: WHEN MEMORY LAPSES
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HUH?: WHEN MEMORY LAPSES
Hermann Ebbinghaus tested memory
Created Forgetting Curve: graphs retention and forgetting over time
Showed steep drop in retention within hours of learning
EBBINGHAUS’S FORGETTING CURVE
Retention: proportion of material retained
3 principle methods for measuring forgetting: recall, recognition, and relearning
MEASURING FORGETTINGFORGETTING
DEF: requires subjects to reproduce info on their own w/o any cues
RECALL
DEF: requires subjects to select previously learned info from any array of options
Yield higher scores than recall
RECOGNITION
DEF: requires a subject to memorize info a 2nd time to determine how much time or effort is saved by having learned it before
Compare time spent learning the 1st time with time spent learning same material a 2nd time
RELEARNING
Pseudoforgetting—due to ineffective encoding (penny test)
Decay theory: forgetting occurs b/c memory traces fade with time
Interference theory: people forget info b/c of competition from other material
2 types of interference: 1) retroactive interference: when new info impairs
the retention of previously learned info2) proactive interference: when previously learned
info interferes w/retention of new info
WHY WE FORGET
Retrieval failureEncoding specificity principle: the value of a retrieval
cue depends on how well it corresponds to the memory code
Transfer appropriate processing: occurs when the initial processing of info is similar to the type of processing required by the subsequent measure of retention
Motivated forgetting: tendency to forget things one doesn’t want to think about
Freud called this Repression: keeping distressing thoughts and feelings buried in the unconscious
WHY WE FORGET CONTINUED
IN SEARCH OF THE MEMORY TRACE: THE
PHYSIOLOGY OF MEMORY
Specific memories may depend on biochemical changes at specific synapses (alterations in synaptic transmission)
Neurotransmitters may help with storage of new info
BIOCHEMISTRY OF MEMORY
Memories may create unique, reusable neural pathways
Long-term pontentiation: a long lasting increase in neural excitability at synapses along a specific neural pathway
NEURAL CIRCUITRY OF MEMORY
Studies in organic amnesia give clues2 basic types of amnesia:1)Retrograde: loss of memories for events that
occurred prior to the onset of amnesia2)Anterograde: loss of memories for events that
occur after the onset of amnesiaStudies in amnesia have shown the hippocampal
region is critical for LTM and Consolidation: a hypothetical process involving the gradual conversion of info into durable memory codes stored in LTM
ANATOMY OF MEMORY
ARE THERE MULTIPLE MEMORY SYSTEMS?
Implicity memory: type of memory apparent when retention is exhibited on a task that does not require intentional remembering
Explicit memory: intentional recollection of previous experiences
IMPLICIT VS. EXPLICIT MEMORY
Declarative memory system: handles factual information
Procedural memory system: houses memory for actions, skills, operations, and conditioned responses
DECLARATIVE VS. PROCEDURAL MEMORY
Episodic memory system: made up of chronological, or temporally dated, recollections of personal experiences
Semantic memory system: contains general knowledge that is not tied to the time when the info was learned
SEMANTIC VS. EPISODIC MEMORY
Prospective memory: involves remembering to perform actions in the future
Retrospective memory: remembering events from the past or previously learned info
PROSPECTIVE VS. RETROSPECTIVE MEMORY