Memory and Information Processing

This set of flashcards covers key concepts related to memory, its processes, and phenomena associated with it, as discussed in the lecture.

Childhood Amnesia

The inability to retrieve memories from early childhood due to factors like brain development, cognitive and language development, and social development.

Encoding

The process by which we transform information into an enduring memory.

Storage

The process of maintaining information in memory over time.

Retrieval

The process of bringing to mind something that has been previously encoded and stored.

Sensory Register

Momentarily preserves images of sensory information.

Short-term Memory

Stores recently perceived information and information retrieved from long-term memory for temporary use, lasting up to about 30 seconds.

Working Memory

A type of short-term memory that involves storing and manipulating information.

Long-term Memory

The type of memory that can store large amounts of information over a prolonged period.

Declarative Memory

Explicit memory that includes information we can consciously recall, like facts and events.

Procedural Memory

Implicit memory responsible for knowing how to do things, like skills and tasks.

Flashbulb Memory

A memory that is especially accurate, vivid, and enduring following a dramatic or traumatic event.

Primacy Effect

The tendency for items at the beginning of a list to be better recalled.

Recency Effect

The tendency for items at the end of a list to be better recalled.

Forgetfulness

The inability to retain information due to various reasons including encoding failure or decay.

Retroactive Interference

When recently learned material interferes with the ability to remember similar material stored previously.

Proactive Interference

When previously stored information interferes with the ability to remember more recently learned material.

Source Amnesia

Faulty information regarding how, when, or where information was learned.

Long-term Potentiation

A lasting increase in the strength of synaptic responsiveness, important for memory formation.

Eyewitness Testimony

A legal term referring to an account given by people of an event they have witnessed.

Suggestibility

The tendency to incorporate misleading information from external sources into personal recollections.