Unit 7 A
Memory
Which are correct?
Grouchy
Dopey
Bashful
Gabby
Sniffy
Cheerful
Fearful
Wishful
Teach
Sleepy
Puffy
Shorty
Smiley
Dumpy
Nifty
Jumpy
Sneezy
Happy
Hopeful
Lazy
Doc
Shy
Pop
Wheezy
Droopy
Grumpy
Stubby
Grade your answers
Doc
Sleepy
Dopey
Bashful
Grumpy
Happy
Sneezy
Memory
Memory is the basis for knowing your friends,
your neighbors, the English language, the
national anthem, and yourself.
If memory was nonexistent, everyone would
be a stranger to you; every language foreign;
every task new; and even you yourself would
be a stranger.
The Phenomenon of Memory
Memory is any indication that learning has
persisted over time. It is our ability to store and
retrieve information.
Flashbulb Memory
Ruters/ Corbis
A unique and highly emotional moment may
give rise to a clear, strong, and persistent
memory called flashbulb memory. However,
this memory is not free from errors.
President Bush being told of 9/11 attack.
Stages of Memory
Keyboard
(Encoding)
Disk
(Storage)
Monitor
(Retrieval)
Sequential Process
Information Processing
Frank Wartenberg/ Picture Press/
Corbis
Bob Daemmrich/ The Image Works
Bob Daemmrich/ The Image Works
The Atkinson-Schiffrin (1968) three-stage model of
memory includes a) sensory memory, b) shortterm memory, and c) long-term memory.
Problems with the Model
1. Some information skips the first two stages
and enters long-term memory
automatically.
2. Since we cannot focus all the sensory
information in the environment, we select
information (through attention) that is
important to us.
3. The nature of short-term memory is more
complex.
Memory
 Encoding
 the processing of information into the
memory system i.e., extracting meaning
 Storage
 the retention of encoded information over
time
 Retrieval
 process of getting information out of memory
Memory
 Sensory Memory
 the immediate, initial recording of
sensory information in the memory
system
 Working Memory
 focuses more on the processing of
briefly stored information
Working Memory
Alan Baddeley (2002) proposes that working memory
contains auditory and visual processing controlled by
the central executive through an episodic buffer.
Memory
 Short-Term Memory
 activated memory that holds a
few items briefly
 look up a phone number,
then quickly dial before the
information is forgotten
 Long-Term Memory
 the relatively permanent and limitless
storehouse of the memory system
Short-Term Memory
 Function—conscious processing of information
 where information is actively worked on
 Capacity—limited (holds 7+/-2 items)
 Duration—brief storage (about 30 seconds)
Sensory
Input
Sensory
Memory
Attention Working or
Short-term
Memory
Maintenance Rehearsal
 Mental or verbal repetition of information
allows information to remain in working
memory longer than the usual 30 seconds
Maintenance Rehearsal
Sensory
Input
Sensory
Memory
Attention
Working or
Short-term
Memory
Long-Term Memory
 Once information passes from sensory to
working memory, it can be encoded into
long-term memory
Maintenance Rehearsal
Sensory
Input
Sensory
Memory
Attention
Encoding
Long-term
Working or
memory
Short-term
Memory Retrieval
Long-Term Memory
 Function—organizes and stores information
 more passive form of storage than working memory
 Unlimited capacity
 Duration—thought by some to be permanent
Maintenance Rehearsal
Sensory
Input
Sensory
Memory
Attention
Encoding
Long-term
Working or
memory
Short-term
Memory Retrieval
A Simplified Memory Model
Sensory input
External
events
Attention to important
or novel information
Sensory
memory
Encoding
Short-term
memory
Encoding
Retrieving
Long-term
memory
Encoding
Automatic Processing
 Unconscious encoding of incidental information
 space
 time
 frequency
 Well-learned information
 word meanings
 We can learn automatic processing
 reading backwards
Encoding
Effortful Processing

requires attention and conscious effort
Rehearsal

conscious repetition of information
- to maintain it in consciousness
- to encode it for storage
Encoding
Ebbinghaus used nonsense syllables
TUV ZOF GEK WAV
the more times practiced on Day 1, the fewer repetitions
to relearn on Day 2
Spacing Effect
distributed practice yields better long term retention than
massed practice
Encoding- Serial Position Effect
Percentage
of
words
recalled
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Position of word in list
10
11 12
Forgetting
Percentage of
list retained
when
relearning
 Ebbinghausforgetting
curve over 30
days
60
50
40
initially
rapid, then
levels off
with time
30
20
10
0
12345
10
15
20
25
Time in days since learning list
30
What Do We Encode?
Semantic Encoding
 encoding of meaning
 including meaning of words
Acoustic Encoding
 encoding of sound
 especially sound of words
Visual Encoding
 encoding of picture images
Encoding
Encoding
Imagery
 mental pictures
 a powerful aid to effortful processing, especially
when combined with semantic encoding
Mnemonics
 memory aids
 use of acronyms
HOMES- Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior
ARITHMETIC- A Rat In Tom’s House Might Eat Tom’s Ice Cream
Chunking
 organizing items into familiar, manageable units
- like horizontal organization: 1776149218121941
 often occurs automatically
Encoding
 Hierarchies
complex information broken down into broad
concepts and further subdivided into categories and
subcategories
Encoding
(automatic
or effortful)
Meaning
(semantic
Encoding)
Imagery
(visual
Encoding)
Chunks
Organization
Hierarchies
Storage- Short Term Memory
 Short Term
Memory
limited in
duration and
capacity
“magical”
number 7+/-2
Percentage
90
who recalled
80
consonants
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
3
6
9
12
15
18
Time in seconds between presentation
of contestants and recall request
(no rehearsal allowed)
Storage- Long Term Memory
How does storage work?
Karl Lashley (1950)
rats learn maze
lesion cortex
test memory
Synaptic changes
Long-term Potentiation
increase in synapse’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation
Strong emotions make for stronger memories
some stress hormones boost learning and retention
Storage- Long Term Memory
Amnesia- the loss of memory
Explicit Memory
 memory of facts and experiences that one can
consciously know and declare
 hippocampus- neural center in limbic system that
helps process explicit memories for storage
Implicit Memory
 retention without conscious recollection
 motor and cognitive skills
 dispositions- conditioning
Storage- Long Term Memory Subsystems
Types of
long-term
memories
Explicit
(declarative)
With conscious
recall
Facts-general
knowledge
(“semantic
memory”)
Personally
experienced
events
(“episodic
memory”)
Implicit
(nondeclarative)
Without conscious
recall
Skills-motor
and cognitive
Dispositionsclassical and
operant
conditioning
effects
Retrieval- Getting Information Out
Recall
- ability to retrieve info learned earlier and not in
conscious awareness-like fill in the blank test
Recognition
- ability to identify previously learned items-like on a
multiple choice test
Retrieval
Relearning
amount of time saved when relearning
previously learned information
Priming
activation, often unconsciously, of
particular associations in memory
Retrieval Cues
Reminders of information to prime memory
Guides to where to look for info
Context Effects
- memory works better in the context of
original learning
Retrieval Cues
Deja Vu- (French) already seen
 cues from the current situation may subconsciously trigger
retrieval of an earlier similar experience
 "I've experienced this before"
Mood Congruent Memory
 tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s
current mood
 memory, emotions or moods serve as retrieval cues
 State Dependent Memory
 what is learned in one state (while one is high, drunk or depressed)
can more easily be remembered when in same state
Forgetting as Encoding Failure
Encoding Failure
Information never enters the memory system
Attention is selective
we cannot attend to everything in our
environment
William James said that we would be as bad
off if we remembered everything as we would
be if we remembered nothing
Forgetting as Encoding Failure
Attention
External
events
Sensory
memory
Encoding
Shortterm
memory
Encoding
Encoding
failure leads
to forgetting
Longterm
memory
Forgetting as Interference
 Learning some items may disrupt retrieval of other
information
 Proactive(forward acting) Interference
- disruptive effect of prior learning on recall of new
information
Retroactive (backwards acting) Interference
- disruptive effect of new learning on recall of old
information
Forgetting as Interference
Retroactive Interference
Percentage
of syllables
recalled
90%
Without interfering
events, recall is
better
80
After sleep
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
After remaining awake
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Hours elapsed after learning syllables
8
Forgetting as Interference
Motivated Forgetting
people unknowingly revise history
Repression
defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing
thoughts, feelings, and memories
Positive Transfer
sometimes old information facilitates our learning of
new information
knowledge of Latin may help us to learn French
Forgetting – Retrieval Failure
 Forgetting can result from failure to
retrieve information from long-term
memory
Attention
External
events
Sensory
memory
Encoding
Encoding
Short-term
Long-term
memory
Retrieval memory
Retrieval failure
leads to forgetting
Forgetting
Sensory memory - the senses momentarily
register amazing detail
Short term memory - a few items are
both noticed and encoded
Long-term storage - Some items
are altered or lost
Retrieval from long-term memory depending on interference, retrieval cues
moods and motives, some things get
retrieved, some don’t
Information bits
Memory Construction
We filter information and fill in missing pieces
Misinformation Effect
incorporating misleading information
into one's memory of an event
Source Amnesia
attributing to the wrong source an event
that we experienced, heard about,
read about, or imagined (misattribution)
Memory Construction
People fill in memory gaps with plausible
guesses and assumptions
Imagining events can create false memories
Children's eyewitness recall
Child sexual abuse does occur
 Some innocent people suffer false accusations
 Some guilty cast doubt on true testimony

Memory Construction
Memories of Abuse
Repressed or Constructed?
 Child sexual abuse does occur
 Some adults do actually forget such episodes
False Memory Syndrome
 condition in which a person’s identity and relationships
center around a false but strongly believed memory of
traumatic experience
 sometimes induced by well-meaning therapists
Memory Construction
Most people can agree on the following:
 Injustice happens
 Incest happens
 Forgetting happens
 Recovered memories are commonplace
 Memories recovered under hypnosis or drugs are unreliable
 Memories of things happening before age 3 are unreliable
 Memories, whether false or real, are upsetting
Improve Your Memory
 Study repeatedly to boost recall
 Spend more time rehearsing or actively thinking about
the material
 Make material personally meaningful
 Use mnemonic devices
associate with peg words- something already stored
make up story
chunk-acronyms
Improve Your Memory
Activate retrieval cues: mentally recreate
situation and mood
Recall events while they are fresh- write down
before interference
Minimize interference
Test your own knowledge
- rehearse
- determine what you do not yet know