CH 8 - Memory - Lecture Notes

PSYC 201-01
Ch 8: Memory
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Chapter 8
memory
Chapter Outline
I. RECONSTRUCTING THE PAST
A. The manufacture of memory--a reconstructive process
1. Source amnesia--other information is integrated into memories and cannot be
distinguished from original memory
2. Flashbulb memories--memories of emotional events that seem photographic-are not always complete or accurate, especially over time
3. The conditions of confabulation (remembering something incorrectly)
a. Person has thought about imagined event many times
b. The image of the event contains a lot of details
c. The event is easy to imagine
II. MEMORY AND THE POWER OF SUGGESTION
A. The eyewitness on trial
1. People reconstruct memories, so eyewitness testimony can be incorrect
2. Errors are particularly likely to occur when the suspects ethnicity differs from
that of the witness
3. Recollection of past events is influenced by the way a question is asked
B. Studies on childrens testimony describe the conditions under which a child might
be suggestible
1. Preschoolers are more suggestible and more likely to have source amnesia than
school-aged children
2. Pressure to conform to expectations and a desire to please an interviewer lead to
more errors
III. IN PURSUIT OF MEMORY
A. Measuring memory
1. Ways to measure explicit memory (conscious recollection of an event or item of
information)
a. Recall--the ability to retrieve information that is not present
b. Recognition--the ability to identify information you previously experienced
2. Ways to measure implicit memory (information that affects our thoughts
and actions even when we do not consciously or intentionally remember it)
a. Priming--exposure to one set of information affects answers on a different
type of task
b. Relearning method--relearning a previously learned task and measuring
savings (also a test of explicit memory)
B. Models of memory
1. Information processing models are based on computers--we encode
information, store it, and retrieve it
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a. After encoding, next step is storage (maintenance of memory over time)

b. After storage, then retrieval (recovery of stored memory)
2. Storage takes place in three interacting systems (three-box model)
a. Sensory memory--retains incoming information for a second or two
b. Short-term memory (STM)--holds limited amount of information for about 30
seconds
c. Long-term memory (LTM)--accounts for longer storage
3. Parallel distributed processing model--rejects information-processing models
a. Maintains that memory is different than a computer; the human brain
processes information simultaneously
b. Considers knowledge to be stored in connections among thousands of units
IV. THE THREE-BOX MODEL
A. Sensory memory (entryway of memory)
1. Includes separate memory subsystems for each sense
2. Stores information as visual images (up to 1/2 sec.) and auditory images (up to
2 sec.)
3. Acts as a holding bin until we select items for attention
4. Pattern recognition occurs during transfer of information from sensory memory
to short-term memory
5. Information that does not go on to STM is lost forever
B. Short-term memory (working memory)
1. Holds information up to about 30 seconds as an encoded representation
2. Transfers information to LTM or information decays and is lost
3. Holds information retrieved from long-term memory for temporary use, which is
why this part of memory is often referred to as working memory
4. Holds seven (plus or minus two) chunks of information
5. Memory limitations may be overcome by chunking--grouping small bits of
information into larger units, using our knowledge
C. Long-term memory--largest capacity
1. Organization in long-term memory
a. By semantic category
(1) Research has shown that people recall information by category
(2) Clinical data supports semantic organization
(3) Network models assume that information is organized semantically
b. By sound and form of words--evidence from tip-of-the-tongue states
2. Contents of long-term memory
a. Procedural memories--knowing how
b. Declarative memories--knowing that
(1) Semantic memories--internal representations of the world, independent of
context
(2) Episodic memories--representations of personally experienced events
3. Serial position effect provides evidence for the existence of short- and long-term
memories
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a. The three-box model has been used to explain recency and primacy effects
(1) Primacy effect--tendency to remember items that occur early on a list-thought to be due to transfer of items to LTM
(2) Recency effect--tendency to remember items that occur near the end of a
list--thought to be due to items still being in STM at time of recall
b. Cannot fully explain the recency effect
V. HOW WE REMEMBER
A. Some kinds of information are encoded automatically (e.g., location of objects in
space), while others require effort (e.g., learning information from a textbook)
B. Rehearsal--review or practice of to-be-remembered material
C. Techniques
1. Maintenance rehearsal (rote repetition)--maintains information in STM but does
not lead to LTM retention
2. Elaborative rehearsal (elaboration of encoding)--associating new items of
information with information that has already been stored in LTM
3. Deep processing--processing the meaning of what you are trying to remember
4. Mnemonics--strategies for encoding, storing, and retaining information
VI. WHY WE FORGET
A. The decay theory--holds that memories fade with time if they are not used; does not
apply well to lapses in LTM
B. Replacement--new memories for old--new information sometimes wipes out old
information
C. Interference
1. Retroactive interference--new information interferes with old
2. Proactive interference--old information interferes with new
D. Cue-dependent forgetting--forgetting due to lack of retrieval cues
1. Retrieval cues are important for remembering
2. Context or mental/physical states (state-dependent memory) can be retrieval
cues
3. We remember better when the material matches our current mood
E. The repression controversy
1. Repression--pushing upsetting information into the unconscious mind (a
controversial proposition)
a. False memories of sexual abuse can arise as a result of the use of
"recovered memory" techniques
b. A court has ruled that recovered memories are not admisssible
c. In some cases, it is posible to distiguish false from true memories of abuse
VII. AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL MEMORIES
A. Childhood amnesia: The missing years--the inability to remember things from the
first years of life
1. May occur because brain areas involved in formation or storage of events are
not well developed until a few years after birth
2. Several cognitive explanations have been offered for childhood amnesia
PSYC 201-01
Ch 8: Memory
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a. Lack of a sense of self

b. Impoverished encoding
c. A focus on the routine
d. Differences between early and later cognitive schemas
B. Memory and narrative: The stories of our lives
1. Narratives are a unifying theme to organize the events of our lives
2. Narratives rely on memory, which is constructed
Taking Psychology with You: How to. . . uh. . . Remember
Presents practical guidelines for improving memory.

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PSYC 201-01

a. After encoding, next step is storage (maintenance of memory over time)

a. Lack of a sense of self

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