Deck 6: Section 1: Memory

Question 1

Describe the different types of long-term memory, and give an example of each.

Answer 1

The answer should include the following information: Cognitive psychologists suggest that there are three major categories of information stored in long-term memory. Procedural memory refers to the long-term memory of performing different skills, operations, and actions. Examples of this type of memory involve tying our shoes, playing the piano, and making French toast. Procedural memories are formed early in life as we learn to walk, talk, and interact with the world. Often, we do not have explicit memories of when, where, or how we learned this procedural information. Further, it is often easier to demonstrate procedural memories than it is to describe them in words. The second category of long-term memory is called episodic memory. This type of memory refers to our recall of specific events or episodes in our lives that includes the time and place that they occurred. Memories of weddings, memorable sporting events, and special moments with family are examples of this type of memory. Finally, the third category of long-term memory is called semantic memory. This construct refers to our general knowledge of the world around us that includes facts, names, definitions, concepts, and ideas. Semantic memory represents our personal database of accumulated information stored in long-term memory. Like procedural memories, these types of memories are often stored without contextual information. For example, you may be able to name the presidents of the United States or all the state capitals, but you probably do not remember where or when you originally acquired that information.

Question 2

How does neurological research explain some instances of déjà vu?

Answer 2

The answer should include the following information: Some researchers believe that déjà vu may suggest brain dysfunction. Specifically, it has long been established that déjà vu experiences can be triggered by temporal lobe dysfunctions. For many people with epilepsy, the seizures often originate in the temporal lobe. In these people, a déjà vu experience sometimes occurs just prior to a seizure. For most people, however, these experiences probably involve common memory processes of source amnesia and inattentional blindness.

Question 3

Identify and describe the functions of each component in psychologist Alan Baddeley's model of working memory, and give an everyday example that demonstrates the relationships among working memory components.

Answer 3

The answer should include the following information: Alan Baddeley developed perhaps the most well-known model of working memory. In his model, there are three main components of memory that function independently. The first component he called the phonological loop; it is specialized for verbal material, such as lists of numbers or words. This is the aspect of working memory that is often tested by standard memory tasks. The second component, he called the visuospatial sketchpad; this component of memory is specialized for spatial or visual material, such as remembering how to navigate around a city or perhaps the layout of a room. The final component of Baddeley's model is the central executive; this component of memory controls attention, integrates information, and manages the activities of the other two components-the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad. The central executive also initiates retrieval and decision processes as necessary and integrates information coming into the system.

Question 4

How does the semantic network model describe the organization of information in long-term memory?

Question 5

Using what you have learned about memory, explain why multiple-choice, matching, and fill-in-the-blank questions are easier to answer than essay questions.

Question 6

Identify and describe at least two factors that seem to influence forgetting.

Question 7

What is a flashbulb memory, and in what ways is it similar to and/or different from an ordinary memory?

Question 8

How do explicit and implicit memory differ? Give an example of each.

Question 9

Define memory, and summarize its three fundamental processes.

Question 10

According to the Culture and Human Behavior: Culture's Effects on Early Memories box in your text, what cultural factors likely contribute to differences in autobiographical memory?

Question 11

Describe two forms of the encoding specificity principle, and give an example of each.

Question 12

Describe the duration and capacity of short-term memory.

Question 13

Explain how source amnesia, inattentional blindness, and encoding failure account for déjà vu experiences.

Question 14

What did George Sperling's classic experiment reveal about our visual memory system?

Question 15

Compare and contrast maintenance rehearsal and elaborative rehearsal.

Question 16

What do tip-of-the-tongue experiences demonstrate about retrieval cues?

Question 17

Explain how encoding failure is implicated in everyday memory failures due to absentmindedness.

Question 18

Explain how interference theory contributes to the notion of forgetting, and discuss two types of interference that may affect memory.

Question 19

Describe Hermann Ebbinghaus's research and what it demonstrated.

Question 20

Briefly describe the stage model of memory, and explain how the memory stages interact.

Question 21

Describe the progression and symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, including changes in the brain.

Question 22

Compare and contrast the characteristics of suppression and repression, giving an example of each.

Question 23

Summarize what has been learned about memory from the famous case of H.M.

Question 24

How did psychologist Karl Lashley search for the engram, and why did his research fail to locate it?

Question 25

Define imagination inflation, and describe how it has been created experimentally.

Question 26

Describe at least four strategies that can be used to enhance memory.

Question 27

Devon, age 12, watched his grandfather fall from the roof of his house. Two days later, Devon's grandfather died from his injuries. Melody, Devon's mother, has been told that traumatic memories are usually repressed and, therefore, Devon won't be able to recall this horrific event. According to the Critical Thinking box: "The Memory Wars: Recovered or False Memories" in your text, why is Melody's assumption incorrect?

Question 28

Describe schemas and scripts, and explain how they can potentially contribute to inaccurate memories.

Question 29

Your textbook lists seven factors that can contribute to the development of false memories. Pick four factors and explain them, giving an example of each.

Question 30

Describe the conditions that lead to long-term potentiation, and describe what happens within the neural circuit that is strengthened.

Question 31

According to the Focus on Neuroscience box: "Assembling Memories: Echoes and Reflections of Perception," what did fMRI research reveal about memory of common objects?

Question 32

Describe Richard F. Thompson's work on the classically conditioned eye blink response.

Question 33

Javier participates in mixed martial arts competitions. Two weeks ago, Javier sustained a concussion following a direct kick to his head and neck. Javier's family and girlfriend are concerned, as Javier has no memory of the events leading up to the injury and is even having some difficulty remembering events that occurred several months before the injury. Two days ago marked the date of Javier and his girlfriend's two-year anniversary of meeting. However, he was unable to recall where they met or how they spent their first date. Based on this information, explain what type of memory disruption Javier is demonstrating.

Question 34

Provide a detailed description of a research study by Elizabeth Loftus that demonstrates the misinformation effect, including the results and implications of the study.

Question 35

What is memory consolidation, and how can it be disrupted in humans?

Question 36

Identify the role played by at least three brain structures involved in memory.