1 Forgetting, Memory Construction, and Improving Memory Module 22

2

QR code for SG 3

4

5 Memory Overview Forgetting  Encoding Failure  Storage Decay  Retrieval Failure

6 Forgetting An inability to retrieve information due to poor encoding, storage, or retrieval. Encoding Failure We cannot remember what we do not encode.

7

8

9 Storage Decay Poor durability of stored memories leads to their decay. Ebbinghaus showed this with his forgetting curve.

10 Retaining Spanish…maybe not… Bahrick (1984) showed a similar pattern of forgetting and retaining over 50 years.

11 Retrieval Failure Although the information is retained in the memory store, it cannot be accessed. Tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) is a retrieval failure phenomenon. Given a cue (What makes blood cells red?) the subject says the word begins with an H (hemoglobin).

12 Forgetting as Interference  Learning some items may disrupt retrieval of other information  Proactive (forward acting) Interference  disruptive effect of prior learning on recall of new information  Retroactive (backwards acting) Interference  disruptive effect of new learning on recall of old information

13 Retroactive Interference Sleep prevents retroactive interference. Therefore, it leads to better recall.

14 Why do we forget? Forgetting can occur at any memory stage. LinkLink of Mice and memory nova 12:16

15 Motivated Forgetting Motivated Forgetting: People unknowingly revise their memories. Repression: A defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness. Sigmund Freud Culver Pictures

16 Motivated Forgetting So, if you are ever depressed over earning a bad grade, cheer up. Chances are, if you just wait long enough, it'll improve. …their accuracy of recall declined steadily from 89 percent for A’s to 64 percent for B's, 51 percent for C's, and 29 percent for D's.

17 Memory Construction While tapping our memories, we filter or fill in missing pieces of information to make our recall more coherent. Misinformation Effect: Incorporating misleading information into one's memory of an event.

18 LinkLink Scott Fraser 20:51 Impact of Leading Questions on Eyewitness Testimony

19 Memory Construction A week later they were asked: Was there any broken glass? Group B (smashed into) reported more broken glass than Group A (hit).

Vividness makes information more available in memory. On his way out the door, Sanders staggered against a serving table, knocking a bowl to the floor. On his way out the door, Sanders staggered against a serving table, knocking a bowl of guacamole dip to the floor and splattering guacamole on the white shag carpet. 20

21 Source Amnesia Source Amnesia: Attributing an event to the wrong source that we experienced, heard, read, or imagined (misattribution).

22

23 Children’s eyewitness recall can be unreliable if leading questions are posed. However, if cognitive interviews are neutrally worded, the accuracy of their recall increases. In cases of sexual abuse, this usually suggests a lower percentage of abuse. Children’s Eyewitness Recall

24 Memory Construction  Memories of Abuse  Repressed or Constructed?  Child sexual abuse does occur  Some adults do actually forget such episodes  False Memory Syndrome  condition in which a person’s identity and relationships center around a false but strongly believed memory of traumatic experience  sometimes induced by well-meaning therapists

25 Constructed Memories Loftus’ research shows that if false memories (lost at the mall or drowned in a lake) are implanted in individuals, they construct (fabricate) their memories. Don Shrubshell

26

27

28

29 How to Improve Memory 1.Study repeatedly to boost long-term recall. 2.Spend more time rehearsing or actively thinking about the material. 3.Make material personally meaningful. 4.Use mnemonic devices:  associate with peg words — something already stored  make up a story  chunk — acronyms

30

31 Improving Memory 5.Activate retrieval cues — mentally recreate the situation and mood. 6.Recall events while they are fresh — before you encounter misinformation. 7.Minimize interference: 1.Test your own knowledge. 2.Rehearse and then determine what you do not yet know.

End 32

33 Loftus on Memory Loftus at Fora TV

34 Chris Hakala Western New England College The Annual Meeting of the Utah Teachers of Psychology in the Secondary Schools November 5, 2010

35 Concept: Encoding specificity

36 Method for Activity 2 Have students listen to the statements Have students recall the target word(s) at the end of each phrase. Then present first word of each phrase, in a different order, and have students recall word Helps students understand encoding specificity concepts

37 Activity 2 A brick can be used as a doorstop. A ladder can be used as a bookshelf. A wine bottle can be used as a candleholder. A pan can be used as a drum. A record can be used to serve potato chips. A guitar can be used as a canoe paddle. A leaf can be used as a bookmark. An orange can be used to play catch. A newspaper can be used to swat flies. A TV antenna can be used as a clothes rack. A sheet can be used as a sail. A boat can be used as a shelter. A bathtub can be used as a punch bowl. A flashlight can be used to hold water. A rock can be used as a paperweight. A knife can be used to stir paint. A pen can be used as an arrow. A barrel can be used as a chair. A rug can be used as a bedspread. A telephone can be used as an alarm clock. A scissors can be used to cut grass. A board can be used as a ruler. A balloon can be used as a pillow. A shoe can be used to pound nails. A dime can be used as a screwdriver. A lampshade can be used as a hat.

38 Activity 2 balloon lampshade boat barrel TV antenna guitar rug pen newspaper knife sheet ladder bathtub flashlight rock shoe orange pan leaf telephone scissors board wine bottle shoe dime record