Question 1

People's ability to recall an item from a list depends on where in the list the item occurs. This is known as the _____ effect.

Accepted Answer

The ability to recall an item from a list is influenced by its position or order in the list, with items at the beginning (primacy effect) and end (recency effect) of the list being more easily remembered. This is known as the serial position effect.

Question 2

Morton moved from Alabama to Georgia ten years ago. "My fifth-grade teacher made us memorize the names of all the counties in Alabama," he tells his friend Rory. Rory tests Morton by giving him a list of thirty counties-15 Alabama counties, mixed in with 15 counties from other states. "Ok, pick out the Alabama counties," Rory challenges Morton. Which method does Rory's test use?

Accepted Answer

Rory's test uses recognition, as Morton is given a list of counties and must identify which ones are from Alabama. This is different from recall, where one must generate the information themselves without any cues or prompts.

Question 3

Godden and Baddeley (1975) conducted the classic "scuba diver" study of the encoding specificity principle. Baddeley is also known for his groundbreaking work on:

Accepted Answer

Godden and Baddeley's study focused on how the context in which information is encoded can affect retrieval. However, Baddeley is also well-known for his work on working memory, which proposed a separate system for temporary storage and manipulation of information.

Question 4

Glenn has heard students and teachers say that students' test performance is better when students are tested in the same room in which they learned the material. This idea is supported by the results of a pioneering study conducted by:

Accepted Answer

Godden and Baddeley conducted a study in 1975 in which divers learned a list of words either on land or underwater and were then tested on the words either in the same context or in the opposite context. They found that participants performed better when they were tested in the same context in which they learned the material.

Question 5

At University A, students from all introductory psychology sections take their final examination all at once in a gymnasium. At University B, students from each introductory psychology section take the final exam in the same classroom they attended for lectures during the semester. All else being equal, students at University _____ should perform better, based on the _____.

Accepted Answer

The encoding specificity principle suggests that recall is better when the contexts of encoding and retrieval match. Therefore, students at University B, who take their exam in the same classroom where they learned the material, should perform better.

Question 6

The primacy effect refers to the fact that:

Accepted Answer

The primacy effect refers to the phenomenon that the first-presented items in a list are more likely to be remembered than items in the middle or at the end of the list. This is thought to occur because the early items have had more time to be rehearsed and consolidated into memory.

Question 7

"Dog food, coffee, paper towels." Michelle's roommate begins reciting items into the phone as she gets into her car; Michelle is supposed to stop by the store on the way home. The roommate continues to list a few more items. Finally, he wraps with, "Coffee creamer, spaghetti sauce, dish soap, and iced tea mix." Michelle forgets a few things, but the spaghetti sauce, dish soap, and iced tea mix are in the bag. Her memory for these items reflects the _____ effect.

Accepted Answer

The recency effect refers to the tendency to better remember the most recently presented information, which in this case are the last items on the roommate's list: coffee creamer, spaghetti sauce, dish soap, and iced tea mix.

Question 8

In a memory experiment, Dr. Aziz gives one group of participants a recognition test of a list of words they had seen earlier; another group is asked to recall the words. What would be a reasonable prediction regarding the relative performance of the two groups on the memory test?

Accepted Answer

Recognition tasks are generally easier than recall tasks because recognition involves identifying information in the presence of cues, whereas recall requires retrieving information without cues.

Question 9

In Godden and Baddeley's (1975) pioneering "scuba diver" study of the encoding specificity principle, the match between encoding and retrieval contexts is a(n) _____ variable.

Accepted Answer

In the Godden and Baddeley (1975) study, the match between encoding and retrieval contexts is the dependent variable being measured to test the encoding specificity principle. The independent variable is the context in which the information is encoded and the experimental/control variables are the manipulation of the context (i.e. underwater vs. on land) to create different encoding and retrieval conditions.

Question 10

One evening, Zoe examines the schedule for her favorite football team. The team plays sixteen games each season. Later she tries recalling that schedule for a friend who likes the same team. It is highly likely that Zoe will recall opponents at the beginning of the schedule particularly well. What is this phenomenon called?

Accepted Answer

The phenomenon of recalling information at the beginning of a list or sequence better than information in the middle or at the end is called the primacy effect. This is likely to happen in Zoe's case when she tries to recall opponents at the beginning of the football schedule.

Question 11

According to the encoding specificity principle:

Accepted Answer

The encoding specificity principle suggests that the similarity between the context in which information is learned and the context in which it is retrieved influences memory. Therefore, answer choice D is the correct choice. Answer choices A, B, and C are all related to memory, but they are not specifically related to the encoding specificity principle.

Question 12

If Lola begins to list all the classes she's ever taken in college, she will most likely recall her last few classes particularly well. What is this phenomenon called?

Accepted Answer

The recency effect refers to the tendency for people to remember information that is presented at the end of a list better than information presented earlier on the list. In this case, Lola is likely to remember her most recent classes better than the ones she took earlier, which is an example of the recency effect.

Question 13

A research participant is required to report as much of a poem as he can remember immediately after having read the poem once. The greatest number of recall errors should occur for lines:

Accepted Answer

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

Question 14

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 is a victim of the _____ effect.

Accepted Answer

The serial position effect refers to the tendency for people to remember the first and last items in a series better than the middle items. This is likely what is causing Dr. Rosen to have a fuzzier memory of the middle patient sessions.

Question 15

How might one 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 U-shaped, reflecting 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 16

The recency effect refers to the fact that:

Accepted Answer

The recency effect refers to the tendency for people to remember the last items on a list more easily than the middle items. This is because the items at the end of the list are still fresh in the person's memory when it comes time to recall the list.

Question 17

In the retrieval phase of Godden and Baddeley's (1975) "scuba diver" study of the encoding specificity principle, participants were asked to supply all the words they could remember from the encoding condition. This was a _____ measure of memory.

Accepted Answer

Recall is the act of retrieving information or events from the past with few or no cues or prompts. In the "scuba diver" study, participants were asked to produce all the words they could remember from the encoding condition, hence it represents a recall measure of memory. Reconstructive memory refers to remembering an event, but not being able to remember every detail, instead, the brain fills in gaps with plausible or invented information. Savings refers to the difference in time, effort, or number of repetitions needed to relearn previously learned material. Recognition refers to the identification of information or stimuli previously encountered, from a collection of alternatives.

Question 18

The question on the midterm in an economics course is "Discuss several factors that contributed to the economic collapse of late 2008." This question is a _____ test of _____ memory.

Accepted Answer

The question is asking the student to recall and discuss specific factors that caused the economic collapse of 2008, making it a recall test. Additionally, it requires explicit memory because the student needs to remember specific information and explain it in detail. Recognition tests, on the other hand, ask the student to select correct information from a set of options.

Question 19

"Cat food, cola, toothpaste." Ned's roommate recites items over the phone as he throws his books in the backseat and gets into his car. Ned is supposed to stop at the store on the way home. The roommate continues to list a few more items. Finally, he wraps up, "Coffee creamer, spaghetti sauce, dish soap, and ice tea mix." Ned forgets a couple of things, but he does get the cat food, cola, and toothpaste. His memory for these items reflects the _____ effect.

Accepted Answer

The primacy effect refers to the phenomenon where people are more likely to remember items that were presented first in a list. In this scenario, Ned remembered the first few items listed by his roommate (cat food, cola, toothpaste), indicating that he experienced the primacy effect.

Question 20

An essay question is a _____ test of memory. A multiple-choice question is a _____ test.

Accepted Answer

The first blank requires a term that refers to the ability to retrieve previously learned information from memory, and the second blank requires a term that refers to the ability to identify previously learned information. A multiple-choice question can help to jog one's memory, but ultimately requires recognition of the correct answer from among possible options, making it a recognition test. Therefore, the correct answer is B.

Quiz 6: Learning