按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！
long…term memory？ Have students consider this latter problem in terms of Alzheimer’s
disease。
2。 Have students consider that only half of what they learned could be stored in long…term
memory。 What general classes of information would various individuals select？ Are there
some basic categories of knowledge that are selected to ensure minimal disruption of
ongoing daily behavior？ How did students determine these particular classes of
information？
3。 In The Mind of a Mnemonist； Russian psychologist A。 R。 Luria described the feats of a
newspaper reporter who could recall incredible amounts of information following a brief
and seemingly effortless examination of the to…be…remembered material。 The reporter relied
heavily on images； primarily visual； but also cutaneous； olfactory； and gustatory
sensations。 He apparently had what we call a photographic or eidetic memory。 Would it be
helpful to remember everything？
。 Doing well on tests might seem like no problem； because the answers could be looked
up mentally。 However； because of the vastness of the information stored； this might
take too much time。
。 Material stored eidetically is difficult to break down and reassemble in new patterns。
Essay questions might be difficult because of the necessity to take information from a
number of sources and integrate it。
。 Difficulty in bining ideas from various sources would put a severe limitation on
creativity。
。 Abstract ideas would be difficult to understand because they often do not lend
themselves to imagining。
。 We generally condense and take important information from what we read and hear；
and we associate new information with what we already know。 This would be difficult
if we remembered all we see or hear。
4。 Consider giving your class a demonstration of the reconstructive qualities of memory。
Enlist the aid of a colleague and stage a memorable but unstressful event。 Tell the class that
what they witnessed was an experiment in memory； then have them write down what they
“saw；” as they can best recall。 You will probably have as many explanations of the
scenario as you have students in the class。 If class members do not object； read some of the
more interesting responses aloud to demonstrate the fallibility of memory。
5。 Have students think about their earliest memory。 Then； either have them volunteer to
discuss their memories in class； and the class can try to arrive at some interpretation of
their meaning； or have students turn them into you； and you can pick out some of the more
interesting ones to be presented to the class anonymously for class discussion。
An interesting point of discussion here can be trying to find out if these are real memories
of an event； or “memories” that are based on hearing constant retellings of the event by
parents or siblings。 Additionally； today you have the first generation of college students
who may also have “memories” of early childhood events that are really the product of
watching themselves on home video recordings。
134
CHAPTER 8： MEMORY
SUPPLEMENTAL LECTURE MATERIAL
The Lost Memories of Early Childhood
You may want to begin a lecture by asking students to write a brief answer to the question “What is
your earliest memory from childhood？” People cannot recall autobiographical memories before
their third or fourth year； yet children have remarkable memories in other ways。 A two…year…old can
remember where grandmother keeps the cookies even if she has not been to grandmother’s house
for a month。 The ability of children to acquire language before the age of three also indicates
considerable memory capacity。 Children also store and remember motor skills。 If a child learns to
ride a tricycle before he is three； he will probably still be able to do it at 70。 So why do we not
remember autobiographical information？ Why does not enduring episodic memory begin until the
age of three or four？
Theory 1： Repression
Freud thought that forgetting is essential to getting safely through the Oedipal years with their
violent and incestuous impulses。 In Freud’s theory； childhood amnesia results from repression of
these impulses； and he thought memories from these years can be retrieved in psychoanalysis by
the use of methods such as free association and dream analysis。 There is some evidence that people
tend to have a cluster of childhood memories from about the time Freud thought the Oedipus
plex is resolved。 However； like many aspects of Freud’s Theory； his ideas about childhood
amnesia cannot be confirmed or rejected by research。
Theory 2： Brain Immaturity
Another theory points to the immaturity of brain structures。 Animal studies have shown that
animals that have mature brains at birth； such as guinea pigs； are able to store permanent memories
early in life； and that animals； such as rats； that are born with immature brains cannot。 The brains
of children are immature at birth。 They do not have the synaptic connections of a mature brain。 A
problem with this theory is； again； why does amnesia affect only autobiographical or episodic
memory？
Theory 3： Limited “M…Space”
One theory that uses the idea of immaturity of brain structures was proposed by a French
psychiatrist； Juan Pascual…Leone； who worked with Piaget and suggested that childhood amnesia
occurs because of limited M…space capacity。 M…space is described as “attentional capacity” and
seems to be similar to the concept of short…term memory。 Whereas adults can retain approximately
seven chunks in the M…space； small children can retain only one。 For this reason； they are unable to
store retrieval cues。 They cannot use what they already know to establish retrieval cues because
there is no room in M…space to bring material from long…term memory。 Research shows that the
capacity of short…term memory is small in early childhood and increases to adult capacity by
puberty。 However； this theory does not account for children’s ability to prehend and produce
speech。 For example； if a child’s attentional capacity is so small； how can the child prehend a
sentence of seven or eight words？
Theory 4： Schema Differences
Explanations also emphasize the difference between the schemas of small children and those of
adults。 Children’s schemas tend to be idiosyncratic。 For example； a small child’s “daddy” schema
may include all adult males； football games on TV； daddy’s favorite chair； and the lawn mower。
135
PSYCHOLOGY AND LIFE
Processes like Piaget’s assimilation and acmodation proceed to alter these schemas as the
child’s organization of reality es to be more like that of the adults of his or her society。 Memories
of early childhood may be altered and revised until they are adult memories rather than actually
early childhood memories。 The early memories are altered to “fit” into schemas that the child
develops with age。 This theory is similar to interference in that as the child matures； new memories
interfere with or replace older memories。 This theory seems reasonably credible because it can be
applied to both episodic and semantic memories。 Children do not remember the
overgeneralizations they made of words or the restricted context in which they used early
vocabulary。 They also do not remember the grammatical structures they used as they began to
bine words into sentences。
Theory 5： Schema Differences； Too
Yet another explanation that emphasizes schemas also points to the difference between the
schemas of early childhood and those of later years。 Early memories would have to be represented
by actions； images； and feelings； rather than by symbols； primarily words。 Even after children begin
to use words； some psychologists claim that language is used for expressive purpose and
munication； but not as a tool for thought。 A child might be four or five years old before
memories begin to be symbolically stored with language。 As language takes over as the primary
vehicle for the organization of reality； the ability to retrieve autobiographical memories stored as
emotions； actions； or images is lost because there are not retrieval cues。 Aspects of this theory have
appeal； particularly because it specifically considers the child’s lack of language。
The three primary theories of adult forgetting are motivated forgetting or repression； interference；
and cue…dependent memory。 Versions of these same theories can be used to explain childhood
amnesia； along with theories that emphasize immaturity of brain structures。 The bottom line is that
childhood amnesia remains a mystery。 At present； we can only speculate why it occurs。
The Zeigarnik Effect
At about the same time that Freud was talking about motives to repress negative information； Kurt
Lewin and his students were looking at the effects of task motives on memory。 Legend has it that
they were puzzled by an occurrence in a Berlin beer garden。 In Germany； it is the custom for waiters
to write down what customers ordered after they have eaten and immediately before paying their
bill。 Once； however； after the meal had been served and the party had