Memory

Claudia Stanny

PSY 2012

• Capacity to encode, store, and retrieve information

What is Memory?

Types of Memory

• Declarative Memory Facts & Events Memories can be talked about Demonstrated by recall or recognition

• Procedural Memory Skilled behavior Memories can not be talked about Demonstrated by action

Types of Declarative Memory

• Episodic Memory Memory for events Events that occur at a specific time and place Autobiographical memories

• Semantic Memory Knowledge Meanings of words, math facts, geography facts Abstract – not tied to personal experiences

Memory ProcessesMemory Processes

SensoryMemory

Working Memory(includes short-term memory)

Long-TermMemory

Sensory Memory

• Iconic Memory Memory for visual information

• Echoic Memory Memory for auditory information

Report What You Saw

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W 7 K 1 L V P F

R X B M C 5 U 3

A J Y 4 Z T 8 D

Recall

Performance on Whole and Partial Report Tasks

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10

0 0.15 0.3 0.5 1

Delay of Recall Cue for Partial Report

Num

ber o

f Let

ters

Rec

alle

d

Partial Report Whole Report

Study the following letter pairs.Try to remember as many pairs as

you can.

IB MC IA BM WF BI

UW FM CI VF WL BJ

???

Study the following letter triads.Try to remember as many triads as

you can.

IBM CIA BMW FBI

UWF MCI VFW LBJ

???

Chunking

• Combines information to create larger units

• Increases the capacity of immediate memory

Working Memory

• Central Executive similar to Short-Term Memory

• Phonological Loop acoustic, speech-based information disrupted by speaking disrupted by listening to irrelevant speech

• Visuospatial Sketchpad representation of images disrupted by visual processing

Long Term Memory

• “Permanent” or very long duration memories

• Importance of encoding & retrieval processes for storage in LTM levels of processingencoding specificity importance of distinctive retrieval cues

Application: Improving Study Skills

• Depth of processingProcess Deeply Use elaborative rehearsal instead of rote rehearsal

• Organize the material Form connections among to-be-remembered information Organization can act as a retrieval cue Form connections to existing knowledge

• Metamemory Evaluate your knowledge with self-tests Give additional study to items you have trouble recalling

Application: Eyewitness Memory

• Memory as a reconstruction Memory is not like a video or photograph

• Influence of prior knowledge Role of schemas and scripts in eyewitness recall

• Influence of postevent information Distortions introduced by biased wording of questions Distortion introduced by exposure to new information

• Influence of inferences Distortions introduced by leading questions