Deck 5: Memory

Question 1

A person relying on _____ is retrieving information from storage without any comparison to external information.

A) recognition
B) priming
C) recall
D) relearning

Answer 1

recall

Question 2

Which statement is TRUE about context and memory?

A) Context plays an important role in your ability to remember certain pieces of information.
B) Contextual information has no bearing on your ability to remember target information.
C) Interference affects only people with short attention spans.
D) People with high intelligence are immune to memory problems due to interference.

Answer 2

Context plays an important role in your ability to remember certain pieces of information.

Question 3

The tendency to recall one's negative, unfortunate circumstances, while failing to recall the positive events in one's life, is called:

A) dissociative amnesia.
B) rumination.
C) anxiety.
D) source amnesia.

Answer 3

rumination.

Question 4

Which is an example of chunking?

A) learning a country line dance as a series of individual steps
B) repeating a long list of about 20 separate items to buy at the store
C) remembering a shopping list as taco ingredients, laundry items, and toiletries
D) seeing a chess game as a collection of isolated pieces and moves

Question 5

Much research has explored the regions of the brain responsible for explicit memory. Which statement is NOT supported by the research cited in your textbook?

A) Episodic memory and semantic memory are both formed in the same region of the brain.
B) Damage to the hippocampus is associated with impaired episodic memory.
C) The hippocampus is much more involved in episodic memory than in semantic memory.
D) Semantic memory relies more heavily on the prefrontal cortex than on the hippocampus.

Question 6

Involuntary memory is defined as:

A) the tendency to ruminate about the negative events in one's life.
B) inaccurate memory for things because of the labels others use for them.
C) the spontaneous retrieval of information without any intention of retrieving it.
D) the unconscious choice to forget particularly unpleasant experiences.

Question 7

Which statement is FALSE about flashbulb memories?

A) They are distinctly clear and vivid memories of emotionally charged events.
B) They are produced as a result of negative, perhaps tragic events, but not positive ones.
C) They are often shared by many people who experienced or witnessed the same event.
D) They can be produced due to society-wide events as well as personal events.

Question 8

An example of encoding is:

A) watching a movie at the theater.
B) thinking about your first day of school.
C) repeating someone's telephone number.
D) singing your favorite song.

Question 9

Memory research suggests that sleep may serve two important functions: _____ of memories that strengthen memory formation, and preventing _____ from taking place.

A) encoding; decay
B) consolidation; interference
C) processing; consolidation
D) encoding; learning-related disorders

Question 10

Two students take a memory test where 15 words were projected sequentially onto a screen. Sal tried to think of rhymes for each word as it appeared on the screen, whereas Sima tried to think of ways each word could be used in a sentence. Based on research findings about levels of processing, you would predict that:

A) Sal will have better recall of the words because he used deep processing.
B) Sal will have poorer recall of the words because he used elaborative rehearsal.
C) Sima will have better recall of the words because she used deep processing.
D) The two students will have similar to equal recall of the words.

Question 11

The _____ effect is the tendency to remember the last items in a series particularly well, whereas the _____ effect is the tendency to remember the first items in a series particularly well.

A) recency; primacy
B) spacing; serial position
C) serial position; interference
D) primacy; recency

Question 12

Reid was playing football when he sustained a blow to his head during a rough tackle and was unconscious for a few minutes. When Reid regained consciousness, he could answer questions about himself, like his name, address, and where he grew up. However, he had difficulty recalling the current year and our nation's first president. It appears that Reid experienced a brain injury that impaired his _____, while his _____ remained intact.

A) episodic memory; procedural memory
B) hippocampus; prefrontal cortex
C) semantic memory; episodic memory
D) implicit memory; explicit memory

Question 13

_____ rehearsal involves shallow processing, whereas _____ rehearsal involves deep processing.

A) Maintenance; elaborative
B) Short-term; maintenance
C) Sensory; long-term
D) Maintenance; deliberative

Question 14

Typically, multiple-choice questions test for ____, whereas essay questions test for _____.

A) retrieval; recognition
B) recognition; recall
C) priming; recall
D) recall; recognition

Question 15

Which statement would be the MOST likely to be made by a person suffering from anterograde amnesia?

A) I have no recollection of anything from before the surgery.
B) I can't remember the fastest route to the hospital.
C) I know where the event is but I have no idea who told me.
D) I can't seem to remember anything since the accident.

Question 16

Which question would MOST likely be asked by someone engaging in shallow processing of written text?

A) What does it mean?
B) How does it relate to information I already know?
C) What are its most important points?
D) What color are the letters?

Question 17

Using the principle of encoding specificity to your advantage is best reflected by:

A) going to bed early to avoid sleep deprivation prior to taking a test.
B) rehearsing vocabulary words for a class so you will recognize them on a midterm.
C) studying in an environment similar to the classroom where you will be taking the exam.
D) taking a deep breath before a test to reduce the negative impact of anxiety on memory.

Question 18

Raj has long been a huge University of Virginia basketball fan. He goes to almost every home basketball game and recently witnessed UVA winning the national championship for the first time in college basketball history. While every other game is pretty much a blur to Raj, it is likely that he will be able to vividly recall details and exciting moments from this particular event for decades to come. For Raj, this national championship victory is considered a(n):

A) iconic memory.
B) mnemonic.
C) flashbulb memory.
D) method of loci.

Question 19

Research on repressed memory suggests that some experiences may be so unpleasant or traumatic that people may unconsciously choose to forget them. This phenomenon is known as:

A) automatic encoding.
B) hindsight bias.
C) source monitoring.
D) motivated forgetting.

Question 20

Retrieval is defined as:

A) entering information into memory.
B) taking in information through your senses.
C) pulling information out of memory.
D) processing information as it sits in short-term memory.

Question 21

Oftentimes people take shortcuts across the grass instead of walking along the longer paved concrete path. The shortcuts worn into the grass over time is MOST similar to the concept of _____ in memory.

A) long-term depression
B) chunking
C) elaborative rehearsal
D) long-term potentiation

Question 22

The decreased connectivity between neurons in the brain that is thought to be a basis for memory fading is known as:

A) long-term depression.
B) source amnesia.
C) encoding specificity.
D) anterograde amnesia.

Question 23

At the neuron level in the brain, if long-term potentiation were to occur, you would see:

A) no changes in the short-term but potential for long-term decay.
B) increased activity and connectivity between certain neurons.
C) decreased neural activity in the hippocampus.
D) deterioration of connections between axons and cell bodies.

Question 24

_____ is a type of effortful processing where a person deliberately repeats information to enhance memory.

A) Storage
B) Chunking
C) Rehearsal
D) Elaboration

Question 25

Both the primacy effect and the recency effect represent different parts of:

A) the associative illusion.
B) global amnesia.
C) the spacing effect.
D) the serial position effect.

Question 26

A person experiencing anterograde amnesia would MOST likely not remember:

A) the conversation the person just had.
B) the person's own name.
C) the home where the person grew up.
D) the person's family members.

Question 27

Problems remembering newer information caused by competition from older information is called:

A) the primacy effect.
B) retroactive interference.
C) retrograde amnesia.
D) proactive interference.

Question 28

Working memory is a type of memory:

A) that is important for retrieving old memories but not creating new ones.
B) that merely serves as a holding cell for information passively waiting to be processed.
C) in which processing is actively done on briefly held information.
D) that operates primarily at night while you sleep.

Question 29

You are given a list of 15 words to remember in the order they are presented to you. At the time of recall, you can confidently recall only the first 3 words on the list. Which memory concept BEST explains your performance on the recall test?

A) primacy effect
B) recency effect
C) labeling effect
D) serial position effect

Question 30

People diagnosed with _____ tend to have relatively accurate memories of their life events, whereas people diagnosed with _____ tend to have greater memory for negative life events and poorer memory for the positive life events.

A) anxiety disorders; depression
B) mild neurocognitive disorder; anxiety disorders
C) depression; major neurocognitive disorder
D) anxiety; dissociative amnesia

Question 31

Which statement about chunking is FALSE?

A) We often chunk deliberately to enhance our memories.
B) Chunking can happen automatically without conscious awareness.
C) Experts in chess and other fields often perform worse when they engage in chunking.
D) Chunking involves grouping pieces of information together in a meaningful way.

Question 32

Which statement is FALSE about the relationship between anxiety and memory?

A) Anxiety has very little impact on children's memory and school performance.
B) Working memory capacity is negatively correlated with anxiety.
C) People with anxiety disorders tend to have rather accurate memory for their life events.
D) Memory for verbal information is particularly compromised by anxiety.

Question 33

Ethan takes a high-level computer programming certification course and becomes quite skilled at creating unique computer applications as well as troubleshooting. For a couple years after taking the course, though, Ethan pursues a different career path and does not get the chance to do any computer programming. He eventually forgets what he learned from the course. Ethan's experience MOST reflects the process psychologists refer to as:

A) memory decay.
B) pseudoforgetting.
C) amnesia.
D) interference.

Question 34

During an English exam, Michelle is working hard at recalling a list of vocabulary words she studied. If her brain was being monitored by a PET scan, it would likely show increased activity in her:

A) cerebellum and basal ganglia.
B) frontal lobes and hippocampus.
C) basal ganglia and medulla.
D) hippocampus and occipital lobes.

Question 35

Source amnesia is the inability to:

A) form new memories after a certain point in time.
B) remember how you obtained a particular memory, but not the memory itself.
C) recall anything related to a particularly traumatic event.
D) retrieve information that took place prior to a certain point in time.

Question 36

Harry rearranges the seemingly meaningless letters BTWLOLOMGIDK into BTW LOL OMG IDK to make the long string of letters easier for him to remember. In doing so, Harry is using effortful processing called:

A) chunking.
B) maintaining.
C) rehearsal.
D) retrieval.

Question 37

Bella receives a wedding invitation in the mail. The next day, she cannot seem to remember any of the details about the wedding, but she does recall the color of the invitation, the type and size of the font, and that many letters were in upper case. At which level did Bella process the invitation?

A) shallow
B) deep
C) effortful
D) intermediate

Question 38

Your best friend says something to you while you are in the middle of a task. You don't quite catch what he says, so you immediately ask him, "What?" He begins to repeat himself, but then you suddenly realize that you did hear what he said. You say, "Never mind, I heard you." Your friend is puzzled, wondering why you asked him to repeat himself if you had understood what he said the first time. Which statement best explains your behavior?

A) Visual sensory memory helps to inform your auditory sensory memory.
B) Iconic memory lasts for only fractions of a second.
C) Echoic memory lasts for up to several seconds.
D) Working memory is crucial to learning.

Question 39

_____ is a type of effortful processing where pieces of information are grouped together in a meaningful way to boost memory.

A) Chunking
B) Rehearsal
C) Misinforming
D) Elaboration

Question 40

A type of memory in which processing is done on briefly held information is called:

A) short-term memory.
B) encoding.
C) automatic processing.
D) working memory.

Question 41

If you asked a memory researcher for advice on how to improve your memory, which piece of advice would most likely NOT be given to you?

A) Multitask while learning to keep your mind busy.
B) Engage in deep processing of information.
C) Organize your ideas into some kind of structure.
D) Use context cues to encode and retrieve information.

Question 42

A(n) _____ is a distinctly clear and vivid memory of an emotionally charged and novel event.

A) mnemonic
B) iconic memory
C) method of loci
D) flashbulb memory

Question 43

At the end of college football season, your buddy says, "I knew Clemson was going to win the national football championship all along. I said it from the start!" You remember otherwise and reply, "Uh, no, for the first couple months of the season, you predicted that Alabama would be national champions!" You are calling your friend out on his:

A) orientation illusion.
B) hindsight bias.
C) motivated forgetting.
D) source monitoring error.

Question 44

An example of proactive interference is:

A) gaining basic skills in sign language but losing them because you don't practice them.
B) being so used to a certain style of play in rugby that you cannot learn a new style.
C) reading a new book and having trouble remembering the story line from another book.
D) learning new plays in basketball and forgetting the old ones.

Question 45

Remembering things that are related to something you saw or heard, even though you did not actually see or hear those particular things, is known as the:

A) Moses illusion.
B) recency effect.
C) labeling effect.
D) association illusion.

Question 46

The spacing effect is the tendency to:

A) deliberately use a specific technique or strategy to enhance memory.
B) have better long-term memory for information when your study attempts are not crammed.
C) engage in massed practice of information in order to store it quickly.
D) remain in one physical space while studying to produce better long-term memories.

Question 47

Which statement would be the MOST likely to be made by a person suffering from retrograde amnesia?

A) Last week, I heard a story, but I can't remember who told it.
B) I can't remember anything from before the accident.
C) Ever since the accident, I can't seem to create new memories.
D) I can't remember where I was when I had my first kiss.

Question 48

Although Demonte has performed really well in his chemistry class thus far, he's nervous about his upcoming cumulative final exam because he's not sure how much he remembers from the beginning of the semester. While studying for this exam, though, Demonte finds that it is taking him much less time to understand the material than it did the first time around. Which memory process is Demonte experiencing?

A) long-term potentiation
B) relearning
C) serial position effect
D) retroactive interference

Question 49

_____ is the inability to remember how you obtained a particular memory, but not the memory itself.

A) Source amnesia
B) Retroactive interference
C) Anterograde amnesia
D) Situation-specific amnesia

Question 50

Aaron decides to use research findings on spacing effects to his advantage. The next time he studies for a test, it is likely that he will:

A) continue to cram in one major session.
B) engage in distributed practice over time.
C) try to find a large room to study in.
D) engage in massed practice of information.

Question 51

Which statement about research on PET scans and levels of processing is NOT true?

A) Deep processing leads to greater memory compared to shallow processing.
B) Shallow processing and deep processing appear to be distinct functions.
C) Different levels of processing take place in the same areas of the brain.
D) The prefrontal cortex is used more during deep processing than in shallow processing.

Question 52

Which statement would psychologists agree is the BEST definition of memory?

A) Memory involves grouping pieces of information together in a meaningful way.
B) Memory is the process of deliberately repeating information to store it in our brains.
C) Memory is achieved through effortful and deep processing of information that we encounter.
D) Memory is the process of taking in information, saving it over time, and calling it to mind later.

Question 53

Which statement is TRUE about memory decay?

A) It occurs when newer information causes problems remembering older information.
B) It happens most often trying to remember recently learned information.
C) Using information in long-term memory lessens chances of decay.
D) Once memory enters your long-term memory, it is immune to decay.

Question 54

Which statement is FALSE about mnemonics?

A) They can rely on letters and words, rhythm and rhyme, and visual imagery.
B) They are specific techniques or strategies deliberately used to enhance memory.
C) They are mental tricks commonly used by successful memory championship competitors.
D) They are excellent for short-term memories but ineffective for storing long-term memories.

Question 55

A type of retrieval in which stored information is compared to external information to determine if it matches is called _____.

A) recognition
B) priming
C) recall
D) relearning

Question 56

When presented with a series of items, the tendency to remember the first and last items better than the items in the middle is called:

A) the recency effect.
B) the primacy effect.
C) the serial position effect.
D) retroactive interference.

Question 57

A person with PTSD often experiences involuntary memories and relives them in the form of:

A) depression.
B) flashbacks.
C) decay.
D) amnesia.

Question 58

Amnesia is BEST defined as:

A) the tendency of misleading information presented after the fact to become incorporated into memory.
B) problems remembering older information caused by storing of newer information.
C) the inability to remember some or all information, either temporarily or permanently.
D) the tendency to remember the first items in a series particularly well.

Question 59

Which example MOST reflects a rich false memory?

A) Jill forgets to buy an item at the grocery store even though it is clearly on her grocery list, so she goes back to the store but still buys the wrong item.
B) Rich tries really hard to remember the name of his first-grade teacher but ends up recalling the name of his third-grade teacher instead.
C) Susie remembers elaborate details about having been abused throughout childhood even though this abuse is highly unlikely to have occurred based on the available evidence.
D) Peter goes to the store for a friend who tells him he needs chocolate, flour, oil, sprinkles, and honey; Peter doesn't make a list and also buys sugar, even though it wasn't needed.

Question 60

Which statement is TRUE about flashbulb memories?

A) They involve heightened emotional reactions and fade shortly after the emotions subside.
B) They are produced as a result of negative, perhaps tragic events, but not positive ones.
C) They are often shared by many people who experienced or witnessed the same event.
D) They are longer lasting when experienced as personal events rather than with others.

Question 61

_____ is the process of taking in information, saving it over time, and calling it to mind later.

A) Encoding
B) Memory
C) Rehearsal
D) Retrieval

Question 62

Acronyms are mnemonic devices that rely on associating information with _____, whereas _____ is a mnemonic that relies on associating information with visual imagery.

A) a catchy song; the peg word method
B) letters and words; the method of loci
C) rhythm and rhyme; the peg word method
D) a series already committed to memory; iconic memory

Question 63

As part of a memory test, Elliot is given a list of words in the following order to remember: rosemary, lavender, flower, thyme, parsley, tomatoes, oregano, dill, basil, vegetables, sage, peppers, nasturtium, mint. If Elliot demonstrates the recency effect, which words would he MOST likely easily recall?

A) rosemary, lavender, flower
B) rosemary, nasturtium, mint
C) peppers, nasturtium, mint
D) oregano, dill, basil

Question 64

Which question is LEAST likely to be asked by someone who is engaging in deep processing of written text?

A) How does it affect my life?
B) How many words does it contain?
C) What are its most important points?
D) How does it relate to information I already know?

Question 65

Which statement is FALSE about episodic memory?

A) It is a type of implicit memory.
B) It consists of your personal firsthand experiences.
C) It is a type of declarative memory.
D) It is your recollection of what happens to you.

Question 66

Which statement is FALSE about encoding specificity?

A) It explains how if you're in the same place where you learned certain information, you have a better chance of recalling it.
B) It is the effect of contextual information present when memory was encoded on retrieval.
C) It applies only to physical locations and cues present in that place.
D) It is also known as context-dependent memory.

Question 67

Oftentimes, American adults can barely recall what they were doing at a certain time even just a week ago. However, they can clearly recall details of the moment when they first heard about 9/11, which happened almost two decades ago. Which statement BEST explains this phenomenon?

A) 9/11 can be considered a society-wide flashbulb memory.
B) People tend to mentally rehearse tragic events like 9/11.
C) Individuals are primed to think of 9/11 on a regular basis.
D) Information related to tragic events is stored as implicit memory.

Question 68

Short-term memory features ____ duration and _____ capacity.

A) limited; limited
B) unlimited; limited
C) limited; unlimited
D) unlimited; unlimited

Question 69

As Janna is studying for a test, she carefully reviews the textbook and her notes from class, and does so several times. At the time of the test, however, she is unable to pull the information out from her memory, which indicates a problem with which step of the memory process?

A) storage
B) retrieval
C) encoding
D) rehearsal

Question 70

Which statement is FALSE about long-term depression as it relates to the biological basis of memory?

A) It may be the basis of forgetting.
B) It can be functional when applied to unimportant information.
C) It occurs mostly when people experience long periods of sadness.
D) It is the opposite of long-term potentiation.

Question 71

Which occurrence is an example of recall?

A) having trouble remembering someone's name at a meeting, but being able to pick it out from a list on the agenda
B) going to a restaurant and at first being unable to remember the name of your favorite dish, but then remembering after you see it on the menu
C) someone asking you the name of your kindergarten teacher, and then your being able to respond after briefly thinking about it
D) needing to make an appointment for your pet, but having to Google "local veterinarians" to retrieve the name of the vet's office

Question 72

Based on memory research, which individual would be MOST likely to provide the most accurate and reliable eyewitness testimony?

A) an observant schizophrenic
B) an honest, young child
C) a calm, rational person
D) an elderly adult

Question 73

A(n) _____ is a specific technique or strategy deliberately used to enhanced memory.

A) mnemonic
B) iconic memory
C) labeling effect
D) flashbulb memory

Question 74

You get up from your study room to get something from the kitchen. Once you get to the kitchen, you can't seem to remember what you were going to get. Frustrated, you give up and head back to study. As soon as you enter your study room, you suddenly remember what you were going to get from the kitchen! Which concept BEST explains what you just experienced?

A) retroactive interference
B) context-dependent learning
C) rich false memory
D) involuntary memory

Question 75

A person engaging in maintenance rehearsal to remember a phone number would:

A) repeat the number over and over again either out loud or quietly.
B) immediately write the number down so as to not forget it.
C) think about the significance of each digit in the phone number.
D) create a jingle or song out of the numbers to make it memorable.

Question 76

According to Ebbinghaus's "forgetting curve," the steepest decline in memory retention occurs within:

A) 1 hour.
B) 1 day.
C) 1 week.
D) 1 month.

Question 77

Multitasking ability has been found to be heavily dependent upon:

A) working memory capacity.
B) intelligence.
C) automatic processing.
D) encoding specificity.

Question 78

As you and your mom are thinking about checking out a new release at the theater, she asks, "Out of curiosity, how many times have you gone to the movies over the past 5 years?" You probably hadn't counted and kept track of the exact number of times but reply that you go maybe a handful of times a year. Your ability to provide at least an approximation is MOSTLY due to your _____ of the frequency of events.

A) automatic encoding
B) priming
C) effortful processing
D) elaborative rehearsal

Question 79

Even though she was wearing a helmet, Trista was in an accident while mountain biking and experienced a serious head injury that wiped out her entire memory. Trista is MOST likely suffering from _____ amnesia.

A) proactive
B) global
C) dissociative
D) situation-specific

Question 80

Which occurrence is NOT an example of recall?

A) having trouble remembering someone's name after an event, but being able to pick it out from the guest list
B) when asked, being able to tell someone the name of the burger joint you used to frequent while living in another city several years ago
C) struggling a bit to remember your home address from childhood, but being able to produce it after a few moments of thinking
D) telling someone your business phone number without having to look it up