AP Psychology: Unit 7 Topic 2

Storage, the Biology of Memory, and Retrieval Cues

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

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

long-term potentiation (LTP)

an increase in a synapse’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation (a biological explanation for memory)

amnesia

a loss of memory

implicit memory (procedural)

things that you remember unconsciously or with little effort

explicit memory (declarative)

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and “declare”

episodic memory

memories of specific events and experiences from our lives

semantic memory

general knowledge and facts that we have learned

flahbulb memory

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

hippocampus

a neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage

cerebellum

plays a key role in forming and storing the implicit memories created by classical conditioning

recall

measure of being able to retrieve specific information

recognition

measure of being able to identify information when you see it again

relearning

measure of the amount of time it takes to learn something for the 2nd time

priming

the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory

levels of processing model

how deeply you think about information determines how well you remember it, with deeper, meaningful processing leading to stronger, longer-lasting memories than shallow processing