Psychology
Retooling
Institute
and Seminar
for the Mid-AtlanticII
PRISM
II
Learning and Memory Module: Operant
Conditioning
Deborah Harris OBrien, Ph.D.
TRINITY COLLEGE
Washington, DC
I. Overview II. Learning
Objectives III. Content Outline
IV. Sample Discussion Questions V. Classroom Activities
VI. Multimedia Resources
Operant conditioning is a type of learning in which behavior becomes more or
less likely to occur in the future based on the consequences following the
behavior. Unlike classical conditioning, the behavior is freely given by the
organism, not reflexive. The type of consequence (reinforcement or
punishment) determines whether the behavior is likely to increase or
decrease in the future. As in classical conditioning, generalization or
discrimination may occur in which the behavior occurs in response to a
stimulus similar to the learned one or does not occur to a similar stimulus.
Shaping is a method of successive approximations to a desired behavior
during which responses are reinforced for getting closer to the desired end
behavior. Reinforcement is administered through "schedules"; it can occur
after every response, or occur after a number of responses or after a time
interval (partial reinforcement). Principles of the effectiveness of
reinforcement and punishment explain why some interventions are not
successful; in general, punishment is less desirable to use as a learning
method than reinforcement.
1. Define operant conditioning.
2. Describe and give examples of the following components of operant
learning: stimulus, response, reinforcement, punishment.
3. Distinguish between positive and negative reinforcement, and positive and
negative punishment.
4. List and explain the principles of operant conditioning.
5. Identify and give examples of the following schedules of reinforcement:
Continuous, fixed interval, variable interval, fixed ratio and variable
ratio.
6. Describe and give examples of the following principles governing the
effectiveness of reinforcement and punishment: consistency, contiguity,
intensity.
7. Identify the ways an operantly learned response can be weakened
(extinction, suppression, forgetting).
8. Identify the disadvantages of using punishment as a method of behavioral
control.
1. Definition of operant conditioning: response freely given by organism
followed by reinforcement or punishment; response operates on the
environment.
a. Stimulus ----> Response ----> Reinforcement or Punishment
{Use Exercise A as practice in identifying stimuli and responses}
2. Types of reinforcement and punishment
a. Positive reinforcement: something is added to increase the likelihood of
the behavior in the future.
b. Negative reinforcement: something is subtracted to increase the
likelihood of the behavior in the future
c. Positive punishment: something is added to decrease the likelihood of the
behavior in the future
d. Negative punishment: something is subtracted to decrease the likelihood
of the behavior in the future
e. Emphasize that both types of reinforcement increase behavior and both
types of punishment decrease behavior. Suggest that students think about
positive and negative as mathematical terms, not as "good" and "bad".
f. Individuality of consequences: whether something is a reinforcement or
punishment depends on the individual; what may be reinforcing for one person
may not be for another.
{Use Exercise B to strengthen students= understanding of the types of
reinforcement and punishment).
3. Principles of operant conditioning
a. Extinction: if the reinforcement is discontinued, the response will
gradually stop.
b. Timing of consequences: the sooner the reinforcement or punishment occurs
after the response, the greater its effect. If the delay is too long, the
organism may not make the connection between its response and the
consequence.
c. Stimulus generalization: the response may generalize to stimuli that
resemble the original stimulus to which the organism responded
d. Stimulus discrimination: the tendency of a response to occur int he
presence of one stimulus, but not another similar stimulus
e. Shaping: procedure in which successive approximations of a desired
response are reinforced. This is used when the organism does not have the
desired behavior in its repertoire or if the probability of the behavior
occurring is low.
4. Schedules of reinforcement
a. Continuous reinforcement: response is reinforced every time it occurs
b. Partial reinforcement: not every response is reinforced. Responses
learned under a partial reinforcement schedule are stronger and more
resistant to extinction.
(1) Interval schedule of partial reinforcement: based on the amount of time
between the behavior and the reinforcement.
(a) Fixed interval: the time between the behavior and the reinforcement is
constant
(b) Variable interval: the time between the behavior and the reinforcement
changes
(2) Ratio schedule of partial reinforcement: based on the number of
responses. Reinforcement occurs after a number of behaviors.
(a) Fixed ratio: the number of responses before reinforcement remains
constant
(b) Variable ratio: the number of responses before reinforcement changes
{Use Exercise C to help students identify the schedules of reinforcement}
5. Operant conditioning in real life.
a. Behavior modification is an application of operant conditioning to
systematically change behaviors. It is used for clinical purposes, as well
as in educational settings.
{Exercise D is an opportunity for students to use behavior modification on
themselves}
b. Superstitious behavior may occur because of coincidental reinforcement.
6. Principles of effectiveness of reinforcement and punishment
a. Consistency: the behavior must be reinforced or punished consistently
b. Intensity: the stronger the reinforcement or punishment for that
organism, the more effective the consequence
c. Contiguity: nearness in time of behavior and consequence; if
reinforcement or punishment is delayed, the behavior may not be learned.
This is especially true for animals and young children.
7. Ways responses can be weakened
a. Extinction: discontinue reinforcement
b. Suppression: use of punishment; the behavior will not be performed, but
is not necessarily lost from the behavioral repertoire.
c. Behavior is rarely elicited: if behavior is not practiced, it may be
forgotten
8. The problems with punishment
a. The effects of punishment are sometimes temporary; the behavior may be
suppressed in the presence of the punisher, or in selected environments. The
behavior may reoccur in the absence of the punisher or punishing
environment.
b. Punishment does not teach desired behaviors. Punishment teaches the
organism what not to do, but provides little information on what it should
do. This is especially important in the application of behavior
modification.
c. An action intended to punish may be reinforcing. What the punisher
believes is unpleasant, may actually be reinforcing, as in the case of
attention from a parent. Also, if punishment involves removal from a
situation, it may be reinforcing because the individual wants to avoid the
situation.
d. Most misbehavior is hard to punish immediately; if the punishment is
delayed, it may not be effective.
e. The recipient of the punishment may respond with fear, anxiety, or anger.
The emotional reaction to a punishment may interfere with the learning
process.
IV. Sample Discussion Questions
1. How do classical and operant conditioning differ?
2. How can childrens temper tantrums be explained through operant
conditioning? How do children negatively reinforce parents behavior of
"giving in"?
3. Which schedule of reinforcement is best for learning a new behavior?
Which schedules are best for maintaining an already learned behavior?
4. Discuss the ethical concerns related to behavior modification.
5. Give an example of an operantly conditioned superstitious behavior.
6. Some people claim they have tried to use behavior modification and it
doesn't work. (This is a complaint frequently heard by therapists).
According to the principles of effectiveness of reinforcement and
punishment, why might the behavior modification have been unsuccessful?
7. Discuss attitudes toward punishment in your culture.
V. Classroom Activities: Worksheets and Demonstrations
A. Stimulus - Response Exercise
Definitions: Stimulus = something that happens TO the person/animal
Response = behavior performed by the person/animal
Identify each of the following as a STIMULUS or RESPONSE.
1. _____ A flashing light
2. _____ Answering this practice exercise
3. _____ A stop sign
4. _____ An ant crawling on your arm
5. _____ Vomiting
6. _____ Coughing
7. _____ The sound of heavy breathing
8. _____ Seeing and smelling a piece of chocolate cake
9. _____ Bad tasting medicine
10. ____ Laughing
11. ____ Screaming
12. ____ A feather tickling your arm
B. Types of reinforcement and punishment exercise
In learning theory, remember that positive means adding something and
negative means subtracting something. Reinforcement will increase the
likelihood of a response in the future; punishment will decrease the
likelihood of a response in the future.
Identify each of the following examples as either: positive reinforcement
negative reinforcement
positive punishment
negative punishment
1. ___________________ Jimmy's father gives him $5 for washing the car.
2. ___________________ Maria was fighting with her sister. Her mother says she can't watch TV tonight.
3. ___________________ Keila is 4 years old. Her mother spanks her for running out into the street.
4. ___________________ Your teacher says you don't have to take the final exam if you have a "B" average at the end of the semester.
5. ___________________ You receive a $100 incentive bonus from your boss for completing a project early.
6. _________________ You are assigned 10 hours of trash pick up after being caught smoking in the campus library restroom.
7. _________________ Lelani's parents don't allow her to use the family car for 2 weeks after she received a "D" in her high school chemistry class.
8. _________________ You always put on your seat belt so that the annoying buzzer will
stop.
C. Schedules of reinforcement exercise
1. ___________ You go to Atlantic City and play the slot machines. Sometimes you win money after putting in 3 quarters, sometimes after 15 quarters, sometimes after putting in 7 quarters.
2. ___________ You get a paycheck every Tuesday.
3. ___________ A psychologist gives a rat a food pellet each time it pushes a lever in its cage.
4. ___________ You go fishing in the Chesapeake Bay every weekend. Sometimes it takes 1 hour to catch a fish, sometimes 15 minutes, sometimes 45 minutes.
5. ___________ A college student's mother sends her a box of fudge every Thursday.
6. ___________ George works in a factory putting fenders on cars. He gets paid $100 for every 4 fenders he finishes.
7. ___________ Michael's mother gives him an M & M for each toy he puts away in his toy box.
8. ___________ Teri collects empty soda cans. The recycling center gives her $1 for every 30 cans.
9. ___________ Shaina delivers newspapers in her neighborhood. Sometimes Mrs. Lewis pays her for 2 weeks at a time, sometimes she pays for 1 week, and sometimes she pays for a month.
10. __________ You start playing the lottery. You win $10 the first time you play. You
play 12 more times before you win again.
D. Behavior Modification Exercise
This is an opportunity for you to change a behavior of your own using operant conditioning.
DAY 1:
1. Choose ONE behavior that can easily be measured which you would like to change. This
exercise is NOT intended to change serious behavioral problems. Some examples of behaviors
you might choose are: exercise (how many minutes do you exercise?), smoking (count the
number of cigarettes smoked), studying (how much time do you spend studying each day?),
eating (count the number of
fat grams in your diet).
2. Record your behavior as it normally occurs for one day. This is your baseline which you will use for comparison after attempting to change your behavior.
3. Choose a reinforcement to give yourself when you have successfully changed a
behavior. For example, you could reinforce yourself at the end of the day for smoking less
cigarettes than your baseline number, or for exercising or studying longer than your
baseline amount. Some examples of
reinforcements are: enjoyable activities (watch TV, take a nap, read a magazine), food
(for example, reward yourself with a piece of candy or a soda for each 15 minutes of
completed study time), money to spend at the end of the behavior modification period (for
example, put a dime in a jar each
time you successfully resist the urge to smoke a cigarette or eat a fattening food). To be
effective, your reinforcement must be something that is desirable to you.
DAY 2 - 6:
1. Each day record the behavior you have chosen to modify and the number of times you
earned the reinforcement.
DAY 7:
1. Compare the number of times you performed the behavior in days 2 through 6 with your baseline (Day 1). Was there a change in your behavior?
2. If your behavior changed, why do you think your reinforcement was successful? If your behavior did not change, what could be the reasons you were unsuccessful?
E. In class demonstration of operant conditioning
Materials: small candies (M & M's are ideal), a clock, volunteer subject, student behavior recorders.
Select a volunteer who likes the candy you have brought and ask him or her to leave the room for a few minutes. Explain to the rest of the class that you will positively reinforce the volunteer with candy each time he or she uses the word "I". Tell students you will interview the volunteer for 5 minutes as a baseline with no reinforcement and then 5 minutes using reinforcement. Assign several students the task of tallying each time the volunteer says "I" during the baseline period and again during the operant conditioning. Bring in the student volunteer and explain that you will interview him/her for a few minutes. You can ask simple questions related to the course, to your campus, current events, etc. After 5 minutes, give the student a piece of candy each time he or she uses the word "I".
After the 10 minute interview, ask the subject if s/he figured out what was being reinforced. Now have the data recorders report on the number of times the subject said "I" in the baseline period and in the conditioning period. If the reinforcement did not increase the number of times the student said "I" ask the student volunteer and the class to offer possible explanations.
If you prefer, this demonstration can be done in small groups in the class, with each
group having a subject, interviewer, and data recorder.
CyberRat CD ROM. (Brown & Benchmark, Windows & Macintosh compatible).
Students can operantly condition a wide variety of behaviors and observe the
results of various reinforcement schedules with this video presentation of a
live rat. Experimental variables can be manipulated.
Discovering Psychology, Program 8: Learning. (1990, 20 min. ANN/CPB). The
basic principles of classical and operant conditioning are presented, as
well as the contributions of behavioral pioneers like Pavlov, Thorndike,
Watson and Skinner, to our knowledge of animal and human thinking.
The Missouri Automated Reinforcer Assessment. (Available for downloading at http://www.uta.edu/cussn/diskcopy.htm). Students can go through a sequence of questions about what they like and don't like to make a list of reinforcers. Reinforcers are sorted by type, such as edible reinforcers, social reinforcers, etc.
PsychSim. (Worth Publishing, available in DOS, Windows, and Macintosh). Computer based tutorials in 16 subject areas of general psychology, including operant learning simulations.
The Skinner Revolution. (1980, 23 min. Research Press). A comprehensive look at the life and work of B.F. Skinner, including interviews with this giant of behaviorism. Demonstrations of operant conditioning and behavior modification illustrate his theories.
Sniffy, the Virtual Rat. (Brooks/Cole, available in Windows or Macintosh
formats). Teaches principles of operant conditioning with a virtual rat who lives in a
virtual Skinner box. Students can train Sniffy with virtual food pellets, and use various
reinforcement schedules. There are also
Apre-trained Sniffies@ for demonstration in the classroom.
VII. Readings
Bower, G.H. & Hilgard, E.R. (1981). Theories of learning. Prentice-Hall.
DeBell, C.S., Harless, D. K. & Ragland, R.G. (1992). B.F. Skinner: Myth &
Misperception. Teaching of Psychology, 19, 68 - 72.
Graham, R.B. (1998). A computer tutorial on the principles of stimulus
generalization. Teaching of Psychology, 25, 149 -151.
Klein, S. B. (1987). Learning: Principles and applications. McGraw-Hill.
Lukas, K.E., Marr, M. J. & Maple, T.L. (1998). Teaching operant conditioning
at the zoo. Teaching of Psychology, 25, 112 - 116.
Tauber, M. (1988). Overcoming misunderstandings about the concept of
negative reinforcement. Teaching of Psychology, 15, 152.
Watson, J.B. (1998). Behaviorism. Transaction Press.
Please direct comments to: Dr. Deborah Harris O'Brien
Trinity College
125 Michigan Ave., NE
Washington, DC 20017
OR e-mail to:
Harris-ObrienD@ Trinitydc.edu
Learning and Memory Module: Classical
Conditioning
Kiran Chadda
Hood College
I. Overview II. Learning Objectives III.
Content Outline
IV. Sample Discussion
Questions
Learning has been defined as any relatively permanent change
in behavior brought about through experience. It
is through experience and learning, that one learns attitudes, fears, skills, concept
formation and problem solving. Learning also
plays an important role in the development of one's personality. Psychologists have identified various principles
of learning. Classical Conditioning is one of
the principles of learning based on association.
1. Identify the key features of the
definition of learning.
2. Describe the key terms of Classical
Conditioning (UCS, UCR, CS and CR)
3. Explain Ivan Pavlov's research.
4. Describe the processes of extinction,
spontaneous recovery, higher order conditioning, generalization, and stimulus
discrimination.
5. Importance and Applications of
Classical Conditioning.
1. Definition of Learning:
Learning is any relatively permanent change in behavior brought about through
experience.
2. Ivan Pavlov's Research:
Ivan Pavlov's studies of classical conditioning.
His experiments on dogs learning association of stimuli.
3. Definition of Classical Conditioning:
A form of learning in which a previously neutral stimulus is paired with an
unconditioned stimulus to elicit a conditioned response that is identical to, or very
similar to the unconditioned response.
4. Classical Conditioning terms:
These terms will be explained with Pavlov's experiment and another real life
example such as, a child crying at the sight of the
Dr. as he is associated to giving a painful injection.
a. Unconditioned stimulus (UCS): This is a stimulus that can elicit a response without learning. In Pavlov's experiment the meat powder and in the other example the injection.
b. Unconditioned Response (UCR): An unlearned inborn reaction to an unconditioned
response. In Pavlov's experiment, salivation to meat powder. In the other example it is crying to the painful
injection.
c. Conditioned Stimulus (CS): A stimulus that comes to elicit responses due to
being paired with an unconditioned stimulus. In Pavlov's experiment, the sound of the
bell, and in the other example the sight of the doctor.
d. Conditioned Response (CR): When a learned response is elicited by the conditioned stimulus. In Pavlov's experiment, salivation to the bell. In
the other example, crying at the sight of the doctor.
5. Extinction: The weakening of a conditioned response by
presenting the CS (bell / doctor) repeatedly
and unaccompanied by the UCS (meat powder / injection).
6. Spontaneous Recovery:
The reappearance of a conditioned response to a conditioned stimulus after
extinction and the passage of time.
7. Higher Order Conditioning:
Conditioned Response elicited to another new Conditioned Stimulus. In Pavlov's experiment
light followed by bell. In theother experiment the clinic
followed by the doctor.
8. Stimulus Generalization:
The tendency for similar stimuli to elicit the same response. In Pavlov's experiment response given to the
metronome instead of the bell. In the other
example the child cries when he sees the barber as he reminds him of the doctor.
9. Stimulus Discrimination:
The tendency for responses to occur more often in the presence of Conditioned
Stimulus only.
10. Importance and Applications of
Classical Conditioning: Classical Conditioning principles
applied in health, advertising etc. Explain
Watson's study to show
how phobias
can be learned. Explain the treatment of
systematic desensitization used to cure phobias.
IV. Sample Discussion Questions
2. How can classical conditioning
explain our responses to stimuli such as colors, odors, names, words and so on?
3. Explain why some dieters confine
eating only in the dining area and not in front of TV etc.
4. Explain the phrase "Old
habits die hard".
5. Explain how advertisers use the
concept of stimulus generalization.
6. Discuss how classical conditioning
can play a role in shaping our attitudes toward members of various ethnic groups.
MEMORY
MODULE
Orlando Correa
Harford Community College
I. Overview
II. Learning
Objectives III. Content
Outline
IV. Sample
Discussion Questions V. Classroom
Activities
VI. Videos/Films on Memory
VII Suggested Reading
The tasks of organizing and encoding information, storing such information and retrieving this information when needed is crucial to the survival of all animals. Typically, this process is called memory. This module will explore what is known about how memory works. It examines various approaches and theories that attempt to explain how informaion is processed from the raw sensory inputs to the eventual interpretation and consolidation of inputs. Additionally, methods for improving memory are presented.
By the end of this module, a student should be able to:
1. Describe Broadbent's (1958) model for Information Processing.
2. Describe Ebbinghaus' classic studies on memory.
3. Describe the characteristics of the three stages of memory: sensory memory, short term memory, and long term memory.
4. Know the limitations of short term and long term memory.
5. Describe three primary measures of memory: recognition, recall, and relearning (savings).
6. Distinguish among implicit, explicit memories, episodic, semantic, and procedural long term memories.
7. Explain various theories for forgetting or failure to retrieve information.
8. Describe the role of the hippocampus, cerebellum, and cerebral cortex in memory.
9. Describe and apply various mnemonic devices.
1. Defining Memory Process
a. Broadbent's theory
b. Ebbinghaus' classic studies
2. Stages of Memory
a. Sensory (or register) memory:
b. Short term memory:
c. Long term memory
Episodic
Semantic
Procedural
reconstructive memory
state dependent memories
déjà vu
3. Measures of Memory
The 3 Rs
4. Theories of Forgetting
EDIMA
Encoding failure
Decay theory
Interference theory
Motivated forgetting (repression)
Amnesia (retrograde and anterograde)
5. Biology of Memory
6. Improving Memory
Mnemonics
a. Simple CHARS
Chunking
Hierarchies
Acronyms
Rote rehearsal
Sentence (acrostics)
b. Elaborate devices
peg-work system
loci method
Story
SQ3R
1. How does the method of encoding affect retrieval of information?
2. What would happen if one were to lose the ability to remember anything?
3. How might failure to encode, store, or retrieve be used to explain learning disabilities?
4. How might different drugs contribute to state dependent memories?
5. How would specific brain damages effect the memory process?
6. Why are mistaken identities (e.g. in criminal cases) common? What elements of the memory process may contribute to this recognition error?
7. Discuss mnemonic strategies that you have used in your studying? How are they explained by memory theory?
There are numerous memory classroom demonstrations and activities available from various publishers and teaching of psychology-related journals. In addition, publishers are also providing multimedia programs which are very helpful in processing theory or activities. The following demonstrations usually work quite well and dramatically emphasize the key ideas associated with each activity.
DEMONSTRATIONS AND ACTIVITIES
1. Sensory Memory Demonstration Briefly replicate Sperling's classic experiment to show that students can absorb more raw information through their visual sense than they can remember in short term memory. For this activity you will need to make a series of overhead transparancies (often publishers will provide these) with different arrays of nine random letters as follows:
F S Q L M R
B T K or A V X etc.
S N U Y C P
While students focus on screen, turn on projector for about a half second. Next ask students to recall as many of the letters as they can. Most students will recall about 4 letters. Flash another transparency for the same period, but this time ask the students to recall a specific row, by saying first (top), second (middle) or third (bottom) rows. Repeat this procedure for each of the succeeding transparencies changing the row to be recalled. Most students will be able to recall whichever row you designate, but not the others. This will demonstrate that all the letters were in their sensory memory, even though only a few could be recalled seconds later. This demo could also be done through a "power point" computer program.
2. Encoding and Retrieval
To quickly demonstrate how encoding effects retrieval, ask a volunteer to recite his social security number, or the month of the years as quickly as they can. This will usually take about 3 to 5 seconds, thus demonstrating that the student remembers well. Then ask the same student to recall the social security number in chronological order or the months of the year in alphabetical order. Students usually take more than 20 seconds to recall the "same" information recalled in the prior trial. Ask the class to process "why the difference"?
3. Short Term Memory Demonstration
To demonstrate the limits of short term memory, develop a list of numbers beginning with a 3 digit number and ending with a twelve digit number (similar to a drivers license). Students are to listen as you read each successive number and record the number. You should say the number at an even rate, approximately one digit per second or less. After reading all the numbers on the list, repeat the numbers while the students check how many they correctly recorded. Students will usually only have 5 to 9 digits correct, demonstrating that the limit of short term memory is approximately 7 ± 2 chunks of information.
4. The Power of Chunking
On a transparency, develop a list of 16 to 20 nouns which can be categorized into four or five groups. For example:
elephant window plane coat grape car apple elk wall scarf shirt cougar boat roof orange door pants whole bike banana
Tell the students that you will be testing their short term memory. Flash the list on an overhead screen for 45 seconds, while the student attempts to learn the list without recording any of the words. After the 45 seconds, the students are asked to recall as many of the words as possible, in any order. Usually the results indicate that the students who used a chunking process remember more than other students. In the above list the 'chunk' categories are vehicle, fruits, clothes, animals, and parts of a house. This exercise can be made a little more difficult by asking the students to count backwards from one hundred out loud until they reach 25, before they are asked to retrieve their list. This latter method also demonstrates the effects of interference.
5. Remembering to Forget - Impossible!
In this effective activity, ask students to forget a specific stimulus (i.e. a three digit number e.g.197 or a nonsense syllable e.g. QEW). Toward the end of a class session you present the students with a unique assignment which you want them to spend significant time on before the following class period. As you write your three digit number or syllable on the board in large script, you tell the students that their "assignment is to forget this number" (or syllable). It helps if you build up the assignment a bit by alluding to its difficulty, and that it will require intense effort on their part. At the next class period, ask how many were able to forget the item. Very few will have forgotten it and will relate that the more they tried to forget the more they actually rehearsed it!
6. Meaningfulness of Information and Memory
This demonstrates that meaningful material is easier to remember. Utilizing
two volunteers, have one wait outside the classwoom while you inform the
first that you will read a list of letters and the task is to remember
as many as possible in order. Then read the following letters, as presented
here and ask this student to repeat the letters:
IMH - APP - YTO - ME - ETY - OU
The first student usually performs poorly on this task. The second student is brought in and given the same instructions and asked to remember as many of the following letters as possible in order.
I'm - happy - to - meet - you.
The second student has little problem repeating the letters. The results can then be processed with the class in terms of how meaningful encoding effects retention.
7. What did you really see? Eye Witness Testimony Demonstration
Invite a former student to come into your classroom and "disrupt" it during the middle of a class presentation. Instruct this confederate student to come in, slam the door open, yell a few derogatives (no cursing allowed!) at you and the subject of psychology, while walking and pointing his finger at you, then leave in a hurry. This should .only take about 20 - 30 seconds. Under the pretext that this student will be reported to security, ask students to write down (so that they don't forget) what they saw happen, and a description of the disruptive student. After a couple of minutes, ask students to share what they wrote, in other words, their eye witness testimony. Students will have an array of descriptions and stories of the event demonstrating the limitations of their ability to absorb and retain details of the disruptive student and incident details, as well as illustrating the concept of perceptual closure as they fill in misinformation. After processing students' difference in memory, have your confederate student return, and confirm what was real and what wasn't.
The Brain, Part 5: Learning and Memory (1984, 60 min, ANN/CPB). Explores the physiological basis of learning and memory through cases studies of an individual with an exceptional memory and an individual experiencing memory loss.
Discovering Psychology, Part 9: Remembering and Forgetting (1990, 30 min, ANN/CPB). Examines memory formation, forgetting through decay and interference, and methods for improving memory.
Learning and Memory (1984, 55 min, PBS). The focus of this film is on the brain changes that take place as memory is consolidated. Chemical and physical theories of the memory process are discussed.
Memory (1980, 30 min, IM). Presents the results of biological and cognitive research on storage, encoding, and retrieval processes. The program also addresses several memory phenomena including disturbances related to disease or accidents, flashbulb memories, and eyewitness testimony.
Memory: Fabric of the Mind (1988, 28 min, FHS). Examines brain research on the biochemical basis of memory and the locations of memories in the brain. Other topics addressed include causes of forgetting, long-term versus short-term memory, and memory improvement techniques.
Memory: The Past Imperfect (1994, 46 min, IM). A range of topics is considered, such as long- and short-term memory, amnesia, eyewitness accuracy, retrieval, and memory skills of babies.
Memory Skills: Power Learning (1991, 25 min, LS). Memory techniques such as visualization and mental "pegboards" are explored, and tips for improving one's memory are offered using short vignettes and examples.
Mind Games (1995, 30 min, IM). The spooky secrets of the mind are explored, such as near-death experiences and hypnosis. Déjà vu is also considered.
Mystery of Memory (1989, 30 min, COR/MTI). This program examines current knowledge of how the brain stores and retrieves information and how this ability decreases over time. A special focus on Alzheimers disease and the devastating impact on its victims.
Persistence of Memory (1980, 58 min, PBS). As part of the Cosmos series, Carl Sagan explores the evolution of the brain as an information storage device. External information storage is also focused on as an extension of human memory.
Best, J. B. Cognitive Psychology, 4th ed. West Publishing, 1995.
Bower, G. H. "Mood and Memory." American Psychologist, 1981, 36: 129-148.
Cermak, L. S. Improving Your Memory. McGraw-Hill, 1976.
Cohen, G., M. W. Eysenak, and M. E. LaVoi. Memory: A Cognitive Approach. Open University Press, 1986.
Donahoe, J. W. and M. G. Wessells. Learning, Language, and Memory. Harper and Row, 1980.
Harris, J. E. and P. E. Morris. Everyday Memory: Actions and Absent-Mindedness. Academic Press, 1984.
Klatzky, R. L. Memory and Awareness: An Information-Processing Perspective. W. H. Freeman, 1984.
Linton, M. "I Remember It Well." Psychology Today, July 1979: 81-86.
Loftus, E. F. Memory. Addison-Wesley, 1980.
Luria, A. R. The Mind of a Mnemonist. Basic Books, 1968.
Lynch, G. "A Magical Memory Tour." Psychology Today, April 1984: 29-39.
McGaugh, J. L. "Preserving the Presence of the Past: Hormonal Influences on Memory Storage." American Psychologist, 1983, 38: 161-174.
Neisser, U. Memory Observed: Remembering in Natural Contexts. W. H. Freeman, 1982.
Spear, N. E. and D. Riccio. Memory: Phenomena and Principles. Allyn and Bacon, 1994.
Tulving, E. Elements of Episodic Memory. Oxford University Press, 1983.
For further information contact:
Orlando Correa
Associate Professor of Psychology
Harford Community College
401 Thomas Run Rd.
Bel Air, MD 21015
Telephone: (410) 836-4182
Fax: (410) 836-4314
E-mail: ocorrea@harford.cc.md.us