard consolidation theory. In order to transfer info from STM to LTM, you need an intact hippocampus. Once the memories are consolidated, retrieval of the info NO LONGER requires the hippocampus.
2) Multiple trace theory: damage to the hippocampus allows you still have access to old memories, but while you transfer memories to LTM, you leave some traces behind in the hippocampus and when you damage the HC, fine details of stored info may be compromised.