Memory Processes and Types: Schemas, Interference, and Amnesia

Schemas

Preexisting mental concepts or frameworks (your 'idea' of what something should be or do).

Assimilation

Incorporating new information into existing schemas. (Memory Aid: aSSimilation = Same Stuff)

Accommodation

Adjusting existing schemas to create a new schema. (Memory Aid: ACcommodation = All Change)

Serial Position Effect

The tendency to recall the first items (primacy effect) and last items (recency effect) in a list better than the middle items.

Primacy Effect

Better recall for items at the beginning of a list, often because they have been transferred to Long-Term Memory (LTM).

Recency Effect

Better recall for items at the end of a list, often because they are still held in Short-Term Memory (STM).

Recall

A measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information with few or no external clues (e.g., an essay exam).

Recognition

A measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned (e.g., a multiple-choice test).

Flashbulb Memories

A clear, vivid memory of an emotionally significant moment or event, often aided by stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol.

Repressed Memory

Memories that have been blocked or removed from conscious awareness, often due to the traumatic nature of the event.

Autobiographical Memory

A person's memory for their own personal history and life experiences, combining both episodic and semantic memories.

Encoding Failure

A cause of forgetting that occurs when information was never properly encoded into the memory system in the first place.

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.

Misinformation Effect

The phenomenon where a person's recall of an event becomes less accurate due to information presented after the event.

Imagination Inflation

The increase in confidence that a past event actually occurred after repeatedly imagining the event happening.

Constructive Memory

The process by which we update or recreate our memories by integrating new information, associations, and feelings.

Anterograde Amnesia

The inability to form new memories after the event that caused the amnesia.

Retrograde Amnesia

The inability to remember events that occurred before the event that caused the amnesia.

Source Amnesia

The inability to recall where, when, or how previously learned information was acquired.

gambler's fallacy

mistaken belief that if a random event has occurred more frequently than normal during a given period, it is less likely to happen in the future, or that a losing streak makes a win "due"

sunk-cost fallacy

reluctant to abandon a strategy or course of action because they have invested heavily in it, even when it is clear that abandonment would be more beneficial.

prototype model

A cognitive framework that uses typical examples or best representations of a category, allowing for quicker identification and categorization.

divergent thinking

A thought process used to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions, often characterized by flexibility and originality.

convergent thinking

A cognitive process where a focused approach is used to find a single, correct answer to a problem, emphasizing logic and efficiency over creativity.

availability heuristic

Mental shortcut that relies on immediate examples that come to mind when evaluating a specific topic or decision. It often leads to biased judgments based on readily available information.

framing effect

Cognitive bias where different presentations of the same information lead to different conclusions or decisions. It influences how choices are perceived based on wording or context.

mental set

A cognitive obstacle that occurs when an individual uses a particular strategy or approach to problem-solving, which limits their ability to see alternative solutions. It often leads to fixation on familiar methods.

functional fixedness

A cognitive bias that limits a person to using an object only in the way it is traditionally used, hindering creative problem-solving and alternative uses.