MEMORY: RETRIEVAL AND
PROBLEMS
AP Psychology
Memory Retrieval and Forgetting
Let’s Test Your LTM!
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You will see several words, one at a time
Do whatever you can to try and remember as
many of the words as you can
At the end of the list, try to recall as many words
as you can
Let’s Test Your LTM!
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Bed
Clock
Dream
Night
Turn
Mattress
Snooze
Nod
Night
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Artichoke
Insomnia
Rest
Toss
Night
Alarm
Nap
Snore
Pillow
Let’s Test Your LTM!
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Write down the words you saw!
Here’s the Words
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Bed
Clock
Dream
Night
Turn
Mattress
Snooze
Nod
Night
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Artichoke
Insomnia
Rest
Toss
Night
Alarm
Nap
Snore
Pillow
Memory Demonstration
Did you Recall?
 Bed or Clock
 Snore or Pillow
 Night
 Artichoke
 Toss and Turn
 Sleep
Explanation
 Primacy
 Recency
 Spacing Effect
 Distinctiveness
 Clustering
 False Memory
Memory Retrieval
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We can recognize
more than we can
recall.
Recognition is easier
than recall because it
provides retrieval cues
or hints that help us
remember where the
information is stored in
our memory.
Recall vs. Recognition tests
Recall Tests



Must retrieve info
learned earlier.
Two step process:
 1) generate a mental
list,
 2) recognize the
answer from the list.
Examples: Fill-in-theblank test; essay exams
Recognition tests

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Only need to identify
the correct answer.
1 step process:
 1)

recognize answer
from the list. List was
already generated for
you.
Example: Multiple choice
tests
Recall vs. Recognition
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What is the capital of Vermont?
Raise
your hand if you know the
answer
Recall vs. Recognition

What is the capital of Vermont?
 A.
Brattleboro
 B. Montpelier
 C. Rutland
 D. Cabot

Raise your hand if you know the answer
Recall vs. Recognition

What is the capital of Vermont?
 A.
Brattleboro
 B. Montpelier
 C. Rutland
 D. Cabot
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
Which was easier: recall or recognition?
For your psychology exam, would you rather have a
fill-in-the-blank or a multiple choice test?
What affects retrieval?

Priming – the activation of particular
associations in our memory; is often unconscious.
 For
example, we may suddenly remember something
that we thought we had forgotten when we smell or
taste something associated with the memory.
 In this case, the smell is priming our memory
What affects Retrieval?

Context effects – we are more likely to remember
something if we learn it in the same context. For
example, you will likely do better on a psychology test
if you take it in this room.
An example
of the
Encoding
Specificity
Principle!
What affects Retrieval?
Memory and Mood

State-dependent memory – we are more likely to
remember something if we are in the same psychological
state (happy, sad, etc.) that we were in when we learned
it.
An example
of the
Encoding
Specificity
Principle!
What affects Retrieval?
Memory and Mood

Memories are moodcongruent – that is, if we
are in a good mood, we are
more likely to recall events
as positive.
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If we are in a bad mood, we
are more likely to recall
events as negative.
This is true even if we are
recalling the SAME event in
two different states of mind.
An example
of the
Encoding
Specificity
Principle!
What affects Retrieval?
Memory and Mood
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
For example, let’s say you went
on a family vacation to the
beach and there were tons of
mosquitoes and your parents
never let you out of their sight,
and the weather and beach
was beautiful.
If someone asks you about your
vacation later, what aspects of
it you will remember (the bad
or good ones) depends on your
current mood.
Memory and Mood


Mood-congruent
memories explain how
depression can easily
become a downward
spiral.
A person in a depressed
mood recalls or
interprets events
negatively, thus leaving
them feeling even worse.
Forgetting


Forgetting – Forgetting is
an important adaptation.
If we couldn’t forget most
of the information that
enters our senses, we
would be distracted most
of the time.
Why do we Forget?

Encoding Failure –
information never
enters long-term
memory; usually
because we didn’t
make an effort to pay
attention and rehearse
the information
Why might Encoding Failure Happen?

When you don’t use
elaborative rehearsal, or
provide enough meaning,
to a term or event,

People fail to
encode information
because:
 It is unimportant
to them
 It is not necessary
to know the
information
 A decrease in the
brain’s ability to
encode
Why do we Forget?

Decay theory is the
gradual disappearance
of a memory because
the memory has not
been thought about, or
retrieved, from longterm memory into shortterm memory

Ex: If a person does not dial their
childhood phone number for a
few years, then the memory of
that number will start to decay, or
fade away.
Decay
•
Biology-based theory
•
•
If unused, normal brain
metabolic processes erode
memory trace
Theory not widely favored
today
•
Ability of people to retrieve
memories from long ago with
retrieval cues would show this
is not true.
Hermann Ebbinghaus (1850-1909)
German philosopher who
did early memory studies
with nonsense syllables
 Developed the forgetting
curve, also called the
“retention curve” or
“Ebbinghaus curve”
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Ebbinghaus’ Forgetting Curve
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Ebbinghaus found that
the more times he
practiced a list of
nonsense syllables on
day 1, the fewer
repetitions he required
to relearn it on day 2.
The more time we
spend learning new
information, the more
we retain.
Ebbinghaus’ Forgetting Curve
How to combat the Forgetting Curve:
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Overlearning
 Continuing
to rehearse
after the point the
information has been
learned
 Rehearsing past the
point of mastery
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Helps ensure information
will be available even
under stress
Forgetting as retrieval failure
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Retrieval—process of accessing stored information
Sometimes info IS encoded into LTM, but we can’t retrieve it
Retrieval Failure – inability to “locate” memories
Encoding
Short-term
memory
X
Retrieval
Retrieval failure
leads to forgetting
Long-term
memory
Why do We Forget?

Tip-of-the-tongue, occurs
when a retrieval cue is not
strong enough to retrieve,
or trigger the memory
stored in long-term memory.
Tip of the Tongue
Why do We Forget?
Interference theory is the
process through which
either the storage or
retrieval of a memory
impairs other information
and memories
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Proactive Interference
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Retroactive Interference
Why do We Forget?Retrieval Failure

Proactive interference occurs
when previous, old
information affects, or
interferes, with trying to
remember new information.

An example of proactive
interference is when you try and
can’t remember your NEW locker
combination because you keep on
dialing your old locker combination.
Why do We Forget?Retrieval Failure
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Retroactive interference occurs
when recently learned new
information affects, or interferes,
with remembering old
information.

An example of retroactive
interference is when you can’t
remember your OLD class
schedule because your new class
schedule is interfering, or causing
you to forget your old class
schedule.
How can we remember….
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When trying to
remember the
difference between
Proactive and
Retroactive, it may be
helpful to think about
porn.
Yes, P.O.R.N.
P= Proactive
O= Old interferes
R= Retroactive
N= New interferes
Why do We Forget?Retrieval Failure
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Motivated Forgetting–
people repress or
suppress memories that
are painful or that conflict
with their self-image.
Undesired memory is held
back from awareness
 Suppression—
conscious
forgetting
 Repression— unconscious
forgetting (Freudian)
The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model (1968)
Stimuli are recorded by our senses and held
briefly in sensory memory.
1.
Some of this information is processed into
short-term memory and encoded through
rehearsal .
2.
Information then moves into long-term
memory where it can be retrieved later.
3.
The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model (1968)
Amnesia
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Amnesia is the loss of memory
Amnesia
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Retrograde amnesia is
the inability to recall past
memories due to an injury
to the head
 Tends
 As
to be temporary.
the brain starts to heal
from an injury, the memories
start to come back.
Amnesia
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Anterograde amnesia is the inability to form new
memories due to damage to the hippocampus
 “50
First-dates” is an example of anterograde amnesia
 she
could not form any new memories
Clive Wearing
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The man with no
short-term memory
What type of
Amnesia would this
be?
Clive Wearing
Jill Price
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The woman who
never forgets
What issues might
this cause?
The Woman Who Never Forgets
False Memories
Reconstructing Memories:
Sources of Potential Errors
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Why do the details change over time?

1.
2.
Two general areas that errors occur in memory
reconstruction
Info stored before the memory occurred may
interfere
Info stored after the memory occurred may
interfere
Sources of Potential Errors
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Source Confusion – true source of
the memory (how, when, & where it
was acquired) is forgotten.
 This
could be attributing an imagined
event to real life or attributing a story
read in a book to your own childhood.

False Memory – distorted and
inaccurate memory that feels
completely real and is often
accompanied by all the emotional False Memory-Lost in the Mall
impact of a real memory.
Sources of Potential Errors
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Cryptomnesia –
a seemingly new
or original
memory is
actually based
on an unrecalled
previous memory.

inadvertent
plagiarism

Can happen in everyday conversation
 "Somebody says, 'Mary is so
effervescent,' and then the word
'effervescent' keeps coming up."
Cryptomnesia stems from a failure to
simultaneously engage in creative
thinking and monitor where incoming
ideas are coming from, according to
Marsh's research.
Elizabeth Loftus (1944-
)
Does research in
memory construction
 Has found that
subjects’ memories
vary based on the
wording of questions
 Demonstrated the
misinformation effect
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Memory Construction-False Memories

Misinformation Effect – If we are
primed with misleading information,
we are likely to incorporate it into
our memory; As we retell stories,
we will fill make guesses about
memory gaps.
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These guesses then become part of
our memory.
Affects Eyewitness Testimony
The Bunny Effect (Priming)
Memory Distortion
Memory can be distorted as people try
to fit new info into existing schemas
 Giving misleading information after an
event causes subjects to unknowingly distort
their memories to incorporate the new
misleading information

 Do
politicians do this? How?
Loftus Experiment
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Subjects shown video of
an accident between
two cars
subjects asked:
How fast were the cars
going when they
smashed into each
other?
 Others asked: How fast
were the cars going
when they hit each
other?
Accident
 Some
Leading question:
“About how fast were the cars going
when they smashed into each other?”
Memory construction
Loftus Results
Word Used in Question
Average Speed Estimate
Smashed
41m.p.h.
Collided
39 m.p.h.
Bumped
38 m.p.h.
Hit
34 m.p.h.
Contacted
32 m.p.h.
Eyewitness Testimony
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Scripts—type of schema
 Mental
organization of events in time
 Example of a classroom script: Come into
class, sit down, talk to friends, bell rings,
instructor begins to speak, take notes, bell
rings again, leave class, etc.
Eyewitness Testimony

Recall not an exact replica of original events
 What
you recall is a construction built and rebuilt from
various sources
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Often fit memories into existing beliefs or schemas
Schema—mental representation of an object, scene
or event

Example: schema of a countryside may include green grass,
hills, farms, a barn, cows, etc.
You Be the Eyewitness
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Imagine you are at a gas station buying milk
A man walks in, threatens the employee at the
counter, robs the cash register, and runs out
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The entire ordeal lasts about five seconds
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This is the man you saw…
You Be the Eyewitness
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The police have asked you to help them identify the
perpetrator
They will show you a set of pictures, and it is your
responsibility to select the picture of the man you saw
rob the gas station…
How Did You Do?
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So, which picture did you choose?
 And
the correct answer was... #2
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Were you right?
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What does this tell you about eyewitness testimony?
Implanting Memories and Eyewitness
Testimony
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Do they play a big role?
When Eyes Deceive- Eyewitness Testimony
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSzPn9rsPcY&feat
ure=related
What kind of impact did the professor have in
implanting false memories?
Crime Scene Challenge
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Now that your eyes and brain are warmed up, let’s
test your observation skills a bit more
You will have 2 minutes to study a photograph of a
crime scene on the next slide
Try to pay close attention to details
You are not allowed to write anything down until time
is up
Ready?
Answer Each Question Below:
1. What color was the coffee mug? Blue
Red
Yellow
2. When was the deadline?
Yesterday
Today
Tomorrow
3. What time was on the clock on the wall?
10:40
11:05
1:55
4. How many sticky notes were on the whiteboard? 4
6
8
5. What was NOT in the picture? Stapler
Trash Can
Printer
6. What was the name on the plaque?
Bill
Brian
Carl
7. What color was the victim’s shirt?
Black
Blue
Red
One
Two
8. How many plants were in the picture?
None
9. What color was the marker in the drawer?
10. Where was the book?
On a box
In the trash can
Red
Blue
Under the body
Green
Check Your Answers
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Yellow
Today
11:05
6
Stapler
Brian
7. Blue
8. Two
9. Green
10. On a box
6.
Eyewitness Testimony
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How accurate is
eyewitness testimony?
Let’s see it in action!
Picking Cotton Part 1
Picking Cotton Part 2
Factors that Influence Memory
How can we tell if memories are true
or false?

The hippocampus is equally active when a person
recounts true and false memories. However, other
areas (such as association areas) are only active
when a person recounts a true memory.