Unit 4

Memory and Forgetting

 Memory
• Memory is the faculty of the brain by which data or
information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when
needed. It is the retention of information over time for
the purpose of influencing future action.
• Memory encompasses the facts and experiential details
that people consciously call to mind as well as ingrained
knowledge that surface without effort or even
awareness.
 Processes of Memory
• Memory processes are the mental activities we perform
to put information into memory, to keep it there, and to
make use of it later.
• This involves three basic steps:
a) Encoding: Memory encoding allows information to be converted
into a construct that is stored in the brain indefinitely.
Once it is encoded, it can be recalled from either short- or long-term
memory. “Recall” refers to retrieving previously encoded information.
b) Storage: is the persistence of information in memory. It is
the location in memory system in which material is saved.
To be remembered the encoded experience must leave some record
in the nervous system (the memory trace); it must be squirreled
away and held in some more or less enduring form for later use.
c) Retrieval: is the point at which one tries to remember to dredge
up a particular memory trace from among all the others we have
stored.
• In retrieval, material in memory storage is located brought into
awareness and used.
• Failure to remember can result from problems during any of the
three phases of the memory process.
• Distraction can prevent us from encoding information initially;
information might not be stored properly, or might not move from
short-term to long-term storage; and/or we might not be able to
retrieve the information once it’s stored.
 Stages/Structure of Memory
• Memory structure is the nature of memory storage itself- how
information is represented in memory and how long it lasts and
how it is organized.
• Many cognitive psychologists relate the mind to an information
processor, along the lines of a digital computer that takes items of
information in; processes them in steps or stages, and then
produces an output.
• Models of memory based on this idea are Information processing
theories. Like computer, we also store vast amounts of information
in our memory storehouse.
• According to Atkinson and Shiffrin, memory has three structures:
Sensory memory, Short term memory and long-term memory
• Sensory Memory/Sensory Register: It is the entry way to
memory. It is the first information storage area.
• Sensory memory acts as a holding bin, retaining information
until we can select items for attention from the stream of
stimuli bombarding our senses.
• Sensory memory includes a number of separate subsystems, as
many as there are senses. It can hold virtually all the
information reaching our senses for a brief time.
• Most information briefly held in the sensory memory simply
decays from the register. However, some of the information
that has got attention and recognition pass on short-term
memory for further processing.
2) Short-term Memory: is part of our memory that holds the contents
of our attention.
• Unlike sensory memories, short-term memories are not brief replicas of
the environmental message. Instead, they consist of the by-products or
end results of perceptual analysis.
• There are various terms used to refer to this stage of memory, including
working memory, immediate memory, active memory, and primary
memory.
• Short term memory is distinguished by four characteristics:
• It is active- information remains in STM only so long as the person is
consciously processing, examining, or manipulating it.
• People use STM as a workspace to process new information and to
call up relevant information from LTM.
• Rapid accessibility - Information in STM is readily available for use.
• In this respect, the difference between STM and LTM is the
difference between pulling a file from the top of a desk versus
searching for it in a file drawer, or between searching for
information in an open computer file versus file stored on the hard
drive.
• Preserves the temporal sequence of information- STM usually
helps us to maintain the information in sequential manner for a
temporary period of time.
• It keeps the information fresh until it goes to further analysis and
stored in LTM in meaningful way.
• Limited capacity- Years ago, George Miller (1956)
estimated the capacity of STM to be ―the magic number
seven plus or minus 2.
• That is, on the average, people can hold about seven pieces of
information in STM at a time; with a normal range from five to
nine items.
• According to most models of memory, we overcome this
problem, by grouping small groups of information into
larger units or chunks.
• Chunking is the grouping or packing of information into
higher order units that can be remembered as single units.
• Chunking expands working memory by making large
amounts of information more manageable. The real
capacity of short-term memory, therefore, is not a few
bits of information but a few chunks.
• STM memory holds information (sounds, visual images,
words, and sentences and so on) received from SM for up
to about 30 seconds by most estimates.
• It is possible to prolong STM indefinitely by rehearsal- the
conscious repetition of information. Material in STM is
easily displaced unless we do something to keep it there.
 Long Term Memory
• It is a memory system used for the relatively permanent
storage of meaningful information.
• The capacity of LTM seems to have no practical limits. The vast
amount of information stored in LTM enables us to learn, get
around in the environment, and build a sense of identity and
personal history.
• LTM stores information for indefinite periods. It may last for
days, months, years, or even a lifetime.
• The LTM is assumed to be composed of different sub systems:
• Declarative/ explicit memory- requires conscious recall; it
consists of information that is consciously stored or retrieved.
• It is further subdivided into semantic and episodic memories.
• Semantic memory- factual knowledge like the meaning of words,
concepts and our ability to do math. They are internal
representations of the world, independent of any particular context.
• Episodic memory- memories for events and situations from
personal experience. They are internal representations of personally
experienced events.
• Non-declarative/ implicit memory- These memories are not based
on consciously storing and retrieving information, but on implicit
learning.
• Often this type of memory is employed in learning new motor skills.
• An example of implicit learning is learning to ride a bike: you do not
need to consciously remember how to ride a bike, you simply do.
This is because of implicit memory.
• Serial Position Effect
• The three-box model of memory is often invoked to explain
interesting phenomenon called the serial position effect.
• If you are shown a list of items and are then asked immediately to
recall them, your retention of any particular item will depend on its
position in the list.
• That is, recall will be best for items at the beginning of the list (the
primacy effect) and at the end of the list (the recency effect). When
retention of all the items is plotted, the result will be a U-shaped
curve.
• A serial position effect occurs when you are introduced to a lot of
people at a party and find you can recall the names of the first few
people you met and the last, but almost no one in between.
• According to the three-box model, the first few items on a
list are remembered well because short-term memory was
relatively empty when they entered, so these items did
not have to compete with others to make it into long term
memory. They were thoroughly processed, so they remain
memorable.
• The last few items are remembered for a different reason:
At the time of recall, they are still sitting in STM.
• The items in the middle of the list, however, are not so
well retained because by the time they get into short-term
memory, it is already crowded.
 Forgetting
• Memory loss is the unavoidable flipside of the human capacity
to remember.
• Forgetting, of course, is normal and happens every day: The
brain simply cannot retain a permanent record of everything a
person experiences and learns. And with advancing age, some
decline in memory ability is typical.
• we are selective in storing and forgetting information.
Sometimes we are motivated to forgot something and recall
what we want to remember. Psychologists call this phenomenon
as motivated forgetting?
• Psychologists generally use the term forgetting to refer to the
apparent loss of information already encoded and stored in the
long-term memory.
 Theories of Forgetting
The Decay Theory
• According to this theory, every time we learn something new,
a neurochemical “memory trace” or engram- an actual
physical change in the brain- occurs.
• Decay theory suggests that If information is not retrieved and
rehearsed, over time, these memory traces begin to fade and
eventually be lost.
• decay occurs in sensory memory and short term memory
unless we rehearse the material. However, the mere passage
of time does not account so well for forgetting in long-term
memory.
• People commonly forget things that happened only yesterday
while remembering events from many years ago.
• Interference Theory
• Interference theory holds that forgetting occurs because similar
items of information interfere with one another in either
storage or retrieval.
• The information may get into memory, but it becomes confused
with other information.
• There are two kinds of interference that influence forgetting:
proactive and retroactive.
• Proactive Interference occur when information learned earlier
interferes with recall of newer material.
• Retroactive Interference occur when new information interferes
with the ability to remember old information.
• New Memory for Old/ Displacement Theory
• This theory holds that new information entering memory can wipe out
old information, just as recording on an audio or videotape will
obliterate/wipe out the original material.
• This theory is mostly associated with the STM, where the capacity for
information is limited to seven plus or minus chunks. It cannot be
associated with the LTM because of its virtually unlimited capacity.
• Motivated Forgetting
• Sigmund Freud maintained that people forget because they block from
consciousness those memories that are too threatening or painful to
live with, and he called this self-protective process Repression.
• Cue Dependent Forgetting Theory
• Often when we need to remember, we rely on retrieval cues,
items of information that can help us find the specific information
we‘re looking for.
• When we lack retrieval cues, we may feel as if we have lost the call
number for an entry in the mind‘s library.
• In long-term memory, this type of memory failure may be the
most common type of all.
• Cues that were present when you learned a new fact or had an
experience are apt to be especially useful later as retrieval aids.
• That may explain why remembering is often easier when you are
in the same physical environment as you were when an event
occurred:
• Cues in the present context match from the past. Cues present
during the initial stage of learning help us to recall the content
of the specific learning materials in an easy manner.
• Your mental or physical state may also act as a retrieval cue,
evoking a state dependent memory. For example if you are
intoxicated when something happens, you may remember it
better when you once again have had a few drinks than when
you are sober.
• Likewise, if your emotional arousal is specially high or low at
the time of an event, you may remember that event best
when you are once again in the same emotional state.
 Improving Memory
• Someday in the near future, drugs may be available to help
people with memory deficiencies to increase normal memory
performance.
• For the time being, however, those of us who hope to improve
our memories must rely on mental strategies.
• Pay Attention: It seems obvious, but often we fail to remember
because we never encoded the information in the first place.
When you do have something to remember, you will do better
if you encode it.
• Encode information in more than one way: The more elaborate
the encoding of information, the more memorable it will be.
• Add meaning: The more meaningful the material, the
more likely it is to link up with information already in long-
term memory.
• Take your time: If possible, minimize interference by using
study breaks for rest or recreation. Sleep is the ultimate
way to reduce interference.
• Over learn: Studying information even after you think you
already know it- is one of the best ways to ensure that
you‘ll remember it.
• Monitor your learning: By testing yourself frequently,
rehearsing thoroughly, and reviewing periodically, you will
have a better idea of how you are doing.