LTM Acquisition

1. LTM Acquisition

2. Introduction • In this section, we will discuss how to get information “in” to LTM. In the next section we will discuss how to get info. “out” of LTM. • Three possible determinants of LTM acquisition: • Intention • Meaning • Organization

3. Intention • Does a subject’s intention to learn information actually affect whether or not the info. will end up in LTM? • We have noted before that rehearsal helps get information from WM to LTM, but not all rehearsal will accomplish this.

4. % Recalled % Recalled Little A lot Little A lot Amount of Rehearsal Amount of Rehearsal Craik & Watkins (1973) Subjects are given a list of words, told to keep track of the last word that starts with a certain letter for immediate recall. Sometimes there were a lot of words between critical words (which means they should be rehearsed a lot) and sometimes there were few words between critical words. Following several lists, they were given a surprise recall test. Modal Model Predicts Actual C & W Data What do these data tell us about intention and rehearsal?

5. Hyde & Jenkins (1969) Subjects were presented w/ pairs of words in which they did shallow, medium or deep processing. For example subjects might be given a word pair like: HOT THOUGHT Are the words in the same font? (shallow processing) Do the words rhyme? (medium processing) Are the words synonyms (deep processing) 1/2 of the subjects are told that they need to remember the words for a recall test at the end of the experiment. All subjects are given a recall test at the end (for 1/2 this is a surprise recall). Surprise Intend % Recalled S M D S M D Type of Processing

6. Meaning • Making information more meaningful may help us get that info. “in” to LTM. • By making information more meaningful, we are able to make more retrieval cues. • Having more retrieval cues to a memory trace is like having several alternative routes on a trip… if there is a roadblock along your primary route, you can make a detour and still get to your destination.

7. Craik & Tulving (1975) Subjects read sentences with one word missing. After they read the sentence, they were given a word and asked if it would have fit in the empty space. Some sentences were simple such as The dog bit the _________ (man) Others were more elaborate such as While walking into the bank the ________ noticed $50 on the sidewalk. (man) After a number of these sentences, subjects were given a surprise recall test. The data showed that subjects remembered more words from the elaborate sentences. What do these data tell us about the role of meaning in LTM acquisition?

8. Organization • When we make meaningful connections, we are better able to organize the information. • We can organize the information w/ something that we already know, or with the rest of the TBR info. • Organization leads to easier-to-find, and more efficient memory traces and connections.

9. Organization cont. • Mnemonic Strategies • Organizational strategies that are used to enhance memory; often involve visual imagery. • Method of Loci • Tulving (1962) • Subjective Organization • Bransford and Franks (1972)