Memory Psychology 1106 4/3/2019

Introduction What is memory? Basically some indication that learning has persisted over time Early on lots of study went into memory Ebbinghaus and nonsense syllables Found savings 4/3/2019

A teensy bit of history Then along came the behaviourists Nobody wanted to talk about memory WWII, information theory Cognitive revolution Today we study memory extensively 4/3/2019

A framework Information theory talks about inputs and outputs Basically encoding, storage and retreival Information processing approach to memory Atkinson and Shiffrin 4/3/2019

The Atkinson Shiffrin Model Sensory Register Short Term Memory Long Term Memory 4/3/2019

Encoding Automatic vs. Effortful processing Massed vs Distributed practice The Spacing effect Serial position effect Early and later stuff better remembered 4/3/2019

More encoding Semantic vs. acoustic vs. visual We may encode imagery Meaning vs. sensory properties AKA conceptually driven vs. data driven processing We may encode imagery Al Paivio’s ideas Concrete vs. abstract words 4/3/2019

Encoding still…. The key may be meaning (Bransford and Johnson, 1972) If the balloons popped, the sound wouldn’t be able to carry since everything would be too far away from the correct floor. A closed window would also prevent the sound from carrying, since most buildings tend to be well insulated. Since the whole operation depends on a steady flow of electricity, a break in the middle of the wire would also cause problems. Of course, the fellow could shout, but the human voice is not loud enough to carry that far. An additional problem is that a string could break on the instrument. Then there could be no accompaniment to the message. It is clear that the best situation would involve less distance. Then there would be fewer potential problems. With face to face contact, the least number of things could go wrong. 4/3/2019

Context is the key People remembered the passage much better with the picture on the left The one on the right does not fit though it has all the same images 4/3/2019

Encode this By the way, those data show how important it probably is to read the chapters BEFORE coming to class We organize information in chunks and hierarchies A chunk is the smallest unit of information we can remember Phone numbers for example Experts are better chunkers than non experts Some forgetting is a failure of encoding 4/3/2019

Storage Sensory memory or register Icon Echo Information lasts for a very short time in the sensory register Information is raw in a way 4/3/2019

The icon JHGF MNBV PUYT X People can’t report the G, but can report the H and the F! Lasts maybe a second or so 4/3/2019

Storage in STM Again, pretty brief if information is not processed at all A couple of seconds 7 +/- 2 chunks Interference Working memory Visuo spatial sketchpad and phonological loop 4/3/2019

Storage in LTM Essentially limitless capacity Episodic vs. semantic memory Tulving Dissociable 4/3/2019

Flashbulb Memories Seem to be hyper accurate Seem to be super detailed Almost always about shared cultural experiences But they are NOT as accurate as they seem 4/3/2019

How is stuff stored? Long Term Potentiation (LTP)? New Connections? Seems sensible, but, not clear yet Hormonal effect on memory Chemical effects Stronger emotions often lead to stronger memories 4/3/2019

Forms of memory Episodic vs. Semantic (Tulving) Declarative vs. Procedural (Squire) Hippocampus is probably key Removal of Hp leads to loss of ability to encode Hmm Implicit vs. Explicit Memory 4/3/2019

Priming Priming of implicit memory Even amnesiacs show normal priming! Recently been shown in non humans (Brodbeck, 1997) 4/3/2019

Retrieval So, how do we get stuff out of memory? Recognition failure of recall Why do we recognize stuff better than we recall it? Retrieval cues 4/3/2019

Retrieval Cues Context effects May very well explain deja vu State dependent learning Drug states act as retrieval cues Emotional states act as retrieval cues Keeps you sad, or happy 4/3/2019

Interference So, forgetting may be a failure of recall Proactive interference Retroactive interference Then again, competing information can help Transfer of training, savings 4/3/2019

Please just listen Pin Inoculation Haystack Sharp Pointy Knitting phonograph 4/3/2019

Memory construction Our memories are not perfect Its not a VCR We fill in gaps with reasonable guesses Like we do with ‘flashbulb memories’ Eyewitnesses can be affected by the wording of questions Young kids are prone to this Though adults are too We do not forget the traumatic 4/3/2019

Raise you hand if you heard this word earlier Pin Book Chair Ceiling Sharp Pointy Haystack needle 4/3/2019