心理学与生活-第50节

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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。　

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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。　

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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