Psychology in your life Chapter 7

memory

capacity of the nervous system to acquire and retain skills and information for later retrieval

encoding

processing the info so that it can be stored

storage

retention of encoded representations over time

retrieval

recalling or remembering store info when needed

selective attention

attention allows us to encode a memory

filter theory

we selectively attend to the most important info

change blindness

an individuals failure to notice large visual changes in the environment

sensory

brief storage from sensory receptors (1-2 sec)
sparkler

short term memory

passive storage that lasts up to 20-30 sec (limited by capacity and duration

working memory

active manipulation of multiple types of info

long term memory

more permanent (no limit on capacity or duration)

primacy effect

words at the begining of the list are remembered more than the middle

recency effect

words at the end of the list are remembered more than the middle

nuero plasticity

ability of neurons to alter their structure and/or functions

maintenance rehearsal

actively repeating or thinking about info so it remains in short term memory

elaborative rehearsal

mentally encoding info into long term memory in a way that is meaningful

encoding levels

incoming info processed at different levels

levels of processing theory

depth of processing predicts its ease of retrieval

visual

imagery (shallow)

acoustic

sound (intermediate)

semantic

meaning (deep)
more deeply encoded/ remembered better

chunking

group together to make meaningful

recognition

able to identify something after its preserved
multiple choice

recall

produce something from long term memory entirely on your own
fill in/ short answer

context- dependent memory

enhanced retrieval in similar contexts to when material was encoded

state- dependent memory

mood and other psychological states can act as retrieval cues

explicit memories

involves conscious effort

episodel

personal specific events, rich and sensory experience

semantic

knowledge of facts/ concepts and about the world

schemas

ways of structuring memories in long-term storage that helps us perceive, organize, process, and use information

network of associations

items distinctive features are linked in a way that identifies them

retrograde amnesia

when you can remember old memories but not new ones

anterograde amnesia

when you can't remember old memories but you can remember new ones

implicit memories

memories we are unconscious of

procedural memory

memory of how to carry on a task

prospective memory

future oriented
remember to do something (sticky notes)

hippocampus

ability to store new memories

cerebellum

motor actions

amygdala

fear objects

consolidation

experiences become your lasting memories

medial lobes

coordinating and strengthening the connections among neurons when we learn something

retrieval cue

anything that helps us access a memory

mnemonics

learning aids or stratigies that use retrieval cues to improve access to memory

forgetting

occurs due to passage of time

blocking

information is present but temporarily inaccessible
(top of tongue)

retroactive interference

access to older memories is weakened by newer memories

proactive interference

access to newer memories are weekend by older memories

absent mindness

failing to pay attention

persistence

unwanted memories recur despite if we want to remember them
ptsd

memory bias

changing of memories over time so that they become consistent with our current beliefs

flash bulb memories

capture circumstances in which we first learned of a surprising and consequential or emotionally arousing event

misattribution

misremember the time place person or circumstance involved with a memory

suggestibility

when someone suggest something happened so you think it happened