PSY 3044 - LECTURES

I. INITIAL STUDIES

A. Ebbinghaus' use of nonsense syllables served in the study of serial learning

B. Müller relied on the paired-associate method for studying learning and memory

C. Free recall is a more recent technique for studying memory

D. The curve of forgetting

1. Memory is best shortly after learning, decays steadily from there

E. Recognition and relearning

1. Recognition involves identifying previously-learned items within a larger set

2. Relearning refers to the number of trials to master material a second time

a. Savings score: Difference between original and subsequent learning

II. TRADITIONAL MODELS of MEMORY

A. Human memory as an information processing system

1. Encoding

a. Information coded for storage and later retrieval

2. Storage

a. Keeping information in memory

3. Retrieval

a. Stored memories are brought back to consciousness

B. The Atkinson-Shiffrin model

1. Sensory memory

a. Information stored briefly at the level of the senses

2. Short-term memory

a. Information held for 10 to 20 seconds

b. 7±2 capacity helps define short-term memory storage

c. Working memory: Attention applied to short-term memory material

3. Long-term memory: Large capacity, relatively permanent storage

a. Rehearsal contributes to long-term memory storage

i. Maintenance rehearsal

- Storage for a specified time period

ii. Elaborative rehearsal

- Meaning added to the material

b. Interference contributes to long-term memory loss

i. Proactive interference

- Old material hinders recall of new

ii. Retroactive interference

- New material hinders recall of old

III. OTHER APPROACHES to LEARNING and MEMORY

A. The Levels-of-Processing Model (Craik and Lockhart)

1. Deeper processing of information increases the likelihood of retrieval

a. Processing ranges from shallow to deep

b. More effort may inspire deeper processing, in turn, better recall

B. Alternate approaches

1. Transfer-appropriate processing

a. Matching level of processing at encoding and retrieval

2. Parallel distributed processing

a. Simultaneous processing by interconnected subsystems

C. Different types of long-term memory

1. Procedural memory

a. Memory for responses and actions

2. Semantic memory

a. Memory for general knowledge

b. Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon used to study semantic memory

3. Episodic memory

a. Memory for personal experiences

b. Flashbulb memories are detailed "snapshots" of specific experiences

4. Priming or implicit memory

a. Nonconscious form of memory

b. Amnesiacs give some early evidence of this phenomenon

D. Retrieval

1. Retrieval from short-term memory

a. Sternberg's studies illustrate an exhaustive STM search

2. Retrieval from long-term memory

a. Semantic networks describe how concepts are linked in LTM

b. Schemas describe clusters of knowledge about a particular topic

3. Encoding specificity

a. Similarity of cues at encoding and retrieval aids memory retrieval

b. Eyewitness testimony

i. Cues present during an incident should help retrieval

- Loftus' car crash studies

c. State-dependent learning

i. Physiological state acts as an encoding/retrieval cue

E. The repressed-memory controversy

1. Fragility of memory can make it susceptible to reconstruction

F. Memory illusions

1. Supposed memory for events that never happened

IV. TECHNIQUES for IMPROVING MEMORY

A. Influential factors

1. Positive and negative transfer

2. Distribution and number of study sessions

3. Meaningfulness of material

4. Similarity of items

5. Serial position effect

B. Processing strategies

1. Imagery

a. Method of loci: Locations used as cues

b. Pegword technique: Material associated with familiar cues

2. Grouping: Chunking information for improved memory

3. Coding: Translating material to a more meaningful form

V. The PHYSIOLOGICAL BASIS of LEARNING and MEMORY

A. Amnesias

1. Anterograde amnesia and the hippocampus

a. Inability to store new memories following a traumatic event

i. The case of H.M. illustrates the role of the hippocampus

2. Retrograde amnesia and the consolidation hypothesis

a. Loss of memories that were stored prior to a traumatic event

b. If information in LTM is not consolidated or "set" it will be lost

i. Electroshock evidence lends some support