Question 1

According to Sperling, what is the capacity of iconic memory?
A) Everything that can be seen at one time.
B) Everything that can be heard in 1 minute.
C) Everything that can be sensed in 1 second.
D) Everything that can be perceived in a lifetime.

Accepted Answer

Sperling's research on iconic memory (visual sensory memory) suggests that it can hold everything that can be seen at one time, but only for a very brief period.

Question 2

Which neurotransmitter is no longer readily produced in Alzheimer's patients?
A) acetylcholine
B) dopamine
C) endorphins
D) GABA

Accepted Answer

Acetylcholine is the neurotransmitter primarily affected in Alzheimer's disease. Its production decreases as neurons are damaged and die, leading to cognitive decline and memory problems.

Question 3

Research by Elizabeth Loftus shows that eyewitness recognition is very prone to what psychologists call __________.
A) a false positive
B) automatic encoding
C) a flashbulb memory
D) a recency effect

Accepted Answer

Elizabeth Loftus's research suggests that eyewitness recognition is highly susceptible to false positives, which refer to instances where an individual identifies someone as the perpetrator of a crime even though they are not the actual culprit. This is often due to factors such as suggestion, leading questions, and post-event information.

Question 4

Which of the following is an example of a test using recognition?
A) true-false
B) short answer
C) essay
D) fill in the blanks

Accepted Answer

True-false questions require recognition of the correct answer among two options (true or false). Short answer, essay, and fill in the blanks questions require recall or application of knowledge, rather than simple recognition.

Question 5

In Hermann Ebbinghaus's classic study on memory and the forgetting curve, how long after learning the lists did most forgetting happen?
A) 1 hour
B) Forgetting started immediately.
C) 5 hours
D) 9 hours

Accepted Answer

The answer of In Hermann Ebbinghaus's classic study on memory...

Question 6

__________ memory includes what people can do or demonstrate, whereas __________ memory is about what people know and can report.
A) Nondeclarative, declarative
B) Declarative, nondeclarative
C) Semantic, nondeclarative
D) Episodic, semantic

Accepted Answer

Nondeclarative memory refers to procedural or skill-based memory, such as riding a bike or playing an instrument, which people can demonstrate. Declarative memory is about knowledge and facts, which people can report through language, writing, or other means.

Question 7

When creating a presentation, many public-speaking instructors will tell you to develop a strong opening or attention getter to your presentation as well as a good summary and finish. What aspect of memory best explains these suggestions?
A) serial position effect
B) parallel distributed processing model of memory
C) chunking
D) elaborative rehearsal theory

Accepted Answer

The serial position effect states that people are more likely to remember the first and last items in a list. Therefore, starting with a strong attention getter and ending with a good summary and finish increases the likelihood that the audience will remember the key points of the presentation.

Question 8

You are introduced to someone at a party. While talking with the person, you realize that you have already forgotten the person's name. What amount of time does it typically take before such information is lost from short-term memory?
A) typically between 12 and 30 seconds
B) approximately ¼ of a second
C) usually no more than 4 seconds
D) Short-term memories typically last a lifetime.

Accepted Answer

Short-term memory typically lasts between 12 and 30 seconds, so it is not uncommon to forget someone's name shortly after meeting them.

Question 9

Mary has just met an attractive man named Austin at a party. She wants to make sure she remembers his name. What should she do?
A) Mary should make it more meaningful. For example, she might remind herself that Austin has the same name as the capital of Texas.
B) Mary should repeat the name continuously so as to commit it to long-term memory.
C) Mary should chunk it by remembering the first three letters as a set and then remembering the remaining letters as a set.
D) Mary should create a song to help her remember his name.

Accepted Answer

Associating his name with something meaningful will help Mary remember it better than simple repetition or chunking. Creating a song might be difficult to do on the spot, and may not be effective for everyone.

Question 10

Henry Gustav Molaison (H.M.) suffered from profound anterograde amnesia after his __________ were surgically removed in an attempt to control his seizures.
A) hippocampi
B) amygdalae
C) frontal lobes
D) thalami

Accepted Answer

The hippocampi are important for the encoding and retrieval of new memories. H.M.'s surgery involved the removal of most of his hippocampi, leading to his profound anterograde amnesia.

Question 11

Your mother tells you to dress for success at your interview because it's all about "first impressions." In other words, she is telling you that people often remember what they see first. This belief is in line with what element of memory?
A) the primacy effect
B) the tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon
C) the recency effect
D) the power of false positives

Accepted Answer

The primacy effect refers to the tendency for people to better remember the first items in a list or series. In this case, your mother is emphasizing the importance of making a good first impression, which aligns with the idea that people are more likely to remember what they see or hear first.

Question 12

Early studies of the capacity of short-term memory suggested that most people could remember approximately __________ bits of information.
A) seven
B) two
C) three
D) ten

Accepted Answer

Early studies by George Miller on the capacity of short-term memory concluded that most people can remember around seven (plus or minus two) pieces of information at a time. This is commonly known as Miller's Law.

Question 13

Phineas walks out of his office and into the conference room. However, after he leaves his office, he forgets what he was coming into the conference room for. According to the encoding specificity hypothesis, what should Phineas do to regain his lost memory?
A) Phineas should return to his office to help him remember what he had forgotten.
B) Phineas should ask someone else, "What did I come in here for?"
C) Phineas should remain in the conference room and simply relax so that his memory returns.
D) Phineas should consider seeing a doctor, since such memory loss can be a sign of mental illness.

Accepted Answer

The encoding specificity hypothesis emphasizes that the context and environment in which information is learned or encoded plays a crucial role in later retrieval of that information. Therefore, returning to the original context where the memory was initially encoded (in this case, Phineas's office) may help him to remember what he came into the conference room for. Option B may not be effective as it relies on someone else's memory, and option C is not suggested by the encoding specificity hypothesis. Option D is not necessary based on the information provided.

Question 14

The steps to memory can best be described as __________.
A) putting it in, keeping it in, getting it out
B) finding it, using it, storing it, using it again
C) sensing it, perceiving it, remembering it, forgetting it
D) a series of passive data files

Accepted Answer

The steps to memory involve encoding (putting it in), storage (keeping it in), and retrieval (getting it out). Option A, "putting it in, keeping it in, getting it out," accurately reflects these processes. Option B suggests too many additional steps such as "finding it" and "using it again," while option C includes the additional step of perceiving that is not necessarily a part of the memory process. Option D is incorrect as memory involves active processing and not passive data storage.

Question 15

What type of amnesia do you have when you cannot remember things that happened before a traumatic accident?
A) retrograde amnesia
B) anterograde amnesia
C) psychogenic amnesia
D) infantile amnesia

Accepted Answer

Retrograde amnesia refers to the inability to recall events that occurred before a traumatic incident or injury.

Question 16

The ability to remember where you were and what you were doing when the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001, is an example of __________.
A) flashbulb memory
B) eyewitness testimony
C) encoding specificity hypothesis
D) false-memory syndrome

Accepted Answer

Flashbulb memory is a type of memory that is highly vivid and detailed, often associated with emotionally charged and significant events, such as the September 11 attacks. People are able to remember the details of what they were doing, where they were, and how they felt during such events, and these memories tend to be resistant to forgetting over time.

Question 17

The semantic network model of memory suggests that the __________ nodes you must pass through to access information, the longer it will take for you to recall information.
A) more
B) fewer
C) bigger the
D) more complex the

Accepted Answer

The semantic network model of memory suggests that the more nodes (or connections) you must pass through to access information, the longer it will take for you to recall that information. This is because it takes more time for your brain to search through and activate all the relevant nodes before arriving at the desired information.

Question 18

Which type of memory system best explains the "What?" phenomenon?
A) echoic sensory system
B) iconic sensory system
C) short-term memory system
D) tactile sensory system

Accepted Answer

The "What?" phenomenon is best explained by the echoic sensory system, which is responsible for processing auditory information and allows us to recall sounds we have just heard.

Question 19

The tendency of certain elements to enter long-term memory with little or no effort to encode and organize them is what defines __________.
A) automatic encoding
B) encoding specificity
C) flashbulb memories
D) eidetic imagery

Accepted Answer

Automatic encoding refers to the process of information entering long-term memory without conscious effort or awareness. This is often seen with familiar information, such as your own name or details about your daily routine, which can be easily encoded and stored without any conscious effort. Encoding specificity refers to the idea that the context in which information is learned can have a significant impact on subsequent retrieval, but it does not necessarily relate to the tendency for information to be automatically encoded. Flashbulb memories and eidetic imagery are specific types of memory phenomena and do not directly relate to the process of automatic encoding.

Question 20

For information to travel from either the iconic or echoic sensory system to short-term memory, it must first be __________ and then encoded primarily into __________ form.
A) selectively attended to, auditory
B) unconsciously chosen, auditory
C) selectively attended to, visual
D) biologically chosen, visual

Accepted Answer

Information must be selectively attended to in order for it to be transferred from sensory memory to short-term memory. Additionally, iconic sensory memory primarily encodes visual information, while echoic sensory memory primarily encodes auditory information. Therefore, the correct answer is A).

Quiz 6: Memory

According to Sperling, what is the capacity of iconic memory?

Which neurotransmitter is no longer readily produced in Alzheimer's patients?

Research by Elizabeth Loftus shows that eyewitness recognition is very prone to what psychologists call __________.

Which of the following is an example of a test using recognition?

In Hermann Ebbinghaus's classic study on memory and the forgetting curve, how long after learning the lists did most forgetting happen?

memory includes what people can do or demonstrate, whereas memory is about what people know and can report.

When creating a presentation, many public-speaking instructors will tell you to develop a strong opening or attention getter to your presentation as well as a good summary and finish. What aspect of memory best explains these suggestions?

You are introduced to someone at a party. While talking with the person, you realize that you have already forgotten the person's name. What amount of time does it typically take before such information is lost from short-term memory?

Mary has just met an attractive man named Austin at a party. She wants to make sure she remembers his name. What should she do?

Henry Gustav Molaison (H.M.) suffered from profound anterograde amnesia after his __________ were surgically removed in an attempt to control his seizures.

Your mother tells you to dress for success at your interview because it's all about "first impressions." In other words, she is telling you that people often remember what they see first. This belief is in line with what element of memory?

Early studies of the capacity of short-term memory suggested that most people could remember approximately __________ bits of information.

Phineas walks out of his office and into the conference room. However, after he leaves his office, he forgets what he was coming into the conference room for. According to the encoding specificity hypothesis, what should Phineas do to regain his lost memory?

The steps to memory can best be described as __________.

What type of amnesia do you have when you cannot remember things that happened before a traumatic accident?

The ability to remember where you were and what you were doing when the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001, is an example of __________.

The semantic network model of memory suggests that the __________ nodes you must pass through to access information, the longer it will take for you to recall information.

Which type of memory system best explains the "What?" phenomenon?

The tendency of certain elements to enter long-term memory with little or no effort to encode and organize them is what defines __________.

For information to travel from either the iconic or echoic sensory system to short-term memory, it must first be and then encoded primarily into form.