Psychology: Memory Lecture Flashcards

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering memory functions, encoding types, storage models, brain anatomy in memory, and common memory errors based on the lecture notes.

Memory

A set of processes used to encode, store and retrieve information over different periods of time.

Encoding

The input of information into the memory system, where the brain labels, organizes, and connects new concepts to existing concepts.

Storage

The retention of the encoded information in the memory system.

Retrieval

The act of getting information out of memory storage and back into conscious awareness.

Automatic processing

The encoding of details like time, space, frequency, and the meaning of words, usually done without conscious awareness.

Effortful processing

The encoding of details that takes time and effort, such as when learning new skills.

Semantic encoding

The encoding of words and their meanings; it is considered the most effective form of encoding as it involves a deeper level of processing.

Visual encoding

The encoding of images, where concrete words such as car or dog are easier to recall than abstract words like truth or value.

Acoustic encoding

The encoding of sounds.

Self-reference effect

The tendency for an individual to have better memory for information that relates to oneself compared to material with less personal relevance.

Baddeley and Hitch Model

A model of storage suggesting short-term memory has different forms including the visuospatial sketchpad, episodic buffer, and phonological loop, supervised by a central executive.

Atkinson-Shiffrin (A-S) Model

A model of memory proposing that information passes through three distinct stages (sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory) to be stored.

Sensory memory

The storage of brief sensory events, such as sights, sounds, and tastes, lasting up to a couple of seconds.

The Stroop effect

A phenomenon where it is difficult to name a color when the word itself and the color of the word are different.

Short-term memory (STM)

A temporary storage system that processes incoming sensory memory and lasts about $20$ seconds.

George Miller’s Capacity

The discovery that the capacity of short-term memory is usually about $7 \text{ items} \times \text{or} \times \text{-} 2$ ($7 \text{ plus or minus } 2$).

Memory consolidation

The transfer of short-term memory to long-term memory, often achieved through rehearsal.

Rehearsal

The conscious repetition of information intended to be remembered.

Long-term memory (LTM)

The continuous storage of information with no limit, comparable to a computer's hard drive.

Explicit (declarative) memory

Memories of facts and events that we can consciously remember and recall.

Semantic memory

A type of explicit memory containing knowledge about words, concepts, and language.

Episodic memory

A type of explicit memory containing information about events personally experienced, also called autobiographical memory.

Hyperthymesia

A highly superior autobiographical memory allowing an individual to recall vast amounts of personal experiences.

Implicit memory

Memories that are not part of our consciousness, often formed through behaviors or emotional conditioning.

Procedural memory

A type of implicit memory that stores information about how to do things, such as skills and actions like riding a bike.

Recall

A way to retrieve information without cues, commonly used for essay tests.

Recognition

Identifying previously learned information after encountering it again, commonly used for multiple choice tests.

Relearning

The process of learning information that was previously learned, which typically happens quicker the second time.

Engram

The group of neurons that serves as the physical representation of memory.

Equipotentiality hypothesis

Karl Lashley’s hypothesis that if part of one brain area involved in memory is damaged, another part of the same area can take over that function.

Amygdala

The brain part involved in fear and fear memories; it processes emotional information important for encoding and consolidation.

Hippocampus

Area associated with explicit, recognition, and spatial memory; damage prevents the formation of new declarative memories.

Cerebellum

The brain structure that plays a role in processing procedural memories and classical conditioning.

Prefrontal cortex

Involved in semantic tasks, where encoding is associated with the left frontal activity and retrieval with the right frontal region.

Arousal Theory

The theory that strong emotions trigger the formation of strong memories and weak emotional experiences form weak memories.

Flashbulb memory

An exceptionally clear recollection of an important, atypical, and emotional event.

Amnesia

The loss of long-term memory due to disease, physical trauma, or psychological trauma.

Anterograde amnesia

The inability to remember new information after a point of trauma, often due to hippocampal damage.

Retrograde amnesia

The loss of memory for events that occurred prior to a point of trauma.

Construction

The formulation of new memories.

Reconstruction

The process of bringing up old memories, which can lead to unintentional alterations and distortions.

Suggestibility

The effects of misinformation from external sources leading to the creation of false memories.

Misinformation effect paradigm

Elizabeth Loftus’s theory that after exposure to incorrect information, a person may misremember the original event.

False memory syndrome

The recall of false autobiographical memories.

Encoding failure

When memory is never stored in the first place due to a lack of effort and attention.

Transience

The memory error where the accessibility of memory decreases over time, also known as storage decay.

Absentmindedness

Forgetting caused by lapses in attention.

Blocking

The temporary inability to access information, commonly known as the tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon.

Misattribution

A memory distortion where the source of a memory is confused.

Egocentric bias

Distorting the past by enhancing memories to make oneself look better.

Hindsight bias

The tendency to think an outcome was inevitable after it has occurred.

Persistence

The inability to forget undesirable or unpleasant memories.

Ebbinghaus forgetting curve

A graph showing that memory for new information decays quickly ($50\text{\%}$ after $20$ minutes and $70\text{\%}$ after $24$ hours).

Retroactive interference

When newly learned information hinders the recall of older information.

Proactive interference

When old information hinders the recall of newly learned information.

Chunking

Organizing information into manageable bits or chunks, such as separating phone numbers.

Elaborative rehearsal

Thinking about the meaning of new information and its relation to existing knowledge to enhance memory storage.

Mnemonic devices

Memory aids, such as the knuckle mnemonic for days of the month, that help organize information for encoding.