2019/20 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

PSYC3542 New Perspectives on Human Memory

15 creditsClass Size: 70

Module manager: Dr Denis McKeown
Email: d.mckeown@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable

Year running 2019/20

Pre-requisite qualifications

Successful completion of all pass for progression modules in Level 2 of: BSc Psychology or MPsyc, BSc Advanced Psychology or BA Philosophy, Psychology and Scientific Thought (and its International and Industrial variants)

Module replaces

PSYC3537 Contemporary Memory Research

This module is not approved as a discovery module

Module summary

This module challenges current thinking in the psychology of human memory. You will be introduced to new ways of thinking about memory as a record of your most immediate past unfolding in time (from seconds to minutes to hours). We will consider new studies (and some old ones) of why we forget and face up to the big question “does memory decay?” We will look at new ways of studying forgetting using sounds and colours, and also have a look at what may be going on in the brain at the moment of remembering and the moment of recalling.

Objectives

Students will specialise in conceptual and theoretical issues relating to core topics in the mind sciences spanning verbal and especially non-verbal memory, allowing students to critically reflect upon most recent selected research papers. A variety of research methodologies will be discussed, including neuroscience using event-related potentials and colour memory tasks.

Learning outcomes
On completion of this module students should be able to:
1) evaluate new developments in our understanding of encoding and retrieval of information over the short term (from seconds to minutes to hours);
2) understand the neurobiological substrates of encoding, maintenance and recollection, especially the hippocampus.
3) critically evaluate selected studies in human memory, especially ones on forgetting

Skills outcomes
The module supports the development of
- analytic thinking
- evident-based reasoning
- information retrieval and evaluation of published studies and reviews

Syllabus

• Human memory as a temporal record of the immediate past;
• forgetting as memory trace decay;
• forgetting as the outcome of interfering events;
• encoding as pattern separation;
• recall as pattern completion;
• memory for colours;
• memory for sounds;
• the temporal confusion of recent events.

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Drop-in Session	1	1.00	1.00
Lecture	10	1.50	15.00
Private study hours			134.00
Total Contact hours			16.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			150.00

Private study

Reading and private study will be based on key journal articles which will be demanding and of current theoretical 'hot topics' in the area of memory and cognition, in high-impact journals (including selected articles published on-line ahead of print) providing students with insight into the development of ideas in the field.
Students will have 134 hours of private study, including studying the essentials readings across the lectures week 2-10 (9 x 6 = 54 hours), and independent literature searches, reading and preparation for a two-hour examination (79 hours).

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Students will receive regular encouragement to review their readings provided in each lecture. Discussion papers will be handed out in lecture 2 and students will submit a 1 page summary. The module leader will provide feedback to each student about the work submitted.
A post examination feedback session will provide students with an opportunity to learn how to improve their examination essay writing.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Literature Review	1 page summary about selected journal articles	0.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		0.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated

Exams

Exam type	Exam duration	% of formal assessment
Exam with advance information on questions	2 hr 00 mins	100.00
Total percentage (Assessment Exams)		100.00

Section 1: seen question (provided in Week 2); Section 2: unseen questions (to answer 1 from a choice of 3)

Reading list

There is no reading list for this module

Last updated: 26/10/2018

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