Analyzing Memory

The Formation, Retention, and Measurement of Memory

by Chechile

ISBN: 9780262038423 | Copyright 2018

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An accessible synthesis of memory research that discusses the creation of memory representations, the processes of storage and retrieval, and the effectiveness of encoding information.

The field of memory research is subdivided into many separate and non-overlapping topic areas that often employ specialized tools and models. This book offers an accessible synthesis of memory research that explores how memory works, how it is organized, and how it changes dynamically. Written by an expert in the field, it can be used by undergraduate and graduate students of psychology and as a reference by researchers who want to fill in gaps in their knowledge. The book focuses on three general topics that cover a vast amount of research in the field: how a memory representation is created, how the cognitive processes of storage and retrieval can be studied and measured, and the process of encoding information and its varying degrees of effectiveness.

Specific subjects addressed include habituation and sensitization, and the neurobiological changes that underlie them; evidence for a cognitive component underlying Pavlovian conditioning; biological constraints on a cognitive model of memory; an information-processing framework for memory; misconceptions about memory, including the static memory myth and the permanent memory myth; model-based measurement of storage and retrieval processes; a critique of the concept of memory strength; the distinction between implicit and explicit memory; and learning and repetition.
Although the writing is accessible to the nonspecialist, the density of information is high. The text avoids jargon, and a glossary defines key terms. The notes expand on technical details and point to interesting related ideas.

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Contents (pg. vii)
Foreword (pg. xv)
Preface (pg. xix)
Acknowledgments (pg. xxiii)
I. Building Memory Representations (pg. 1)
I.1 Introduction to Part I (pg. 3)
I.2 Levels of Scientific Inquiry (pg. 3)
I.3 Mathematical Models and the Study of Memory (pg. 5)
I.3.1 Some Features of a Good Model (pg. 6)
I.3.2 Scientific Hypotheses and Models Are Approximations (pg. 8)
I.4 Organization of Part I (pg. 8)
1. Habituation and Sensitization (pg. 11)
1.1 Overview of the Chapter (pg. 11)
1.2 Introduction (pg. 11)
1.3 Habituation and Sensitization Effects (pg. 14)
1.4 Neural Model for Habituation/Sensitization (pg. 20)
1.5 The Curious Case of the Stentor (pg. 28)
1.6 System Model for Habituation and Sensitization (pg. 29)
1.7 A Mathematical Representation for ςk (pg. 31)
1.8 Summarizing Nonassociative Memory (pg. 41)
2. Associative Conditioning (pg. 45)
2.1 Overview of the Chapter (pg. 45)
2.2 Elementary Conditioning Definitions (pg. 46)
2.3 The Information-Theory Challenge (pg. 51)
2.4 Rescorla-Wagner Model (pg. 52)
2.5 How Cognitive Is Pavlovian Conditioning? (pg. 59)
2.6 Pavlovian and Instrumental Comparisons (pg. 74)
2.7 Concluding Comment and Chapter Summary (pg. 82)
3. Memory: Biology to Cognition (pg. 85)
3.1 Overview of the Chapter (pg. 85)
3.2 The Biological Factors of Trace Storage (pg. 85)
3.3 Emerging Cognitive Theories of Forgetting (pg. 95)
3.4 Memory Types (pg. 118)
3.5 Chapter Summary (pg. 124)
4. Information-Processing Framework (pg. 127)
4.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 127)
4.2 Propositional Encoding (pg. 127)
4.3 Temporal/Feature-Binding Memory Framework (pg. 134)
4.4 Syntactic-Pattern Recognition (pg. 136)
4.5 How Much Is Remembered? (pg. 144)
4.6 Memory Is Encoded Information (pg. 150)
4.7 Summary of Chapter (pg. 151)
5. Memory: Myths and Truths (pg. 153)
5.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 153)
5.2 A Few Misconceptions about Memory (pg. 153)
5.3 Content-Addressable Memory (pg. 170)
5.4 Overview of Part I (pg. 177)
II. The Measurement of Memory (pg. 179)
Introduction to Part II (pg. 181)
6. Historical Lessons (pg. 183)
6.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 183)
6.2 Introduction to Physical Measurement (pg. 183)
6.3 Brief History of Temperature Measurement (pg. 184)
6.4 Measurement Approaches Not Taken (pg. 187)
6.5 Rationale for Model-Based Measurement (pg. 196)
6.6 Chapter Summary (pg. 199)
7. Measuring Storage and Retrieval (pg. 201)
7.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 201)
7.2 Introduction to Storage-Retrieval Measurement (pg. 201)
7.3 Chechile and Meyer (1976) Task (pg. 202)
7.4 Recall Tests: Defining Storage and Retrieval (pg. 204)
7.5 Storage-Retrieval Separation (pg. 207)
7.6 Example: Letter-Shadowing Experiment (pg. 216)
7.7 Validation Studies for the 6P and 7B Models (pg. 226)
7.8 Population Differences for Storage and Retrieval (pg. 236)
7.9 Storage and Retrieval for Recall-Based Tasks (pg. 248)
7.10 General Discussion and Summary (pg. 255)
Appendix: Multinominal-Processing Tree (MPT) Models (pg. 256)
8. What Does Memory Strength Mean? (pg. 261)
8.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 261)
8.2 The Problem of Measuring Memory Strength (pg. 261)
8.3 The Basic Signal-Detection Representation (pg. 263)
8.4 The Problem with Defining Strength (pg. 270)
8.5 The Problem of Target-Foil Similarity (pg. 276)
8.6 The Problem of the Mirror Effect (pg. 279)
8.7 The Problem of Foil Mixtures (pg. 281)
8.8 The Problem of Ambiguous ROC Data (pg. 288)
8.9 Summary Remarks about Memory Strength (pg. 290)
9. Storage-Retrieval: Animal Model (pg. 293)
9.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 293)
9.2 Storage-Retrieval Measurement for Animals (pg. 293)
9.3 Validation Studies for the Animal Model (pg. 301)
9.4 Chapter Summary and Discussion (pg. 303)
Appendix: Parameter Estimates for the Animal Model (pg. 304)
10. Implicit-Explicit Separation (pg. 307)
10.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 307)
10.2 Implicit-Explicit Storage Measurement (pg. 307)
10.3 The Extended Process-Dissociation Model (pg. 308)
10.4 Extended Process-Dissociation Critique (pg. 311)
10.5 The IES Model (pg. 313)
10.6 Validation Evidence for the IES Model (pg. 320)
10.7 Summary: Explicit-Implicit Memory Measures (pg. 325)
10.8 Summary for Part II (pg. 325)
III. Factors Affecting Encoding Quality (pg. 329)
Introduction to Part III (pg. 331)
11. Repetition Effects (pg. 333)
11.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 333)
11.2 The Learning Curve (pg. 333)
11.3 Is Learning Incremental or All-or-None? (pg. 334)
11.4 Is Total Study Time Sufficient? (pg. 352)
11.5 Testing Effects (pg. 361)
11.6 Effect of Spacing (pg. 366)
11.7 Summary of Repetition Effects (pg. 372)
12. Encoding and Context Factors (pg. 375)
12.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 375)
12.2 Meaningfulness and Ease of Encoding (pg. 375)
12.3 Levels of Processing (pg. 377)
12.4 Contextual Factors (pg. 381)
12.5 Chapter Summary (pg. 392)
13. Generation and Elaboration (pg. 395)
13.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 395)
13.2 The Effect of Generative Encoding (pg. 395)
13.3 Other Generation-Like Encoding Effects (pg. 411)
13.4 Generative Learning in Education (pg. 416)
13.5 The Enactment Effect (pg. 418)
13.6 Distinctiveness and the Production Effect (pg. 422)
13.7 Self-Reference and Survival Effects (pg. 434)
13.8 Organizational Factors (pg. 444)
13.9 Mnemonic Techniques and Imagery (pg. 453)
13.10 Chapter Summary (pg. 459)
14. Mood and Emotional Factors (pg. 461)
14.1 Chapter Overview (pg. 461)
14.2 The Question of Mood-Dependent Memory (pg. 461)
14.3 Effects of Arousal and Emotion on Encoding (pg. 464)
14.4 The Easterbrook Hypothesis (pg. 468)
14.5 Attentional Spotlight, Cognition, and Emotion (pg. 469)
14.6 Neural Processing of Emotional Stimuli (pg. 470)
14.7 Negative Affect: The Weapon Focus (pg. 471)
14.8 Memory of Traumatic Experiences (pg. 472)
14.9 Positive Affect: Attentional Broadening? (pg. 473)
14.10 Postencoding Stress and Memory (pg. 474)
14.11 Summary of Affect and Memory (pg. 479)
14.12 Summary of Part III (pg. 480)
Epilogue (pg. 483)
Glossary (pg. 485)
Bibliography (pg. 523)
Index (pg. 581)

Richard A. Chechile

Richard A. Chechile is Professor of Psychology and Cognitive and Brain Science at Tufts University. He is the author of Analyzing Memory: The Formation, Retention, and Measurement of Memory (MIT Press).

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