Deck 6: Attention and Memory

Question 1

Working memory is the active processes and structures involved in holding information in mind and simultaneously using that information to solve a problem or make a decision.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

How memory for details of autobiographical events changes over time can only be studied when an independent record exists, made at the time the events happened.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Most of the tasks involving deliberate memory, such as learning words on a list, require divided attention.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Brushing your teeth is not something you tend to think about consciously. Remembering how to do it is an example of explicit memory.

Question 5

Given that semantic memory is relatively unimpaired as we grow older, it may have an enhancement effect on episodic memory for older adults.

Question 6

Older adults show lower levels of brain activity in the parietal and frontal regions of the brain involved in the retrieval of information.

Question 7

Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, which often accompanies long-term high cholesterol, involves major loss of recent memory and sometimes a total inability to form new memories.

Question 8

In older adulthood, the ability to monitor multiple aspects of memory functioning is relatively spared.

Question 9

The information-processing approach to cognition examines how people take in stimuli material from their environment and transform that information into memories.

Question 10

Advocating the use of external aids in memory rehabilitation is becoming less popular because it is not well grounded in research.

Question 11

False memory research has found that people tend to falsely recall and incorrectly recognize information that could plausible have happened.

Question 12

Mentally retracing your steps in all the places you've been in order to find your missing car keys is an example of a(n) internal strategy.

Question 13

TBI stands for traumatic brain injury.

Question 14

Metamemory involves remembering items or events that did not occur.

Question 15

Occasionally, people temporarily experience a complete loss of memory and are disoriented in time, a condition known as temporary global amnesia (TGA).

Question 16

Remembering that you have a dentist appointment next Friday at noon requires semantic memory.

Question 17

A brain autopsy following the suicide of former NFL player Dave Duerson revealed he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) caused by excessive use of alcohol.

Question 18

Automatic processing is how quickly and efficiently the early steps in information processing are completed.

Question 19

One way to distinguish normal from abnormal memory changes is to ask whether the changes disrupt a person's ability to perform daily living tasks.

Question 20

Researchers have generally concluded that most of the reason memory performance declines with age has to do with encoding problems.

Question 21

Taking notes while listening to a lecture requires

A) divided attention.
B) effortful processing.
C) external aids.
D) memory self-efficacy.

Question 22

Flashbulb memories feel very real, and people think they can remember them down to the smallest detail. Research on the accuracy of flashbulb memories indicates that

A) this is true. Flashbulb memories are highly accurate and are not likely to be forgotten over time.
B) this is false. Due to the highly emotional nature of flashbulb memories, they are usually forgotten quickly.
C) this is false. When comparing people's memories with independent records of actual events, people's memories are often wrong.
D) this is true for younger adults but not for older adults.

Question 23

Which of the following places minimal demands on attentional capacity and gets information into the system largely without us being aware of it?

A) divided attention
B) sustained attention
C) inhibitory loss
D) automatic processing

Question 24

You realize that you have an exam coming up for your biology course. Half of it is multiple choice and half of it is essay. You realize the essay section will be harder than the multiple-choice part of the exam. This is an example of

A) metamemory.
B) memory monitoring.
C) on-line awareness.
D) memory awareness.

Question 25

Neuroscience research shows that during encoding, the prefrontal cortex in older adults shows

A) no activity.
B) lower activity.
C) overactivity.
D) pathological functioning.

Question 26

Medications commonly used to lower __________________ can cause memory problems such as forgetfulness.

A) cholesterol
B) blood pressure
C) sodium levels
D) metabolism

Question 27

You are trying to tell a friend the name of the hotel you stayed at last year during spring break, but you can't seem to recall its name. You know it begins with an S. This is an example of

A) recapitulation.
B) familiar information being remembered more poorly.
C) a tip-of-the-tongue experience.
D) compensatory failure.

Question 28

Remembering to call your friend on her birthday requires you to use

A) retrospective memory.
B) correlative memory.
C) anterograde memory.
D) prospective memory.

Question 29

Autobiographical memory is primarily a form of

A) sensory memory.
B) recognition memory.
C) semantic memory.
D) episodic memory.

Question 30

A computer analogy is used to explain

A) the information processing approach.
B) the origins of source memories.
C) how prospective memory works.
D) age-related declines in speed of processing.

Question 31

Under which conditions do older and younger adults show similar patterns of attention allocation?

A) never
B) when the goal is to have familiarity with the material
C) when the task requires effortful and deliberate processing
D) when the information is presented quickly

Question 32

Which best describes normative age-related changes in semantic memory?

A) It increases across the life span.
B) It increases until age 55-60 and then shows a precipitous decline after age 65.
C) It increases from 35-55 years of age, levels off, and then declines after age 65.
D) It shows stability until age 65, after which it increases.

Question 33

This type of memory stays fairly stable until 55-60 years of age and then shows a precipitous decline after age 65.

A) sensory memory
B) episodic memory
C) semantic memory
D) remote memory

Question 34

Memory intervention or training programs must consider both _______________ and _______________.

A) automatic processing; effortful processing.
B) autobiographical memory; semantic memory
C) encoding; retrieval
D) rehearsal; recall

Question 35

Which of the following beliefs about memory is not characteristic of older adults?

A) Memory is not stable.
B) Memory will decline with age.
C) I have little control over my memory.
D) I know a great deal about how memory works.

Question 36

Answering short-answer or essay questions on your final exam requires the use of

A) inference.
B) recall.
C) recognition.
D) recapitulation.

Question 37

Negative stereotypes about aging __________________ the memory performance of older adults.

A) increase
B) decrease
C) are unrelated to
D) confuse

Question 38

Tapping into memory monitoring strategies may be an effective way to compensate for older adults' tendency to be more prone to

A) flashbulb memory errors.
B) false memory errors.
C) autobiographic memory errors.
D) semantic memory errors.

Question 39

Research findings that indicate differences between older and younger adults with issues such as memory, attentional capacity, and processing speed must be interpreted carefully. Why?

A) Memory tests are biased against younger adults.
B) A test that measures memory in a younger adult will not be valid for testing an older adult.
C) Age differences are sensitive to the conditions under which they are measured.
D) Any differences observed between the two groups are due to declining vision and hearing in older adults, not due to decreases in memory or attention per se.

Question 40

Which of the following was found to be a protective factor for maintaining one's cognitive state over time?

A) having relatives who lived to very old age
B) having parents with high IQs
C) having a large number of friends to socialize with
D) speaking multiple languages

Question 41

Older adults are likely to have difficulties with__________________, which involves remembering where a piece of information was acquired.

A) false memory
B) source memory
C) flashbulb memory
D) implicit memory

Question 42

What feature of memory reflects an individual's confidence in being able to complete a task?

A) metamemory
B) memory self-efficacy
C) online awareness
D) source awareness

Question 43

Which of the following is not an assumption of the information-processing approach?

A) People are active participants in the process.
B) Both quantitative and qualitative aspects of performance can be examined.
C) Information is handled in the system in an untransformed manner.
D) Information is processed through a series of processes.

Question 44

The ability to remember extensive amounts of information from a few seconds to a few hours to decades is known as

A) sensory memory.
B) working memory.
C) long-term memory.
D) remote memory.

Question 45

The process of prospective memory begins with the intention to remember something in the future and depends on monitoring

A) event and time cues.
B) encoding and retrieval.
C) automatic and effortful processing.
D) implicit and explicit memory.

Question 46

In a large cross-sectional study of source memory, adults between the ages of 21 and 80 years showed

A) an increase over time.
B) a gradual increase until age 60, a decrease between ages 60 and 65, and then a leveling off.
C) a linear decrease over time.
D) a precipitous drop after age 75.

Question 47

Research on memories concerning personal health conducted by Coleman and colleagues, based on the Harvard Longitudinal Studies, showed that

A) memories improved between ages 40 and 50.
B) people at all ages performed poorly.
C) memories about eating were more accurate.
D) specific episodes were remembered best.

Question 48

Internal memory strategies

A) are not effective on the memories of older adults.
B) require effortful processing that is more taxing on older adults.
C) are more willingly used by older adults.
D) are considered most effective on the memories of older adults with dementia.

Question 49

Age differences on divided attention tasks

A) can be reduced by increasing older adults' practice with the tasks.
B) can be reduced by decreasing younger adults' practice with the tasks.
C) can be reduced by increasing task complexity.
D) cannot be reduced.

Question 50

Physical fitness training improves cognitive performance in older adults regardless of

A) the training method.
B) the intensity of the training.
C) the length of the training.
D) the initial fitness level of the adult.

Question 51

Overall, older adults do less well than younger adults on__________________, but on __________________ this difference between the age groups is reduced.

A) recognition tests; recall tests
B) recall tests; recognition tests
C) tests of semantic memory; test of episodic memory
D) tests of short-term memory; tests of long-term memory

Question 52

Answering a multiple choice question on an exam like this one is an example of

A) recall memory.
B) recognition memory.
C) cued recall memory.
D) semantic memory.

Question 53

Age-related decline in working memory tends to be greater than the decline in __________________ working memory.

A) verbal; spatial
B) verbal; mathematical
C) spatial; verbal
D) mathematical; verbal

Question 54

Remembering something that did not really occur is known as

A) false memory.
B) source memory.
C) flashbulb memory.
D) implicit memory.

Question 55

The process that information is held in working memory is known as

A) rehearsal.
B) elaboration.
C) automatic processing.
D) metacognition.

Question 56

The amount of attention one has to apply to a particular situation is known as

A) sensory memory.
B) processing resources.
C) a decrease in overall memory space.
D) a decrease in sensory memory.

Question 57

Medications commonly used to treat _________________ can cause memory problems such as forgetfulness.

A) low metabolism
B) diabetes
C) high blood pressure
D) high cholesterol

Question 58

Older adults have more difficulty correctly identifying information as false because they have trouble linking content information to

A) its context.
B) its outcome.
C) other information in long-term memory.
D) sensory memory.

Question 59

When first learning to drive a manual transmission car, we are often aware of our processing and it seems to take all of our attention to coordinate our actions. This is an example of

A) automatic processing.
B) effortful processing.
C) divided attention.
D) attentional capacity.

Question 60

Trying to complete two tasks at one time requires which type of attention?

A) selective attention
B) sustained attention
C) divided attention
D) attentional capacity

Question 61

If 47¬year¬old Matt can recite the preamble to the U.S. constitution which he memorized by listening to a song he heard on a video in his history class. What type of memory is Matt using for this task?

A) sensory memory
B) episodic memory
C) semantic memory
D) remote memory

Question 62

Implicit memory is also referred to as

A) declarative memory.
B) procedural memory.
C) intentional memory.
D) subjective memory.

Question 63

According to your textbook, which of the following is considered a "powerful" cue for early autobiographical memories?

A) the sound of a voice
B) an image
C) an odor
D) a touch on the arm

Question 64

What variable affects whether age differences will be obtained on divided attention tasks?

A) task complexity
B) speed of responding
C) spatial cueing
D) presentation modality

Question 65

Improvements in your memory as the result of being previously exposed to the information without actively trying to remember it is known as

A) implicit memory.
B) recognition memory.
C) remote memory.
D) explicit memory.

Question 66

Michael is trying to remember his friend's new cell phone number. He repeats it in his mind until he gets the new number entered into his phone's contact list. Michael is using his

A) sensory memory.
B) working memory.
C) secondary memory.
D) remote memory.

Question 67

The brief and almost identical representation of the stimuli that exists in the observable environment is known as

A) sensory memory.
B) working memory.
C) primary memory.
D) experiential memory.

Question 68

Claiming that one had performed an activity that one had actually only observed is more common among

A) younger adults.
B) older adults.
C) children.
D) adolescents.

Question 69

Research suggests that all of the following external memory cues are most effective except those that

A) require a pen or pencil.
B) are active rather than passive.
C) are given close to the time action is required.
D) are specific to a particular action.

Question 70

Remembering where you were when 9/11 occurred is an example of

A) explicit memory.
B) semantic memory.
C) implicit memory.
D) flashbulb memory.

Question 71

Metamemory refers to what one knows about

A) the memory system and how it works.
B) the accuracy of the knowledge base.
C) current ongoing memory processes.
D) one's own past experiences.

Question 72

Which of the following is an external memory aid?

A) imagery
B) rehearsal
C) memory drugs
D) a shopping list

Question 73

Neuroscience research on the benefits of __________ shows that it plays a large role in protecting older adults from cognitive decline.

A) bilingualism
B) musical training
C) emotional engagement
D) a long-term partnership

Question 74

One implicit internal memory aide has proven quite powerful, and those with Alzheimer's can learn new things using it. What is it?

A) EIEIO method
B) spaced retrieval
C) memory monitoring
D) memory drugs

Question 75

_____________________ requires all of the available attentional capacity.

A) Automatic processing
B) Effortful processing
C) Divided attention
D) Implicit memory

Question 76

One reason for access problems is if the knowledge in semantic memory

A) is complex.
B) is from personal experiences that occurred across a lifetime.
C) is tied to specific occurrences of events in time.
D) is not used on a regular basis.

Question 77

Research shows that age-related changes in speed of processing

A) are inevitable.
B) are dependent upon what adults are being asked to do.
C) are uniform across different types of tasks and situations.
D) vary by sex, with women showing greater declines over time than men.

Question 78

Neuroscience research clearly demonstrates that __________________ has a wide range of effects on the brain, including increased neural plasticity, and can be an intervention alternative for diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

A) a diet high in omega-3 fatty acids
B) reading
C) exercise
D) working past retirement age

Question 79

A small capacity store that deals with the items currently "in use" is

A) sensory memory.
B) working memory.
C) secondary memory.
D) remote memory.

Question 80

Recent research into what causes working memory deficits in older adults has found that

A) older adults have more trouble accessing multiple pieces of information.
B) older adults have more trouble juggling all of the information at once.
C) verbal working memory is much more affected than spatial working memory.
D) testing at night improves older adults' performance.