3/20/2014. Seven Sins of Memory. Seven Sins of Memory. Seven Sins of Memory

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1 Seven Sins of Memory Memory Retrieval 2 Seven Sins of Memory Dan Schacter (Harvard) Compared seven common memory errors to deadly sins If you avoid these you are rewarded with good memory But, sinning is not all bad and serves a purpose How good is everyday memory? Shepard (1967) Shepard (1983) Patterson and Baddeley (1977) Seven Sins of Memory The sins Transience Absent Mindedness Misattribution Suggestibility Bias Persistence Each sin tells us something about how memory works 1

Transience Deterioration of memory Hermann von Ebbinghaus (1885) Studied meaningless,

Lapses of attention resulting in poor encoding Change blindness Inattentional blindness

... When trying to retrieve memory, something blocks access Examples Proactive

2 Transience Deterioration of memory Hermann von Ebbinghaus (1885) Studied meaningless, nonsense syllables (wuj) Tried to recall syllables Forgetting curve Absent Mindedness Lapses of attention resulting in poor encoding Change blindness Inattentional blindness Simons & Chabris (1999) Hyman, et al. (2010), Did You See the Unicycling Clown?... When trying to retrieve memory, something blocks access Examples Proactive interference Retroactive interference Release from PI shows we can unblock Tip of the Tongue phenomenon von Restorff effect 2

3 Tulving and Pearlstone (1966) Related to von Restorff effect As number of memorized items per category increases, memory for individual items decreases Subjects studied lists of 12, 24, or 48 words For each length the number of items/category was 1, 2 or 4 Free recall vs. category cued recall Tulving and Pearlstone (1966) Results Number of items/category influenced cue effectiveness More distinct a cue = better memory Mean # Words Recalled Cued Recall Free Recall Items 24 Items 48 Items List Length and Number of Items Per Category Retrieval induced forgetting Anderson, Bjork & Bjork (1994) Intervening test of some items inhibits memory for other items Three phases to the experiment Study Phase Practice Phase Test Phase Condition Drink Unpracticed-unrelateditem (NRp) Vodka --- Drink Unpracticed-unrelated item (NRp) Rum --- Drink Unpracticed-unrelated item (NRp) Gin --- Drink Unpracticed-unrelated item (NRp) Bourbon --- Drink Unpracticed-unrelated item (NRp) Ale --- Drink Unpracticed-unrelated item (NRp) Whiskey --- Drink Unpracticed-unrelated item (NRp) Fruit Tomato --- Fruit Unpracticed-related item (Rp-) Strawberry --- Fruit Unpracticed-related item (Rp-) Banana --- Fruit Unpracticed-related item (Rp-) Orange Fruit Or Fruit Practiced Item (Rp+) Lemon Fruit Le Fruit Practiced Item (Rp+) Pineapple Fruit Pi Fruit Practiced Item (Rp+) 3

Anderson, Bjork & Bjork (1994) Memory better for NRp items than Rp- items Suppression or inhibition of unpracticed category items 100 % Correct Recall 80 60 40 20 orange FRUIT banana vodka DRINK

4 Anderson, Bjork & Bjork (1994) Memory better for NRp items than Rp- items Suppression or inhibition of unpracticed category items 100 % Correct Recall orange FRUIT banana vodka DRINK whiskey 0 Rp+ Rp- NRp Rp+ 81% Rp- 40.3% NRp 56% NRp 56% Misattribution Assigning memory to the wrong source Bystander effect Attributing the actions of one person to another Not the same bystander effect as in social psychology Memory conjunction errors Combining/blending information from two sources Study: spaniel varnish Retrieve: Spanish Misattribution Payne, Jacoby and Lambert (2004) Examined influence of stereotypical black names versus white names on memory for occupations Memories of events are not isolated and independent 4

5 Suggestibility Tendency to incorporate information (often misleading) into our recollections Leading questions by attorneys Coercive questioning by police That was a nice blue shirt Bob was wearing. Loftus and Palmer (1974) Misinformation Effect Video of car accident About how fast were the cars going when they each other? hit, smashed, collided, bumped, or contacted Suggestibility Loftus and Palmer (1974) Results Speed estimates were influenced by the verbs severity Mean Speed Estimate (mph) Contacted Hit Bumped Collided Smashed Verb Used in Question Suggestibility Loftus and Palmer (1974) Results Question wording also causes us to think something was present Was there any broken glass in the accident? Saw Broken Glass? Verb Used in Sentence Smashed Hit Yes n = 16 n = 7 No n = 34 n 43 5

Bias Feelings, beliefs, and worldview distort memory for events Hindsight bias (hindsight is always 20/20) Feel like we knew something all along Bryant and Brockway (1997) Examined hindsight bias of

!!! Persistence Remembering things we wish we could forget White bear phenomenon Associated with post-traumatic stress disorder False Memory Encoding items related to a critical item/event can lead

6 Bias Feelings, beliefs, and worldview distort memory for events Hindsight bias (hindsight is always 20/20) Feel like we knew something all along Bryant and Brockway (1997) Examined hindsight bias of the OJ Simpson verdict Asked about likelihood of guilt 2-hours before and 2-days after Ronald Regan as the deficit and unemployment fighter PLEASE don t get me started on this I BEG YOU!!!! Persistence Remembering things we wish we could forget White bear phenomenon Associated with post-traumatic stress disorder False Memory Encoding items related to a critical item/event can lead one to falsely remember seeing that item/event Deese, Roedigger & McDermott (DRM) False Memory Effect Study a list of words related to a critical lure Recall or recognize the list items Studied item Critical lure Non-studied associate Studied Item Non-Studied Associate Critical Lure 65% 14% 41% 6

7 False Memory Activation/source-monitoring account Associates activate the lure during encoding During retrieval, subjects have difficulty determining the source of activation of the critical lure snooze pillow night SLEEP rest dream wake 7

3/31/2017. Seven Sins of Memory. Seven Sins of Memory. Seven Sins of Memory

3/31/2017. Seven Sins of Memory. Seven Sins of Memory. Seven Sins of Memory Seven Sins of Memory Memory Retrieval 2 Seven Sins of Memory Dan Schacter (Harvard) Compared seven common memory errors to deadly sins If you avoid these, you are rewarded with good memory! But, sinning