Memory Book Unit 5 AP Psychology Memory and Cognition Malia Tucker
Table of Contents
a. b. c. d.
a. b. c. d.
1) Encoding
Automatic Vs. Effortful Processing Shallow Vs. Deep Processing Spacing Effect Effortful Processing Strategies
2) Storage
Explicit Memory Implicit Memory Amygdala Synaptic Changes and Memory Processing
3) Retrieval
a. How do we measure retention? b. Retrieval Cues
Section 1: Encoding
(Get Info into the Brain) Automatic VS. Effortful Automatic Processing: encoding done without any conscious awareness or effort contains implicit memory (info remembered unconsciously and effortlessly) like time, space, frequency, and the meaning of words - Example: motor skills that I have learned like typing on the computer or blinking or breathing Effortful Processing: contains explicit memory (info remembered with conscious work) and is encoding that requires attention and purposeful, conscious effort. - Example: learning a new subject in AP Psychology and putting extra effort into processing the material so I am able to encode and remember it
Section 1: Encoding Shallow VS. Deep Shallow Processing: Encoding on a basic level based on the structure of appearance - Example: reading my AP Lang book but not annotating or trying to engage the text and just skimming through it Deep Processing: Occurs when we attach meaning to information and create associations between the new memory and existing memories (Semantic encoding) - Example: reading my AP Lang book and annotating to understand and create connections the text and what I think as the reader
Section 1: Encoding Spacing Effect : spacing the study of material by including breaks between study periods - Example: spacing out my studying for the AP Psych midterm over winter break instead of cramming the night before will help me remember and relearn the material Effortful Processing Strategies : chunking, Disturbed Practice, Visualize Concepts, Mnemonics (like Acronyms, Peg Word System), Method of Loci, and more. - Example: chunking phone numbers as a kid helped me remember my mom’s number and my house number. - Example: PEMDAS has stuck with me through out the years in math classes (please excuse my dear aunt sally)
Section 2: Storage (Retain the Info) Explicit Memory System : Information that you have to consciously work to remember, processed in the hippocampus and frontal lobe. - Example: Driving a new route through a new area and trying to remember the directions I was given by my Google Maps Implicit Memory System : Information that you remember unconsciously and effortlessly. The cerebellum forms and stores the implicit memories and the basal ganglia facilitates the formation of our implicit, procedural memories for skills - Example: walking a familiar path in my house, like moving room to room and not having to think about how I’m walking or where I’m going
Section 2: Storage Amygdala : Our emotions trigger stress hormones that influence memory formation. hormones provoke the amygdala to boost memory-forming areas. So, the amygdala is involved in creating emotion-based memories. - Example: a flashbulb memory is a memory of an emotionally significant event. Tower of Terror in Disneyland at age 8 and then the Rockin’ Roller Coaster in DisneyWorld at age 11 - I very deathly scared of the intensity of those roller coasters. Synaptic Changes and Memory Processing : Synapses have the ability to change and remodel themselves to encode and process new memory and information. - Long-term potentiation says that over time, repetition of the same skill or information will result in strengthened synapse and remembrance of that skill or info: learning over and over again how to write and spell
Section 3: Retrieval (Get Info Back Out)
How do we measure retention? Recall: Being able to access the information without being cued - Example: filling in blank answers on a test without a word bank - knowing when my birthday is Recognition: Identifying information after experiencing it again - Example: being able to choose an answer out of a multiple choice question - being able to choose my sibling’s birthday when given some options Relearning: The process by which we learn something for the second time - Example: studying for cumulative final at the end of the year - relearning the parts of the brain and psychologists that I learned at the beginning of the year for the midterm and eventually the AP exam
Section 3: Retrieval Retrieval Cues : Reminders associated with info we are trying to retrieve - Priming: activating specific associations in memory ● Example: someone saw a guy eat a red apple for lunch and later in the day the person is asked for an example a red object and replies with “apple” - Context Dependent Memory: Recall of information while in the same “context” of environment in which it was acquired ● Example: I remember Spanish vocabulary that I studied in my room better when I’m in my room - State Dependent Memory: Memories that are triggered or enhanced by a person's current mood ● Example: Remembering my AP Lang material better when I’m calm because that is how I felt when I learned and studied for it - Serial Position Effect: ability to recall the last words and first words best, forgetting the words in the middle ● Example: Remembering first and last sentences of my monologues but the middle is harder to memorize