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Questions and Answers
What is cryptomnesia?
What is cryptomnesia?
How do schemas differ from scripts?
How do schemas differ from scripts?
What phenomenon does retroactive interference describe?
What phenomenon does retroactive interference describe?
What is the impact of misleading post-event information on memory?
What is the impact of misleading post-event information on memory?
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What defines a false memory?
What defines a false memory?
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Which approach categorizes items based on a specific set of definitions?
Which approach categorizes items based on a specific set of definitions?
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What role does a prototype play in categorization?
What role does a prototype play in categorization?
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Which of the following is NOT associated with false memories?
Which of the following is NOT associated with false memories?
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What is the primary function of categorization in our understanding of the world?
What is the primary function of categorization in our understanding of the world?
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Which approach involves comparing new items to a collection of specific examples stored in memory?
Which approach involves comparing new items to a collection of specific examples stored in memory?
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In the hierarchy of categorization, which of the following is considered the most specific level?
In the hierarchy of categorization, which of the following is considered the most specific level?
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Why are categories essential for communication?
Why are categories essential for communication?
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What does the basic level of categorization represent?
What does the basic level of categorization represent?
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How does categorization help in making predictions about new items?
How does categorization help in making predictions about new items?
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What is meant by the 'individual level' of categorization?
What is meant by the 'individual level' of categorization?
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Which statement best describes the relationship between categories and decision-making?
Which statement best describes the relationship between categories and decision-making?
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What is the primary function of prototypes in categorization?
What is the primary function of prototypes in categorization?
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How do experiences contribute to building exemplar libraries?
How do experiences contribute to building exemplar libraries?
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What role do semantic networks play in our understanding of concepts?
What role do semantic networks play in our understanding of concepts?
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What does the concept of cognitive economy primarily refer to?
What does the concept of cognitive economy primarily refer to?
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In the context of language processing, a lexical decision task is used to study what?
In the context of language processing, a lexical decision task is used to study what?
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What do nodes in a semantic network represent?
What do nodes in a semantic network represent?
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How does the process of fine-tuning category boundaries occur?
How does the process of fine-tuning category boundaries occur?
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What is the significance of category schemas in cognitive processing?
What is the significance of category schemas in cognitive processing?
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Study Notes
Everyday Memory (Chapter 8)
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Autobiographical memory is a memory system for personal events and experiences, influenced by personal beliefs and emotions. It allows remembering past experiences like first day of school.
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Transition points are significant life changes marking shifts in memories, dividing life stages. Examples include childhood to adolescence or adolescence to adulthood.
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Childhood to Adolescence: This transition is marked by high school, independence, and new social relationships.
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Adolescence to Adulthood: This transition often includes college graduation, career starts, and marriage.
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Early Adulthood to Midlife: marked by having children, experiencing career changes, facing health challenges.
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Reminiscence Bump: A phenomenon where people remember events from adolescence and young adulthood (15-25) better than other periods—although not as distant as childhood or old age.
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Self-image theory proposes that events during the adolescence and young adulthood are better remembered because the person is actively forming their self-identity, establishing their beliefs and aspirations. These memories are crucial to personal narrative.
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Cognitive theory suggests that memory processing is better during the adolescence and young adulthood—the brain has full capacity and improves during this period.
Cultural Life Script Theory
- Suggests that memories are shaped by expected cultural life events and milestones, like graduating high school, getting married, or having children. Memories are culturally influenced.
Role of emotion in memory
- Emotional events are more memorable than neutral events, due to the hormonal response.
- Emotions enhance memory encoding, storage, and retrieval.
Flashbulb memories
- Vivid, detailed memories of significant, emotionally charged events (e.g. 9/11).
- Often feel like "snapshots in time" but not always accurate.
- The emotional state during encoding can influence memory.
Mood-congruent memory
- Recall of information congruent with one's current mood.
- Current mood activates emotional networks associated with memories.
Constructive nature of memory
- Memories are actively constructed and reconstructed each time they are recalled—rather than simply passively recording past events.
Source monitoring
- Determining the origin of memories (real or imagined).
Cryptomnesia
- Unconscious plagiarism of someone else's work, believing it as original. Happens in creative fields (music, writing, art).
Schemas and scripts
- Mental frameworks for organizing and interpreting information about the world.
- Schemas represent concepts, events, and objects.
- Scripts represent typical sequences of events in given situations.
Retroactive interference
- New information interfering with recall of earlier learned information.
Misleading post-event information
- Information presented after an event can change or distort memory of that event—related to false memories.
Categorization
- Definitional approach: Grouping based on criteria—like a "bird" having wings and feathers.
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Prototype approach: Idealized "best example"—for "bird", size, feathers, wings etc.
- Comparisons are made vs. the prototype when trying to categorize.
- Exemplar approach: New items are compared to stored examples—more variations are considered
Make Sense of the world
- Categories summarize large volumes of information Category organization can allow predictions of actions and properties. Categories allow effective communication.
Hierarchy of categorization
- Categories organized in a nested structure, with broader categories encompassing narrower ones (example: super-ordinate, basic and subordinate).
- Super-ordinate: "furniture"
- Basic level: "chair"
- Subordinate level: "armchair"
Role of experience in categorization
- Prototypes are modified by experiences
- More exemplars create a richer library for comparison & fine-tuning.
Semantic networks
- Represents knowledge in a network of related concepts. Nodes are concepts (e.g., words or ideas). Connections between nodes show relationships. Cognitive economy: our brains use quick processes like categories and schemas.
- Visual and auditory retrieval of information when combining and using the concepts.
- Activation of related concepts by one concept—also causing retrieval related concepts, leading to activation chain.
Classical vs. Behaviorist vs. Cognitive view of language
- Classical view: Meaning and grammar rules combined
- Behaviorist view: Language learned by reinforcement and imitation
- Cognitive view: Understanding of the mind—interaction of mental representations and cognitive processes
Generative aspect of language
- Ability to form infinite number of new sentences with finite set of words.
Dynamic aspect of language
- Levels of analysis (phoneme, morpheme, words, phrases, sentences, discourse) demonstrate how sounds, meanings, and syntax affect language.
- How we perceive and produce language in different ways.
Perception before production
- Comprehending and understanding language before producing it.
Wug study
- Tests grammatical rules, using made-up words, to show children can apply rules even to unfamiliar words
- Evidence of implicit knowledge of language rules
Bilingualism
- Single system hypothesis: Bilinguals have one combined language system.
- Dual system hypothesis: Bilinguals use two separate systems for different languages.
Pidgins and Creoles
- Pidgins: Simplified language to aid communication between non-native speakers.
- Creoles: Elaborated, native language develops from pidgins
Language Impairment Aphasia
- Wernicke's aphasia: Comprehension difficulty, fluent but meaningless speech.
- Broca's aphasia: Production difficulty, stilted/grammatically incorrect sentences, but comprehension is relatively intact.
- Language impairments can result from damage—Brain regions responsible for language processing are critical for language use.
- Specific areas on Left hemisphere are critical
Hemispheric specialization
- Left hemisphere of brain dominates language processing for most people.
Brain lesions
- Damage to various language areas can impair comprehension, production, or other language aspects.
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Description
Explore the concepts of autobiographical memory and the pivotal transition points in life. This chapter delves into how personal beliefs and emotions shape our memories, highlighting important life changes from childhood through midlife. Understand phenomena like the reminiscence bump and self-image theory.
