Group 9
“Why do we forget?”
Bailey, Brittany, Stephen, Annika
Why do we forget?
We sometimes fail to encode info into our
memory system, and memories will also fade
after stored. People commonly will experience
retrieval failure which is when old and new
material compete for space causing
inadequate retrieval.
Vocab
❖ Mood-congruent Memory: people usually recall experiences that are
similar to their current mood, good or bad
❖ Proactive Interference: when previous learning disrupts recalling new
information
❖ Retroactive Interference: when new learning disrupts recalling of
old, already stored information
❖ Repression: a defense mechanism that removes thoughts, feelings, and
memories that cause anxiety from consciousness (psychoanalytical
theory)
❖ Positive Transfer: when old information helps us learn new
information
Examples
Why its necessary for us to forget
➔ The Russian memory whiz S,from the first chapter, who could repeat a string of
numbers up to 70 digits, backwards and forwards, and from 15 years earlier.
Although this seems amazing, not being able to forget this has dominated his
consciousness.he has problems generalizing, evaluating, and organizing.
There are lots of different reasons why we forget.
➔ On reason is an encoding failure, which is not encoding something into our brain.
For example, with pennies. Most people can recall that the penny has Lincolns
head, "In God We Trust", and the date, but not how they're placed on the penny.
➔ There is also storage decay, which is like encoding your locker combo well into
your brain, but forgetting it over the summer.
➔ Finally there is retreat failure, which is like looking for a book in a library, but not
having enough info to look it up or retrieve it.
Seven Sins of Memory
❖ Sins of Forgetting:
➢ Absent-mindedness (inattention to details)
➢ Transience (decaying of storage over time, fading of unused information)
➢ Blocking (inability to access stored information; when it’s on the “tip of your tongue”)
❖ Sins of Distortion:
➢ Misattribution (confusing where the information came from)
➢ Suggestibility (misinformation that has lingering effects)
➢ Bias (current feelings that effect your recalled initial feelings)
❖ Sin of Intrusion:
➢ Persistence (being haunted of unwanted memories you wish you could forget, usually
trauma or assault)
Anecdotes
I. Absent MindednessA. The famous Cellist Yo-Yo Ma forgot his 266 year-old, $2.5 million
cello in a New York taxi
B. Losing your phone because you set it down while your mind was
elsewhere and not concentrated on placing it down
II. TransienceA. Forgetting an old phone number after use
III.BlockingA. Inability to recall a song name
IV.Forgetting CurveA. Students could recall little info about the Spanish they learned 3
years ago but the info they remembered could be remembered 25
years later
AnecdoteThe Woman who Can’t Forget
1) Jill Price, a woman studied and verified by the
University of California to have an extreme memory.
Jill has the ability to recall every detail and fact of her
life since she was the age of 14. Whenever seeing past
dates, Jill can recall just about everything that
happened that day. She expresses that her unusual
ability is not helpful, but “nonstop and totally
exhausting”.
Review Quiz
1. Who was the memory researcher who established the seven sins of memory?
A) B. F. Skinner
B) Daniel Schacter
C) Hermann Ebbinghaus
D) Sigmund Freud
2. What are the three sins of forgetting?
A) Persistence, Misattribution and Bias
B) Blocking, Persistence, and Transience
C) Absent-Mindedness, Blocking and Transience
D) Absent-Mindedness, Misattribution and Suggestibility
3. True or False
Transience is unwanted memories.
Review Quiz
4. We sometimes fail to ______ information into our memory system.
A) Encode
B) Remember
C) Retrieve
D) None of these
5. Repression is
A) The disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information
B) The disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information
C) The tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current good or bad mood
D) The basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings and memories
6. True or False
People will commonly experience retrieval failure.
Review Quiz
7. An example of blocking is
A) Forgetting an old phone number after use
B) Inability to recall a song name
C) Losing your phone because you set it down while your mind was elsewhere
D) All of these are examples of blocking
8. An example of transience is
A. Forgetting an old phone number after use
B. Inability to recall a song name
C. Losing your phone because you set it down while your mind was elsewhere
D. All of these are example of transience
9. True or False
Recalling is apart of the seven sins of memory
Review Quiz
10. An example of absent mindedness is
A. Cellist Yo Yo Mama forgetting his cello on a taxi
B.
Losing your phone because you set it down while your mind was elsewhere and not concentrated on placing it down
C.
Both of these are examples
D.
None of these are examples
Key
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
B
C
F
A
D
T
B
8.
A
9.
F
10. C