Memory Chapter 9 Sensory Memory Store Function holds information long enough to be processed for basic physical characteristics Capacity large can hold many items at once Duration very brief retention of images 3 sec for visual info 2 sec for auditory info Sensory Memory Store Divided into two subtypes iconic memory visual information echoic memory auditory information Visual or iconic memory was discovered by Sperling in 1960 Sensory Memory Store Sperling s Experiment Presented matrix of letters for 1 20 seconds Report as many letters as possible Subjects recall only half of the letters Sperling s Experiment Sperling showed people can see and recall ALL the letters momentarily Sounded low medium or high tone immediately after matrix disappeared tone signaled 1 row to report recall was almost perfect Memory for image fades after 1 3 seconds or so making report of entire display hard to Sensory Memory Store Sensory memory forms automatically without attention or interpretation Attention is needed to transfer information to working memory Working Memory Seat of conscious thought our awareness Like a computer we can create new files from sensory memory or access formerly created files from long term memory We can access only a few items at once Verbally Phonological loop what you can repeat in 2 seconds Visually Visuospatial sketchpad do Working Memory Function conscious processing of information where information is actively worked on Capacity limited holds 7 2 items Duration brief storage about 30 seconds Code often based on sound or speech even with visual inputs Working Memory What happens if you need to keep information in working memory longer than 30 Maintenance rehearsal Allows information to remain in working memory longer than seconds the usual 30 seconds Working Memory Model Visuospatial sketch pad holds visual and spatial info Phonological loop holds verbal information Central executive coordinates all activities of working memory brings new information into working memory from sensory and long term memory How Information is Organized in Memory Chunking grouping lower level units into higher level meaningful units Hierarchical organization Scheme by which lower level units are grouped Chunking occurs in real time in working memory and is influenced by top down process in long term memory Hierarchical Organization Related items clustered together to form categories Related categories clustered to form higher order categories Remember list items better if list presented in categories poorer recall if presented randomly Even if list items are random people still organize info in some logical pattern Long Term Memory Store Once information passes from sensory to working memory it can be encoded into long term memory Long Term Memory Store Function organizes and stores information more passive form of storage than working memory Unlimited capacity Duration thought by some to be permanent Long Term Memory Store Encoding process that controls movement from working to long term memory store Retrieval process that controls flow of information from long term to working memory store Elaboration Focus on meaning of information to encode it into LTM don t simply repeat items over and over tie item to other info in memory also called elaborative rehearsal Ways to Use Elaboration Actively question new information Think about its implications Relate information to things you already know Generate own examples of concepts Don t highlight passage as you read focus on the ideas in the text Elaboration and Levels of Processing Elaboration leads to better recall than shallow processing Deep Processing Example Stimulus She was wearing a red dRess Process What was she wearing Result About 88 of words correctly recalled Shallow Acoustic Processing Example Stimulus She was wearing a red dRess Process Name a word that rhymes with dRess Result About 59 of words correctly recalled Shallow Visual Processing Example Stimulus She was wearing a red dRess Process What letter is capitalized in dRess Result About 14 of words recalled Brain Mechanisms in Encoding into LTM Anterograde Amnesia temporal lobe amnesia Loss of capacity to form long term memories Activity in the hippocampus is essential for the formation of at least some types of long term memory Retrograde Amnesia Loss of memories of events that occurred before a brain injury Is time graded RA is greatest for memories acquired just prior to injury Suggests two forms of LTM Labile form memories are easily disrupted Stable form not easily disrupted The process by which long term memories are converted from a labile to a stable form is called consolidation Explicit Memory Organization and Types of Mental Associations Association by contiguity concepts are associated because they occur together in a person s previous experience Association by similarity concepts with shared properties are associated Explicit Memory Organization Network Model Structure of memory as concepts linked by associations Explicit Memory Organization Network Model Links between concepts common properties provide basis for mental link Shorter path between two concepts stronger association in memory Activation of a concept starts decremental spread of activity to nearby concepts Also known as the spreading activation model Explicit Memory Organization Schema Schema mental representation of an object scene or event example schema of a countryside may include green grass hills farms a barn cows etc 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 Schemas scripts provide framework for new information Explicit Memory Organization Retrieval Theory Retrieval cue a clue prompt or hint that can help memory retrieval Forgetting is the result of using improper retrieval cues Cues generated during learning jelly more effective during retrieval than new cues Explicit Memory Organization Retrieval Theory and the Encoding Specificity Principle Learn word list generate cue when see word jam jelly at recall cues given as retrieval aid jelly or traffic traffic Context Dependent Effect Compare words learned underwater vs on land Words heard underwater are best recalled underwater Words heard on land are best recalled on land Explicit Memory Organization Memory Construction Recall not an exact replica of original events Recall a