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Memory TheorySTM vs. LTM â
cognitive processing and AI
parallel processing
Sensory Memory/STM
* permits the trace of a stimulus to âlinger onâ for further processing
Why Sensory Memory?
* we need to integrate information across time and space
* we need to keep a brief record in order to select important stimuli for further processing (e.g. selective attention)
* may provide a stability to visual world despite constant eye movement
Types of Sensory Memory
* iconic memory: visual sensory memory
* echoic memory: auditory sensory memory
Iconic Memory
* visual information = icon
* visual information automatically registered in iconic memory
* Duration = icon lasts .5 s
Echoic Memory
* auditory information = echo
* auditory information automatically registered in echoic memory
* Duration = echo lasts 2 s
Theoretical Aspects:
* proactive interference
* span of STM
* chunking
* temporary storage of information: we forget information from STM after 30 seconds (unless we rehearse)
* limited capacity (two views):
o number of units:
+ digit span & the WAIS-III
+ Millerâs Magic Number
+ â7 plus or minus 2â
+ items can be organized into larger units called chunks
o pronunciation times:
+ verbal trace endures for a limited time
Chad, Sweden, Greece, Cuba, Malta --> 4.2 items recalled
Indonesia, Somalia, Afghanistan, Argentina, Venezuela --> 2.8
Two Types of Chunking
1 4 9 1 6 2 5 3 6 4 9 6 4 8 1
* combine items that are close together in time or space
1491 625 3649 6481
*
utilize information from LTM
1 4 9 16 25 36 49 64 81
mnemonics â memory aids
KPCOFGS
Please excuse my dear aunt Sally
Relating new information to known information
Proactive Inhibition (Interference)
* old material interferes forward in time learning new material
* PI occurs only with related material
* Practical Example: abnormal psych & theories of personality
Release from PI
* if one changes the learning material to unrelated material, performance on memory tests returns to normal
* Practical Example: studying same material...take a break!!
Definition:
* memory for events and issues related to yourself
* includes memories for specific experiences and memory for the personal facts of oneâs life
Remembering buying your first car --> specific experience
âDo you own a car?â --> personal fact
* Rubin (1987):
we remember more about the periods in time that defines us as people
Characteristics of Autobiographical Memory:
* long-term recollection of general features of an event
* interpretations of an event
* some recall of a few specific details of an event
Memory of your wedding day...
What happened? --> memory for general features and specific details
What was it like? --> interpretation
Types of Autobiographical Memory:
* personal memory:
image-based representation of a single unrepeated event
memory of your wedding day
* autobiographical fact:
identical to personal memory, except that the memory is not image-based
being able to answer âyesâ to âAre you married?â
* generic personal memory:
similar to a personal memory, except that the event is repeated or a series of similar events occur and are represented in a more abstract form
getting married for the 5th time --> memory of any particular wedding might be difficult to date exactly and might not contain many distinguishing features
Vividness of Autobiographical Memories: Flashbulb Memories
* memory for the situation in which you first learned of a very surprising and emotionally arousing event
* typically memories of events of national or international significance
the assasination of JFK
the assasination of MLK
the Challenger explosion
the verdict in the OJ Simpson trial
Six âCanonicalâ Categories of Information in Flashbulb Memories (Brown & Kulik, 1977):
[STUDENTS CAN TRY THIS AT HOME!! --> ask family members, friends to write an account of some flashbulb memory]
* place - where were you?
* ongoing event - what were you doing?
* informant - who told you / how did you find out?
* affect in others
* own affect
* aftermath
This leads us to false memories
Major Determinants of Flashbulb Memories:
* high level of surprise
* high level of emotional arousal
* consequentiality
* more likely to be rehearsed
Criticisms of Flashbulb Memories:
* veridicality - cannot take accounts at face value as being accurate
Neisserâs (1982) erroneous flashbulb memory of Pearl Harbor:
For many years I have remembered how I heard of the news of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, which occurred on the day before my thirteenth birthday. I recall sitting in the living room of our house -- we only lived in that house for one year, but I remember it well -- listening to a baseball game on the radio. The game was interrupted by an announcement of the attack, and I rushed upstairs to tell my mother. This memory has been so clear for so long that I never confronted its inherent absurdity until last year: no one broadcasts baseball games in December!
* are memories accurate representations of what truly occurred, or are they a result of rehearsal?
Are Autobiographical Memories âTrueâ or ârealâ?
* autobiographical memories may be accurate without being literal
* autobiographical memories may represent personal meaning of an event at the expense of accuracy
* accuracy of personal memories (Field, 1981):
.88 correlation for factual information among family members
.43 correlation for emotions and attitudes
What do Autobiographical Memories Represent?
* information about the location of an event (usually inferred)
* temporal information about the date of occurrence of an event (usually inferred)
* primarily interpretations about an event and not all facts (see above for what is inferred based on interpretations of events)
* factual information is in the form of actors, actions, and locations
* context-specific sensory and perceptual attributes are always present
* imagery is frequently present
* the experience of remembering is always present
* duration of the memory can last for years
Discuss
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