Question 1

Owen has trouble remembering a friend's new phone number; he keeps recalling the old number instead. Completing a rental application, Pippa finds she can't recall one of her previous addresses, as she's had several addresses since. Owen is experiencing __________ interference; Pippa is experiencing _________.

Accepted Answer

Owen is experiencing proactive interference, where old information (the old phone number) interferes with the recall of new information (the new phone number). Pippa is experiencing retroactive interference, where new information (new addresses) interferes with the recall of old information (previous addresses).

Question 2

Participants are asked to judge whether a string of letters forms a word in English. The first string they receive is the word VIOLIN. On a subsequent list of words, results show that the participants are substantially faster at answering "Yes" to the word PIANO than to the word TOILET or BASKET. Which concept does this result most clearly illustrate

Accepted Answer

This result illustrates the concept of spreading activation, where the activation of one memory (or concept) in the brain leads to the easier retrieval or recognition of related memories or concepts. In this case, VIOLIN and PIANO are both musical instruments, so the activation of the concept of VIOLIN makes it easier and faster for participants to recognize PIANO as a word.

Question 3

Which of the following defines proactive interference

Accepted Answer

Proactive interference occurs when information learned earlier interferes with the ability to remember new information.

Question 4

Which of the following defines retroactive interference

Accepted Answer

Retroactive interference occurs when new information interferes with the ability to recall information that was learned earlier. This means that later learning impairs memory for information acquired before it.

Question 5

One evening, you examine the schedule for your favorite football team. The team plays sixteen games each season. Later you try recalling that schedule for a friend who likes the same team you do. Chances are, you will recall opponents at the beginning of the schedule particularly well. What is this phenomenon called

Accepted Answer

The primacy effect is a cognitive bias that results in a person recalling items at the beginning of a list better than those in the middle or at the end. This is why you would likely remember the opponents at the beginning of the football team's schedule particularly well.

Question 6

In ________ interference, information learned earlier disrupts the recall of information learned more recently; in _________ interference, recently learned information disrupts the recall of information learned earlier.

Accepted Answer

Proactive interference occurs when older memories interfere with the recall of newer memories, while retroactive interference happens when new information interferes with the recall of older information.

Question 7

Before going home, Dr. Rosen tries to flesh out his patient notes. He can remember the first and last sessions of the day, but his memory of the middle ones is a bit fuzzy. Dr. Rosen's memory reflects the ________ effect.

Accepted Answer

The serial position effect encompasses both the primacy effect (better recall of items at the beginning of a list) and the recency effect (better recall of items at the end of a list), which explains Dr. Rosen's memory pattern.

Question 8

The primacy effect refers to the fact that

Accepted Answer

The primacy effect is a cognitive bias that results in a person recalling the first items presented in a list more easily than those in the middle or at the end. This is because the initial items are more likely to be transferred to long-term memory.

Question 9

How might you describe the shape of the function relating the probability of an item's recall to the item's position on a list

Accepted Answer

The shape is typically U-shaped due to the serial position effect, where items at the beginning (primacy effect) and end (recency effect) of a list are more likely to be recalled than those in the middle.

Question 10

The "recency effect" refers to the fact that:

Accepted Answer

The recency effect refers to the tendency for people to have better memory for items that were presented last in a list, compared to items in the middle of the list. This effect is thought to occur because the last items are still fresh in the person's working memory when they are asked to recall the items.

Question 11

Bruce watches a new television program with enthusiasm. He then watches a second, similar program. Bruce later finds it

Accepted Answer

Bruce's experience is an example of interference, where the learning of new information interferes with the recall of previously learned information.

Question 12

Research participants are asked to judge whether or not a string of letters forms a word in English. They are first given the string CABBAGE. Based on what you know about categories and spreading activation, which of the following strings might participants then judge the most rapidly

Accepted Answer

The answer of Research participants are asked to judge whether...

Question 13

On a test of recall, participants who learn a list of words in one room do better if tested in that same room than if tested in a different room. This finding is best explained by:

Accepted Answer

This phenomenon is explained by context-dependent learning, which suggests that people are more likely to remember information in the same environment or context in which they learned it. The similarity between the learning and recall environments enhances memory retrieval.

Question 14

Ron receives some stock tips when he's slightly 'buzzed' at an office party. Based on the notion of state-dependent memory, what might you predict regarding the likelihood that Ron will recall the tips the following week

Accepted Answer

State-dependent memory suggests that people recall information better when they are in the same state of consciousness as when they learned the information. Since Ron received the stock tips while he was 'buzzed,' he is more likely to recall them if he is in a similar state.

Question 15

"Cat food, cola, toothpaste," your roommate begins reciting items into the phone as you throw your books in the backseat and get into your car; you're supposed to hit the store on the way home. He continues to list a few more items. Finally, he wraps up: "Coffee creamer, spaghetti sauce, dish liquid, and ice tea mix." You forget a few things, but the Ragu, Dawn, and Lipton's are in the bag. Your memory for these items reflects the _________ effect.

Accepted Answer

The recency effect refers to the tendency to remember the last items in a list better than the middle items, which explains why you remembered the last few items like Ragu, Dawn, and Lipton's.

Question 16

Suppose you begin to list all the classes you've ever taken in college. Chances are, you will recall your last few classes particularly well. What is this phenomenon called

Accepted Answer

The phenomenon is called the recency effect, which is part of the serial position effect. It describes the tendency to remember the most recently presented information best.

Question 17

In a lexical decision task in which participants must judge whether a string of letters forms a word in English, participants are first shown the string BANANA. Based on what you know about categories and spreading activation, which of the following strings might participants then judge the most rapidly

Accepted Answer

The word "APPLE" is semantically related to "BANANA" as both are fruits, and spreading activation theory suggests that related concepts are activated in the brain, leading to faster recognition.

Question 18

"Cat food, cola, toothpaste," your roommate begins reciting items into the phone as you throw your books in the backseat and get into your car; you're supposed to hit the store on the way home. He continues to list a few more items. Finally, he wraps up: "Coffee creamer, spaghetti sauce, dish liquid, and ice tea mix." You forget a couple of things, but you do manage to get the cat food, cola, and toothpaste. Your memory for these items reflects the _________ effect.

Accepted Answer

The primacy effect is demonstrated here, where you remember the first few items listed (cat food, cola, toothpaste) more effectively than those mentioned later. This effect is part of the serial position effect, which shows that people tend to recall the first and last items in a series best, and the middle items worst.

Question 19

A research participant is required to report as much of a poem as he can remember immediately after having read the poem once. We would expect the greatest number of recall errors in lines:

Accepted Answer

This phenomenon is explained by the serial position effect, which suggests that items in the middle of a list (or poem, in this case) are less likely to be remembered than those at the beginning (primacy effect) or at the end (recency effect).

Question 20

Nana is taking a Spanish final at the end of the spring semester. The problem is, the French vocabulary she learned the semester before keeps getting in the way, causing her to forget Spanish words. Nana is experiencing ________ interference.

Accepted Answer

Nana is experiencing proactive interference, where old information (French vocabulary) interferes with the ability to remember new information (Spanish vocabulary).

Quiz 8: Remembering and Judging

Owen has trouble remembering a friend's new phone number; he keeps recalling the old number instead. Completing a rental application, Pippa finds she can't recall one of her previous addresses, as she's had several addresses since. Owen is experiencing __ interference; Pippa is experiencing _.