8.E: Memory (Exercises)

8.1: How Memory Functions

Memory is an information processing system; therefore, we often compare it to a computer. Memory is the set of processes used to encode, store, and retrieve information over different periods of time.

Review Questions

Q1

________ is another name for short-term memory.

1. sensory memory
2. episodic memory
3. working memory
4. implicit memory

Q2

The storage capacity of long-term memory is ________.

1. one or two bits of information
2. seven bits, plus or minus two
3. limited
4. essentially limitless

Q3

The three functions of memory are ________.

1. automatic processing, effortful processing, and storage
2. encoding, processing, and storage
3. automatic processing, effortful processing, and retrieval
4. encoding, storage, and retrieval

Critical Thinking Questions

Q4

Compare and contrast implicit and explicit memory.

Q5

According to the Atkinson-Shiffrin model, name and describe the three stages of memory.

Q6

Compare and contrast the two ways in which we encode information.

Personal Application Questions

Q7

Describe something you have learned that is now in your procedural memory. Discuss how you learned this information.

Q8

Describe something you learned in high school that is now in your semantic memory.

Solution

S1

C

S2

D

S3

D

S4

Both are types of long-term memory. Explicit memories are memories we consciously try to remember and recall. Explicit memory is also called declarative memory and is subdivided into episodic memory (life events) and semantic memory (words, ideas, and concepts). Implicit memories are memories that are not part of our consciousness; they are memories formed from behaviors. Implicit memory is also called non-declarative memory and includes procedural memory as well as things learned through classical conditioning.

S5

According to the Atkinson-Shiffrin model, memory is processed in three stages. The first is sensory memory; this is very brief: 1–2 seconds. Anything not attended to is ignored. The stimuli we pay attention to then move into our short-term memory. Short-term memory can hold approximately 7 bits of information for around 20 seconds. Information here is either forgotten, or it is encoded into long-term memory through the process of rehearsal. Long-term memory is the permanent storage of information—its capacity is basically unlimited.

S6

Information is encoded through automatic or effortful processing. Automatic processing refers to all information that enters long-term memory without conscious effort. This includes things such as time, space, and frequency—for example, your ability to remember what you ate for breakfast today or the fact that you remember that you ran into your best friend in the supermarket twice this week. Effortful processing refers to encoding information through conscious attention and effort. Material that you study for a test requires effortful processing.

8.2: Parts of the Brain Involved with Memory

Many scientists believe that the entire brain is involved with memory. However, since Lashley’s research, other scientists have been able to look more closely at the brain and memory. They have argued that memory is located in specific parts of the brain, and specific neurons can be recognized for their involvement in forming memories. The main parts of the brain involved with memory are the amygdala, the hippocampus, the cerebellum, and the prefrontal cortex.

Review Questions

Q1

This physical trace of memory is known as the ________.

1. engram
2. Lashley effect
3. Deese-Roediger-McDermott Paradigm
4. flashbulb memory effect

Q2

An exceptionally clear recollection of an important event is a (an) ________.

1. engram
2. arousal theory
3. flashbulb memory
4. equipotentiality hypothesis

Critical Thinking Questions

Q3

What might happen to your memory system if you sustained damage to your hippocampus?

Personal Application Questions

Q4

Describe a flashbulb memory of a significant event in your life.

Solution

S1

A

S2

C

S3

Because your hippocampus seems to be more of a processing area for your explicit memories, injury to this area could leave you unable to process new declarative (explicit) memories; however, even with this loss, you would be able to create implicit memories (procedural memory, motor learning and classical conditioning).

8.3: Problems with Memory

You may pride yourself on your amazing ability to remember the birthdates and ages of all of your friends and family members, or you may be able recall vivid details of your \(5^{th}\) birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese’s. However, all of us have at times felt frustrated, and even embarrassed, when our memories have failed us. There are several reasons why this happens.

Review Questions

Q1

________ is when our recollections of the past are done in a self-enhancing manner.

1. stereotypical bias
2. egocentric bias
3. hindsight bias
4. enhancement bias

Q2

Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon is also known as ________.

1. persistence
2. misattribution
3. transience
4. blocking

Q3

The formulation of new memories is sometimes called ________, and the process of bringing up old memories is called ________.

1. construction; reconstruction
2. reconstruction; construction
3. production; reproduction
4. reproduction; production

Critical Thinking Questions

Q4

Compare and contrast the two types of interference.

Q5

Compare and contrast the two types of amnesia.

Personal Application Questions

Q6

Which of the seven memory errors presented by Schacter have you committed? Provide an example of each one.

Q7

Jurors place a lot of weight on eyewitness testimony. Imagine you are an attorney representing a defendant who is accused of robbing a convenience store. Several eyewitnesses have been called to testify against your client. What would you tell the jurors about the reliability of eyewitness testimony?

Solution

S1

B

S2

D

S3

A

S4

There are two types of interference: retroactive and proactive. Both are types of forgetting caused by a failure to retrieve information. With retroactive interference, new information hinders the ability to recall older information. With proactive interference, it’s the opposite: old information hinders the recall of newly learned information.

S5

There are two types of amnesia: retrograde and anterograde. Both involve the loss of long-term memory that occurs as the result of disease, physical trauma, or psychological trauma. With anterograde amnesia, you cannot remember new information; however, you can remember information and events that happened prior to your injury. Retrograde amnesia is the exact opposite: you experience loss of memory for events that occurred before the trauma.

8.4: Ways to Enhance Memory

Most of us suffer from memory failures of one kind or another, and most of us would like to improve our memories so that we don’t forget where we put the car keys or, more importantly, the material we need to know for an exam. In this section, we’ll look at some ways to help you remember better, and at some strategies for more effective studying.

Review Questions

Q1

When you are learning how to play the piano, the statement “Every good boy does fine” can help you remember the notes E, G, B, D, and F for the lines of the treble clef. This is an example of a (an) ________.

1. jingle
2. acronym
3. acrostic
4. acoustic

Q2

According to a study by Yogo and Fujihara (2008), if you want to improve your short-term memory, you should spend time writing about ________.

1. your best possible future self
2. a traumatic life experience
3. a trivial topic
4. your grocery list

Q3

The self-referencing effect refers to ________.

1. making the material you are trying to memorize personally meaningful to you
2. making a phrase of all the first letters of the words you are trying to memorize
3. making a word formed by the first letter of each of the words you are trying to memorize
4. saying words you want to remember out loud to yourself

Q4

Memory aids that help organize information for encoding are ________.

1. mnemonic devices
2. memory-enhancing strategies
3. elaborative rehearsal
4. effortful processing

Critical Thinking Questions

Q5

What is the self-reference effect, and how can it help you study more effectively?

Q6

You and your roommate spent all of last night studying for your psychology test. You think you know the material; however, you suggest that you study again the next morning an hour prior to the test. Your roommate asks you to explain why you think this is a good idea. What do you tell her?

Personal Application Questions

Q7

Create a mnemonic device to help you remember a term or concept from this chapter.

Q8

What is an effective study technique that you have used? How is it similar to/different from the strategies suggested in this chapter?

Solution

S1

C

S2

B

S3

A

S4

A

S5

The self-reference effect is the tendency an individual to have better memory for information that relates to oneself than information that is not personally relevant. You can use the self-reference effect to relate the material to something you have already learned for another class, or think how you can apply the concepts to your life. When you do this, you are building a web of retrieval cues that will help you access the material when you want to remember it.

S6

You remind her about Ebbinghaus’s forgetting curve: the information you learn drops off rapidly with time. Even if you think you know the material, you should study it again right before test time to increase the likelihood the information will remain in your memory. Overlearning can help prevent storage decay.

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