Questions for Test 3

1. Discuss Ebbinghaus's forgetting curve. What factors influence forgetting? How might context and state influence memory? Give examples.

2. What are flashbulb memories? What may be the four mechanisms for flashbulb memories? What has research found about the confidence and accuracy of flashbulb memories – what kinds of changes do you see?

3. What are VLTM? Give studies of memory of high school classmates, material learned in class (Spanish or Cognitive), memory for pictures, and memory for songs or verse, that demonstrate VLTM (including data). How do these studies demonstrate permastore?

4. What are autobiographical memories? What factors are most likely to be remembered? When? What conclusions can be drawn from the diary studies of autobiographical memories? Use the study class, parenting, GPA, and relationship studies.

5. What is metacognition? How does metameory, the tip-of-the tongue phenomenon, and metacomprehension show metacognition – what type of errors do you see? What factors influence it?

6. Using the false memory and eyewitness testimony studies, explain how various factors can affect our memories. How do they relate to the “sins of memory?”

7. Identify the different mnemonics (all that we discuss) and describe how they work. Give a detailed example of each type in your description.

8. How do experts differ in both STM and LTM? What does this tell us about expert memories?

9. What is Paivio’s dual coding theory? How do the abstract/concrete word studies (make sure to relate these to imagery potential and association value), mnemonics, attention and memory models relate to this theory?

10. How are we able to imagine events mentally - what happens when we use visual scanning and mental rotation? Give examples from the following: (a) Map or boat study, (b) rabbit or box study, AND (c) rotation of objects)? How have studies of neuroscience helped in our understanding of mental imagery – what have they found? How does this research relate to the false memory research?