Memory

memory

the persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 349)

encoding

the processing of getting information into the memory system—for example, by extracting meaning. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 351)

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 351)

retrieval

the process of getting information out of memory storage. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 351)

sensory memory

the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 351)

short-term memory

activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone number while dialing, before the information is stored or forgotten. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 351)

storage

the retention of encoded information over time. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 351)

working memory

a newer understanding of short-term memory that involves conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 352)

automatic processing

unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 353)

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 354)

rehearsal

the conscious repetition of information, either to maintain it in consciousness or to encode it for storage. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 354)

spacing effect

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 355)

acoustic encoding

the encoding of sound, especially the sound of words. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 356)

semantic encoding

the encoding of meaning, including the meaning of words. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 356)

visual encoding

the encoding of picture images. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 356)

imagery

mental pictures; a powerful aid to effortful processing, especially when combined with semantic encoding. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 358)

echoic memory

a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 362)

iconic memory

a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 362)

long-term potentiation (LTP)

an increase in a synapse's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 365)

explicit memory

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare." (Also called declarative memory.) (Myers Psychology 8e p. 367)

implicit memory

retention independent of conscious recollection. (Also called procedural memory.) (Myers Psychology 8e p. 367)

hippocampus

a neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 368)

recall

a measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 370)

recognition

a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 370)

central executive

the part of working memory that directs attention and processing

phonological loop

the part of working memory that holds and processes verbal and auditory information

visuospatial sketchpad

A component of working memory where we create mental images to remember visual information

episodic buffer

A component of working memory where information in working memory interacts with information in long term memory (eg. relating information you are processing to a previous memory)

levels of processing theory

proposes that deeper levels of processing result in longer-lasting memory codes

semantic memory

deepest level of processing; when we associated what we are learning with meaning

spacing effect/distributed practice

our tendency to retain information more easily if we practice it over time in multiple sessions

Memory Consolidation Theory

sleep helps us remember because it provides our brains with time to restore and rebuild fading memories

serial position effect

our tendency to recall best the last (a recency effect) and first items (a primacy effect) in a list

recency effect

tendency to remember words at the end of a list especially well

primacy effect

tendency to remember words at the beginning of a list especially well

mnemonics

memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices

infantile amnesia

the inability to retrieve memories from much before age 3

retrograde amnesia

loss of memory from the point of some injury or trauma backwards, or loss of memory for the past

anterograde amnesia

an inability to form new memories

Alzheimer's disease

a progressive and irreversible brain disorder characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, language, and, finally, physical functioning

mood-congruent memory

the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood

state-dependent memory

The theory that information learned in a particular state of mind (e.g., depressed, happy, somber) is more easily recalled when in that same state of mind.

context dependent memory

The theory that information learned in a particular situation or place is better remembered when in that same situation or place.

Forgetting Curve (Ebbinghaus)

Describes how the ability of the brain to retain information decreases in time.

Sperling's experiment

classic demonstration of iconic memory; he flashed a series of letters on a screen and found that subjects could remember just a few; however, when he sounded a tone that corresponded to a certain row AFTER the letters were flashed, he found that subjects were able to recall the letters of that row with almost 100% accuracy

imagination inflation

a memory phenomenon in which vividly imagining an event markedly increases confidence that the event actually occurred

source amnesia

attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined

tip of the tongue phenomenon

the temporary inability to remember something you know, accompanied by a feeling that it's just out of reach

proactive interference

the disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information

retroactive interference

the disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information