Lots More Info on Memory Processes than You Probably Asked For
Good morning … mi again. This is our before and after exercise pictures. Obviously, this is Missy here to say good job! Good kitty …
We just called our friend for a few moments. Today was his especially hard day, so we wanted to wish him the best. I had left a message earlier with him that we had just made it to the 60’s and we would want him to join us. I think we’re in the same 10 pound category right now … be a good thing to do it together. I know in comparison to what he’s going through today it is small, but I thought maybe a few good side tracking thoughts would help the day along. I wish I could take his worry away from him. Ok, going to think good safe thoughts there.
Maybe one way is to let him worry less about us. That would be a nice thought. I am going to try being more on track today, not that I won’t be free thinking just I want to consider my thoughts primarily around school, and somewhat around Dr. M. We’ll try to think minimally about family, especially negative messages. I’m not sure how to advance the decrease in catastrophic thinking. Need to think here for a moment. It seems where we lose control over the thought processes is where we analyze instead of confirm source data. I do not want to go to the extreme that analyzation, is wrong or bad. Matter of fact, I would like to delete thinking of things as being wrong or bad. This would be more black and white thinking, or thinking on extremes. Chances are we like to over simplify life. Maybe, we could narrow down our analyzation focus to self messages. In a sense, how does the other relate to me. If I know that I’m converting all those pathways negatively, maybe we can catch some of the poor thinking before it takes a negative toll on our sense of self confidence. Let me check that out to see if it works. If I were feeling lonely, that would mean I would assume that others don’t want to be around me. Hmm, seems like I could intellectualize this either way, and our habit is to go negative. What should we do with the message. In reality, I don’t do much to get out there and people have stated that I am someone that is likeable. Ok, going to have to stop thinking at that level, because automatically our first response is to negate why they shouldn’t. Let’s try holding on the thought that I am likeable, though sometimes people get busy and we’re not able then to see them. That needs to be ok. Ok, one more test … the one about our thinking Dr. M. “barely tolerates us.” That is being confused because in reality, he is a very busy man and needs to stick to a schedule that is billable. Again, we can construe negatively, but let’s try the opposite. Hmm, maybe the same message here as the last. I am likeable and Dr. M. likes us, though has a very busy schedule. Ok, that seems to be working. And, it helps us support the reality that we also have a very busy schedule. And, if we’re going to be doing “real time,” we need to keep up with the minutes.
Ok, noted in Lotus where we were at. When we are trying to maintain a schedule, we always revert back to it. Positive messages today. We are doing good keeping on track. Shower, medicine, breakfast, exercise all done by 7:30 am. Hmm, dressed? Well sort of dressed. Ok, now we’re dressed AND we took care of the kitty litter, because on a warm day that could seem like a problem needing a solution. As soon as the back is stronger we’d like to go take a swipe at the kitchen as well. Another garbage in need of correcting. Maybe hair now? ARGH! Ok, ok … it’s not a look we’d go out in public in, but it might get us out to that balcony V is thinking of taking us … YEEKS! Ahh, he won’t be back for at four or five hours … AHA! Time to get some good stuff done.
We’re up to here now. Ok, this is the time we stall the real work looking for something that will be easier. It is a point; we are going to need conquering. That would mean I have to do something specific. Uh huh. And, that would be? Hmm, school? That wins a smile that looks somewhat like a challenge. Ok, stop. We’re going to think a positive thought. How about … we GET to go to school, because we are psychology students and that is what psychology students do. Well, ok I sorta … sorta?? No, I’m asking you to buy that direct! Let’s repeat. “I am a psychology student who wants to go to school.” I am a psychology student who wants to go to school, because it is fun and we like to learn new things, plus we like to get smarter! Hmm, I like that. No, it won’t hurt. POSITIVE, remember? I like to go to school, because being a psychology student is fun! Yes, you are getting the right idea. Should we jump in now!?? Hmm … I am going to have fun because that’s what psychology students do. AND, we get to be a little nutty, and no one seems to be overly concerned! Hehehe – that’s right you’re carrying that one though on your own!
Ok. We’re at school now.
Hmm, just reread so far what we have. It doesn’t sound too bad … not real long, but good stuff. Ok, now … what we have to do is to provide a clear example of how a person’s emotional state affects the ability to recall information that is stored in memory. Hmm, challenging. Let me think that through. What do we know so far about memory and emotions. Hey, remember we saw that in an article we saved yesterday. Let’s start with that.
Ok, reading the article now … it says, “The emotional content of stimuli is known to affect the distribution of attention … and to gain prioritized processing” (Kensinger, & Corkin, 2003). The amygdale is activated by emotional stimuli, even when the individual is unaware. People who have been neglected are more able to recognize emotional stimulus than a neutral stimulus … aha – back to selective attention and being hypervigilant! Let see if that proves out. They continue by saying that the emotional material “enhances” the performance of working memory and attention. Uh huh uh huh … we’re still thinking hypervigilance here. Dr. W. used to say we had extra antennas where emotionally laden material was concerned. Would fit in too with Dr. M.s thinking that we’re catastrophising. Unfortunately that takes attention away from focusing on the intended stimuli. Makes sense. Woo Hoo they used the word relevance. This automatic process of paying attention to emotional stimuli is likely in part motivated by “personal relevance.”
Interesting they are now saying that emotional stimuli could effect long-term memory as well as working memory in that “individuals are more likely to elaborate on semantic or autobiographical features of emotional stimuli” (Kensinger, & Corkin, 2003). This might be a clue I needed in that even in watching the effects of combining MPD with MW blogs, I find myself often, and not by conscious choice, inserting memories from my past, which would be autobiographical. Semantic again is when we are working with facts that are common knowledge to anyone interested. They also say if individuals show “increased rehearsal of emotional information” (2003). Maybe that is like how we go over and over again the situation of Dr. M. being more distant, which is emotionally overwhelming to us. The authors say that this increases the likelihood “that emotional information is encoded into long-term memory” AHA! That would make sense and perhaps give it its weightedness in working memory! Or, that because the events are so distinct they are remembered better. I think here they would have to go into cortisol levels at the time of initial memory. Not sure yet how the neurotransmitters are working here, but we WILL get back to that!
Hmm, “orthogonal” better look that up … Yeeks … geometry … has to do with lying or intersecting at right angles. “L” I think the two lines in “L” intersect at right angles. … Little more nervous thinking that they might be mutually perpendicular. AHA Maybe then like an “H” That would be two up and down lines meeting at the horizon. Wow. We’re pretty sure, we get smarter every day! Ok, now in context … “Additional effects of emotional content may be orthogonal to these processes [that influence memory], and some of these interactions between emotion and memory processes are likely to be unique to long-term memory” (2003), like in the situation of consolidation processes. Hmm, that would mean that things get grouped together and compacted so are most likely found distinctly as the weighted objects we were discussing before. They also say that emotional stimuli is “consolidated” more frequently … I’m seeing it so far like sending images that are “zipped” together. It would also make sense in that it seems to be combining the effects of near “chunking” and “rehearsing.” Ok, this sounds pretty sure … “emotional stimuli activate the amygdale, which in turn modulates hippocampal function, thereby modulating consolidation” (2003). I’m still not very clear how that all happens, but I will hold on to this tidbit for later exploration. I think they said this was only a plausible neuroanatomical explanation, which means its still just a theory.
They are now saying that emotion might serve as a cue at retrieval. Ok, personal note. We have a moderate impairment in our retrieval processes … let’s see if that follows in line. They say it is easier to retrieve emotional information than neutral because of the additional contextual support. So basically they are saying the brain acts differently when it is retrieving emotional context and that consolidation or retrival would impact long-term retention, but not be able to maintain or manipulate information [maybe working memory] over short intervals. Ok, what is the significance of this to us … recalling hehehe personal relevance. I’m pretty sure we all make our way through the world according to personal relevance. Over the last week, we were so overburdened by our emotions that work no longer held relevance, except as background static. AHEM wandering? Ok, concentrate. If we’re having trouble retrieving information and the emotional part is easier (or more relevant), maybe I should think of the contextual angle. The one thing we knew for certain by Friday night, and more particular throughout Saturday and Sunday when we were losing ground was that contextually there were bundles of information to be processed and internally, it became primary to all other needs. We needed to write out in the blog as we need to be doing now. Because maybe contextually, everything is feeling so relevant, we are not able to assign extra stimuli to a front burner. We get cases of mind clutter. Or, maybe as we’ve found in the past, we are close to something and with our instability in impulsivity, we could not shake off the emotional precedence being upheavaled in our mind. Why did it become a crisis? Why the need to stop all self-destructively. Hmm, maybe it was because we don’t know how else to get the attention we need, so we do it negatively. That at least would be the cut to the chase point. But, more succinctly, we can go back to our bad emotions as weighted in relevancy. They become a matter of life and death, which again supports Dr. M’s recent cause in not catastrophising our thinking. Ok, better get back to more direct thoughts. Think we’re stretching here for relevancy. If we’re patient it will come to us. Next paragraph.
Ok, we’re past the introduction of the article and are into the present study … what can we quickly pick up here, or are we going to go immediately to the results. Hmm, ok they’re summarizing, but this point is interesting. “Additional factors such as intrusive thoughts, focus of attention on internal stimuli, and emotional load may occur with mood induction procedures but not with tasks that manipulate emotional content.” I’m not sure why that is yet, but we’ll buy the vowel. I thought the sentence was important, because it ties together a lot of things we’re feeling right now, and as an aside is an important part of our final paper. The point the authors are making now though is just a technicality of testing. We’ll let this slide. As we thought … skipping down to the discussion (final results of the article and study).
Hmm, first point. After a delay of time, participants recalled more negative stimuli then positive. Figures. They credited this to differences in encoding negative stimuli, consolidation, and retrieval. Good, so far so good. They also found within the working memory the negative stimuli DID NOT affect accuracy negatively although the efficiency or speed of performance were slower in response to negative stimuli. That seems to make sense … for example, although I feel on track with my learning processes, it is terribly slow and cumbersome effort. Harder to keep up with the balance of it without the support of writing through MPD posts. Ok, I would buy that too … that processing could be slowed down by extra processes such as arousal and physiological response though my knowledge of those areas is limited. I could see the time would be because that extra stimiuli would need to be inhibited. Makes sense. Eh … too much speculation, not much more new information in the results section. Pswhoo ok, better consolidate information now … what does this mean, particularly what does this mean in the assignment of providing an example of a person’s emotional state affecting the ability to recall information stored in memory.
Well, it would be easy to speculate first … that the emotional stimuli of the experience “X” on short-term memory would 1) enhance working memory and selective attention (make emotions priority project #1), 2) to inhibit an extra load of stimuli short-term memory speed (but not accuracy) would be delayed. 3) The emotional stimuli would take precedent because it was more personally relevant (to survival?) oh oh back to catastrophising. 4) elaborating on semantic or autobiographical information … this could be like a fishing expedition, or effort to regrasp the turmoil left unsettled in the emotional memory situation in long-term space. 5) there is increased rehearsal of the negative emotional information – feeds back to selective attention and personal relevance, and which also increases chance of the material being encoded into long-term memory (check in a bit the neurotransmitter effects on the system), 6) negative stimili gets condensed (zipped) in long-term, which makes it more accessible to working memory, 7) emotion serves as a cue to retrieval and due to contextual content is easier to retrieve from long-term 8) working memory speed decreases because of need to inhibit extra stimuli when presented with emotional content
Pshwoo that’s a bundle. Ok, we’re going with it though. We’ll use it to frame an experience (example) for the paper. We’re going to take a five minute break so we can come back and “consolidate” our thoughts hehehe and ease it into explaining our as of yet unknown experience. This is the fun stuff! You all good?? Time check 10 am. Doing ok, but still slow. Washroom, coffee, craisons snack and smoke without thinking.
AHA. I can use for an clear example the test itself. Hehehe I told you this was the easy part.
Paper…
u04d2 Memory Models
u04d2 Memory Models
Date: May 3, 2006 11:38 AM
Subject: In response to assignment from Ann
Last edited on: May 3, 2006 11:55 AM
The three memory stores are structures or hypothetical constructs created by Atkinson and Shiffrin in the late 60’s and used to assist us in understanding the process of memory (Sternberg, 2003). Sensory information is held in its store for up to 50 milliseconds, short-term store holds information from a couple of seconds to three minutes, and there is controversy, but it appears that long-term store can hold an infinite amount of information indefinitely (2003). Sensory memory holds information in the form of visual icons that are either transferred to the next level or are erased. People can hold up to 12 items acoustically in short-term memory and this number can be lessened if interfered with, such as the case of verbalizing the information (2003). Short-term memory holds about 7 items, though in normal usage, perhaps only 3-5 items; more information can be held through chuncking or rehearsing (2003). This store not only holds information, it also “controls the processes that regulate the flow of information to and from the long-term store (2003). Carver & Bauer (2001) performed experiments that showed 9 month old infants could store and retrieve representations up to 4 weeks, but not with long delays, where infants who were 10 months were found able to retrieve representations with delays for up to 6 months, which would indicate the start of an ability to recall what is stored in long-term memory.
The information from the environment needs to first be registered at the sensory store. The initial sensory processing is most often automatic, where the individual has to give attention and effort to the other memory stores (Colman, 2001). As indicated previously information in the sensory store is visual, where the information in the short-term store is auditory. Without short-term memory, we wouldn’t be able to understand language because we need to hold the information long enough to process it from the beginning of the sentence to the end of the sentence (2001). Because we can hold information in our memory, such as the sensory store, we get the impression that what we are sensing is continuous, instead of single “snapshots.” In the short-term memory, we can reproduce information, recognize it and recall it through its control processes (2002). The long-term memory on the other hand is what gives us the ability to “go back” in practicing skills, recalling or recognizing events over a long period of time. In a sense we have a long-standing impression that our life is continuous instead of single episodes, which allows us to feel a sense of meaning.
Each of the memory stores needs the other for us to fully comprehend our existence. Their functions are different. The sensory store very briefly stores information as it is occurring in present time and the long-term stores information from the past. The short term store manipulates and compares information that is from the sensory store and stored memory in long term (Ryan & Cohen, 2004); in a sense it works toward relevancy within the individual’s internal and external world. In this sense, short term memory processes are multi-dimensional where sensory and long-term seem to be “in and out” processes, or on-call to the short-term store. Sensory memory seems to be implicit or unconscious and short- and long-term memories seem to be either implicit or are explicit. It would seem then that the priming effect acts like a trigger leading us toward particular foreseen conclusions like when things make sense to us and this happens in short-term memory in the retrieval of information or as attention toward certain environmental stimuli.
In comparing an alternative model to the three stories model, I looked at the multiple-memory systems model. This work is based on Tulving who separated semantic from episodic memory. Both of these memory types are declarative (or explicit – conscious). The difference between semantic and episodic is the “time referent” (Sternberg, 2003). Semantic is the memories we all share and episodic memory is something we personally experienced in time as an event or episode (2003). Most of us hold a semantic memory that President Kennedy was assassinated, but episodic memory tells us where we were and what we were doing at the time. Like I can remember watching the funeral (horses and carriage), while leaning on big round hassock. I was four at the time. I recall it associated to wanting to watch my TV shows, but this other was on all the channels. We seemed to eventually grow more comfortable with the slow processing of the sadly melodic narrative voices. I was held by the sound of the voices and the clicking of the hoofs on the street with the passage of the casket, but I don’t recall many other pictures. Many other images beside the horse and carriage have been played on television over time, but the fact that I always come back to this same image suggests this was an important memory, perhaps because it was weighted in the emotion of sadness, or perhaps even excitement because most likely I would have been more excited to see the fancy horses more so than whatever else was being shown.
Later Turving included a procedural memory for that kind of knowledge and Squire suggested (1986 & 1993 as cited in Sternberg, 2003) a different taxonomy that includes Tulving’s declarative memory as semantic and episodic, and the non-declarative memory as procedural skills, priming, conditioning, and non-associative. The systems that made most sense to me was the five systems of Schacter (2000 as cited in Sternberg, 2000), which were episodic, semantic, perceptual, procedural, and working. In comparison to the original three store model, there is more distinction of the brain’s processing and structures, where originally the model was an imaginative structure. Working memory was by this time more nested within the long-term memory and the relevance of short-term memory had been filtered out. The three store model didn’t account for more than one type of processing … simply information went in through sensory, was manipulated in short-term, and referenced/resourced in long-term memory. In defining memory systems, complexity is added, which recognizes different aspects of memory and is supported cerebrally. The model worked for me, because it also allows for a useful distinction of conscious and unconscious processes aiding my conceptualization of the mind processing in a bundled fashion.
For a clear example illustrating how a person’s emotional state affects ability to recall information that is stored in memory, I looked at a study performed by Kensinger and Corkin (2003), “Effect of Negative Emotional Content on Working Memory and Long-Term memory.” They
[Indent] examined participants' performance on working memory tasks (self-ordered pointing, n-back, backward word span, and alphabetical word span) with emotional and neutral stimuli. The critical question was whether participants' working memory performance would be affected by the emotional content of the stimuli (e.g., decreased accuracy or increased reaction time for emotional items as compared with neutral items or vice versa). [They] also included a long-term retention component: Following a delay of at least 24 hr, participants took a free recall test in which they were asked to write descriptions of all the stimuli they remembered from the previous day's experiment [End indent].
The study showed working memory speed was delayed, but that the emotional stimuli did not negatively affect accuracy on the tasks tested and they also found the negative stimulus material was more accessible than the neutral stimuli in the post-test recall experiment (Kensinger and Corkin, 2003). The author’s introduce in their article several factors that might explain this phenomenon. They suggest that the experience of emotional stimuli would enhance working memory by increasing selective attention, which would prioritize the processing of emotions (2003). The emotional stimuli would take precedent because it was personally relevant to the individual. It is possible that in the case of neglect or abuse the processing of emotions would be sensed as critical, especially if the individual were hyperalert or hypervigilant. Individuals processing emotional stimuli from within the working memory were more likely to elaborate semantic or autobiographical information (2003), which could add the necessary burden of inhibiting stimuli, which would decrease the working speed when performing a task. This appeared to be in effect a “fishing-expedition,” or an effort to settle the turmoil of emotional stimuli remaining in long-term memory. Individuals processing negative stimuli were also found to increase rehearsal of the negative stimuli, which would increase the likelihood of material being encoded into long-term memory (2003). They suggested that a negative stimulus gets condensed when stored in long-term memory, which appeared to be a process like zipping a file on the computer (2003). It would become then more accessible during the time it was to be reprocessed in the working memory. Kensinger and Corkin (2003) also suggest that emotion serves as a retrieval cue and due to its contextual content stimuli is easier to retrieve from long term memory.
In a previous study, we looked at the effect of abuse and neglect on the infant. We found that an infant being abused or neglected additionally received less positive caregiver attention and received less assistance in minimizing stress and this acted as a deterrent in the development of neural circuitry (Garvey 2005). It decreased synapses by overpruning during the infant’s developmental stage making the infant/child more defenseless in regulating emotion in response to stress (2005). Trauma over stimulates the stress response and it has been shown that longer periods of abuse “show higher levels of catecholamine neurotransmitters and cortisol (Debellis cited in Lehmann, 2002, and Glaser, 2000 as cited in Garvey, 2005), which have the purpose of regulating the child’s behavioral response to the environment. This would seem to be part of the extra long-term emotional stimuli that would need to be processed by working memory and most likely emotions to the current environment would often triggered or cue emotions stored in long-term memory. In the case of PSTD a hyper vigilant or hyper-reactive individual might respond to fear by impulsive acts of “fight or flight” (Lehmann, 2002 as cited in Garvey, 2005). Extra stimuli that might need to be processed in working memory might include the sense of life threat, powerlessness, fear or arousal, lower ability to cope, and the dissolution of trust (Garvey, 2005).
References
Carver, L. J. & Bauer, P. J. (2001). The dawning of a past: The emergence of long-term memory in infancy [Electronic edition]. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 130(4), pp. 726-745.
Colman, A. M. (2001). Dictionary of psychology. NY: Oxford University Press.
Corsini, R. J. (2002). The dictionary of psychology. NY: Brunner-Routledge.
Garvey, A. M. (2005). PSY7210 u02d02. Retrieved May 3, 2006, from http://journals.aol.com/aynetal3/MastersWork/
Kensinger, E. A. & Corkin, S. (2003). Effect of negative content on working memory and long-term memory [Electronic ed.]. Emotion, 3(4), 378-393.
Ryan, J. D. & Cohen, N. J. (2004). The nature of change detection and online representations of scenes [Electronic edition]. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 30(5), pp. 988-1015.
Sternberg, R. J. (2003). Cognitive psychology (3rd edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.
End Paper
WooHooo!!!! One done three more to go, and umm two lab experiments, and umm two journal entries, *sigh* and at least 16 comments. Suppose we better get on with it then. It is already 1:30 pm. Let’s see, should we start on the next paper? Teacher left a note in the courseroom saying she’d be gone for a few days. Hmm, traditionally, we read the other papers submitted on the same assignment and comment before going on. Better get that over with first. THEN, we’ll start on the next paper. See how far we get by the end of the day
Ok, here goes … Peer Paper #1 …
Pshwoo … Just finishing up, although I will admit to taking a smoke break out on the balcony, talking with V., and eating dinner … took our meds too! It is now a quarter after 7 pm and I am through with all those peer papers and comments. There are about 75 posts to go through with about 1/3 being papers and the other 2/3’s being comments, plus, of course, we need to leave a couple of comments of our own. It is a very good part of the learning process. I am amazed with the content of people’s thoughts, though not always impressed. Ohoh we’re becoming a student snob. YEEKS!!
We’re thinking we’re going to take off another 10 minutes here and see the day off proper. We’re into our second day experiment with drinking coffee in the evening after dinner. It used to be the way things were always done and still is if eating out formal. I enjoyed the last time out earlier today, now we’re going to see if we can do it and relax at the same time. YAYYYY practicing up for porch-sitting with V!!!! Hmm, reminds me of the veranda of ol … *sigh*
WoW! That’s the only thing that will describe it! It’s now about 8:15 pm and I’ve been actually sitting outside for about 20-30 minutes. Indescribable! I can still fill the cool, comfortable dusk breeze on my arms and nose. I think though that those wrought iron chairs could use cushions. For a while Missy kept passing underneath my chair with that darn tail tickling the backs of my legs. Brrrrr give me the jitters! It was actually Chief that spent the majority of the time with us. For some reason, although they like to go “up” they aren’t prone to sitting on the chairs, table, or even my lap. I’m not sure why. Chief laid on the cement skirting of the balcony doors. Pretty sure there is an official name for that … maybe like a door jam? Missy sat just within the inside of the door and was only really interested in that Chief was giving himself a bath at one point. She probably told him “Don’t forget to get behind the ears!”
It was very strange to be having thoughts that would disappear with the breeze. Every once in a while, something might catch my attention, but if there was ever a thing called drifting, we were doing it. I would take an after effect picture, but my left eye is so distorted by this time, I figure I’m through with pictures for the time being. It usually happens after I’ve been reading quite a while.
We sent an email to Dr. M. toward dinner time. He didn’t respond, although that wasn’t a requirement of the email. We started off kinda ok, but deteriorated from that point. We recognized that we need to take another step past the self-destructive thinking that we couldn’t take, and then later (short email) a part came out to voice her complaints about feeling less needy of people in general and Dr. M. in particular, but we figured she was pretty ticked off … there is anger at needing others, though feeling unneeded by others. Most we DON’T want to need us, but knowing that Dr. M. certainly doesn’t need us, except to be alive, hurt. Our thinking at this moment is that you could look at us as pretty incessant. This would most likely be true. My guess is though attachment relationships form between therapist and client that are symbiotic of the original mother attachment. If you know anything about us … you know that initially we had poor attachment with our mother person. So, the relevancy of Dr. M. in our life has become very significant. It is like being dropped at the school-side curb with the young kindergartner stomping his feet saying she would NOT go to school. Except as luck would have it we’re now a young graduate student and if there were any stomping … well, actually, we’ve been doing that pretty good all along. Poor Dr. M. is saying … ok dear … but, you still need to go to school. I’ll be here at the door when you are done, umm huh?? TWO WEEKS FROM NOW?? Sheesh …
Well, think that about wraps it up for one long day. I know it’s going to take me a little unwinding time. That’s where we actually stop typing, but end up reviewing what we wrote for some time longer. The goal was to stay up, but got to bed by 9 pm. We’re closing in on the range. YAYYY! Nitey nite!
posted by Ann Marie @ 5/03/2006 08:35:00 PM
Comments: 4
