AP Psych 2.3-2.7 Memory

Memory

the persistence of learning over time through encoding, storage, and retrieval of information.

Explicit Memory

Memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and declare.

Also called declarative memory.

Includes episodic and semantic memory

ex. remembering the date of your best friend’s birthday

Episodic Memory (subtype of explicit memory)

Memory of personally experienced events, including the context and emotions involved.

specific to time and place, often emotionally charged

Ex: Recalling the first time you rode a bike, including where you were and how you felt.

Semantic Memory (subtype of explicit memory)

Memory of general knowledge, concepts, and facts not tied to a specific time or place.

mental encyclopedia, does not involve personal experience

ex. Knowing that Paris is the capital of France.

Implicit Memory

Memory that influences behavior without conscious awareness.

Includes skills and conditioned responses.

Automatic and unconscious, includes procedural memory

ex. typing on a keyboard without looking at the keys.

Procedural Memory (subtype of implicit memory)

Memory for motor skills and habits.

often developed through repetition and practice, stored without conscious awareness.

ex. knowing how to tie your shoelaces without thinking about the steps

Prospective Memory

Memory for tasks that need to be done in the future.

“Remembering to remember”, time-based or event-based

overlaps with other types of memory

ex. remembering to take your medication after dinner

Recall

a measure of memory in which a person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test or open ended questions

Recognition

a measure of memory in which a person identifies items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test. set of choices

Relearning

a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material again. reviewing what was forgotten

Encoding

the process of getting information into the memory system

ex. memorizing phone number for later use

Storage

the process of retaining encoded information over time

Retrieval

the process of getting information out of memory storage

Parallel processing

processing multiple aspects of a stimulus or problem simultaneously

ex. driving a car, multitasking

Sensory memory

the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system

lasts only a short period of time

ex. looking at a picture

Short-term memory

briefly activated memory of a few items (such as digits of a phone number while calling) that is late stored or forgotten.

ex. remembering a phone number long enough to dial it

Long-term memory

the relatively permanent, limitless archive of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences.

Multi Store Model

1. Sensory input → enters sensory memory

• Most of it fades quickly unless attention is paid

2. Attention → information is passed to short-term memory

• Actively working on it, rehearsing it, or thinking about it

3. Encoding / rehearsal → information moves from STM to long-term memory

• Can then be retrieved later back into STM when needed

Iconic Memory

the sensory memory for visual information

ex. glancing at a page in a book and momentarily “holding” the visual image of the text

Echoic Memory

sensory memory for auditory information

lasts longer than iconic memory

stores sounds for brief replay, allowing us to process speech and other auditory stimuli.

ex. When someone asks you a question, and you instinctively say "What?" but then answer because your brain replays the last few seconds of the sound.

Working Memory

a type of short-term memory that not only stores information temporarily but also actively processes and manipulates it for tasks like reasoning, learning, and problem-solving.

Central Executive

The "boss" of the working memory system; it directs attention, decides what to focus on, and coordinates the other components.

ex. organizing a road trip. helps you divide attention between checking the map(visuospatial sketchpad), recalling the route details(phonological loop), and deciding the next stop.

Phonological Loop(The Verbal Rehearsal Tool)

• A subsystem of working memory that deals with spoken and written language. It has two parts:

  • Phonological Store: Holds sounds for a short time.

  • Articulatory Rehearsal Process: Repeats the information to keep it active.

ex. memorizing a phone number; repeating it in your head to remember it long enough to dial.

Visuospatial Sketchpad (The Visual and Spatial Workspace)

The subsystem that temporarily stores and manipulates visual and spatial information

ex. playing chess; visualizing future moves and where the pieces might go on the board.

Neurogenesis

the formation of new neurons

Long-term potentiation

is a process in the brain where repeated stimulation of certain neural connections makes those connections stronger.

• happens frequently

• ex. practicing how to ride a bike

Effortful Processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort. 

ex. Studying for test using flashcards

Automatic processing

when your brain does something quickly and easily without you having to think hard about it

ex. Knowing fire is hot

Chunking

Breaking information into smaller, manageable groups to make it easier to process and remember

ex. Phone numbers

Mnemonics

Memory aids that use patterns, associations, or rhymes to make information easier to recall

Ex. Acronym for planet of solar system

Spacing effect

The tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through mass study or practice

Testing effect

Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading information. Also referred to as a retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning.

Massed practice

Practicing or studying intensely in a short period without breaks. Also known as “cramming”

Ex. Studying last minute for a test

Distributed practice

Spreading study or practice session over time with breaks in between. It is more effective for long-term learning.

Shallow processing

Encoding on a basic level, based on the structure of appearance of words

Deep processing

Encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the word, tends to yield the best retention

Structural processing

Focuses on physical appearance or structure of information

-shallowest level

Phonemic Processing

Focused on the sound of the information, such as how it is pronounced

-intermediate level

Semantic Processing

Focuses on the meaning of the information and connecting it to pre-existing knowledge

-deepest level

ex. Understanding that DOG is a domesticated animal, visualizing a pet dog, or linking the word to personal experiences either dogs

Serial Position Effect

The tendency for people to remember the first and last items in a list better than the middle items.

Primary effect

Improved recall of items at the beginning of a list

-earlier rehearsed more and transferred into long-term memory

Recency Effect

Improved recall of items at the end of the r list

recent intel’s are still in short-term memory during recall

Middle Items

Harder to recall because they don’t benefit from the rehearsal(first items) and replaced in short-term memory by later items

Hippocampus

A neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit (conscious) memories — of facts and events — for storage.

Memory Consolidation

The neural storage of a long-term memory

Frontal Lobel

Mainly about working with and controlling memories, not storing long term

Ex. Deciding what to say during a class discussion

Prefrontal Cortex

Very front of the frontal lobe and handles higher-level thinking

• resisting urge to check your phone while studying

Basal ganglia

Where memories for habits & learned routines are created

ex. Typing without looking at keyboard

Cerebellum

“Muscle Memory” procedural memory for motor skills

• hitting a baseball

Maintenance Rehearsal

A shallow processing technique involving the repetition of information to keep it in short term memory

-simple repetition without attaching meaning

Elaborating Rehearsal

A deep processing technique that involves making meaningful connections between new information and prior knowledge

• involves meaning and context

• Ex. Linking a new vocab word to its meaning

Autobiographical Memory

A type of long-term memory that involves recollection of events and experiences from an individual’s life

• combined episodic and semantic memory components

Flashbulb Memory

A clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

Priming

The activation, often unconsciously, of associations in memory

Ex. Seeing the word “yellow” makes you recognize “banana” faster

Encoding Specificity

The idea that cues and context specific to a particular memory will be the most effective in helping us all recall it

Mood-congruent memory

Tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current or bad mood

Context dependent memory

Being back in the same environment in which the original memory occurred can aid in retrieval

Interleaving

A retrieval strategy that involves mixing the study of different topics

• in math, practice +, -, *, / problems at same time

Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve

Describes his information is lost over time when there is no attempt to retain it, and it shows the rate at which we forget newly learned material

Anterograde amnesia

An inability to form new memories

Retrograde amnesia

An inability to remember information from one’s past

Proactive interference

When old memories make it harder to remember new information

• keep typing old password instead of new one

Retroactive interference

When new memories make it harder to remember old information

• learning phone number then forgetting old one

Repression

Defense mechanism in which mid pushes distressing or threatening memories out of conscious awareness

• forgetting traumatic childhood event without realizing it

Reconsolidation

A process by which previously stored memories, when retrieved, are potentially altered before being stored again

• remembering a childhood birthday and then adding new details you weren’t originally aware of.

Misinformation effect

Occurs when memory has been corrupted by misleading information

• broken glass

Source amnesia

Faulty memory of how, when, or where information was learned or imagined

Déjà vu

Eerie sense that “I’ve experienced this before”