Long-Term Memory: Structure

These flashcards cover key vocabulary related to long-term memory, including its structure, processes, and distinctions among types of memory.

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

The system that stores information for long periods, functioning as an 'archive' of past events and knowledge.

Serial Position Curve

A graphical representation showing that recall is better for items at the beginning (primacy effect) and end (recency effect) of a list than for those in the middle.

Primacy Effect

The phenomenon where items presented at the beginning of a list are recalled better due to more rehearsal time.

Recency Effect

The phenomenon where items presented at the end of a list are recalled better because they are still present in short-term memory.

Visual Coding

The representation of information in the mind in the form of visual images, used in both short-term and long-term memory.

Auditory Coding

The representation of information in the mind in terms of sound, commonly used in short-term memory.

Semantic Coding

The encoding of information based on its meaning; it is predominant in long-term memory.

Proactive Interference

The reduction in performance of memory when previously learned information interferes with new information.

Release from Proactive Interference

An increase in recall performance that occurs when the category of presented items changes, indicating semantic coding.

Episodic Memory

A type of long-term memory that involves the recollection of specific experiences tied to a time and place.

Semantic Memory

A type of long-term memory that involves the storage of general knowledge, facts, and concepts unrelated to personal experience.

Autobiographical Memory

Memory for specific experiences in an individual's life that includes both episodic and semantic components.

Remember/Know Procedure

A method to distinguish between recollection (remember) and familiarity (know) in memory assessments.

Implicit Memory

Memory that occurs without conscious awareness, demonstrated in skills and conditioned responses.

Procedural Memory

Memory for skills and actions that can be performed without conscious awareness of the learning process.

Priming

An implicit memory effect where exposure to one stimulus influences the response to another stimulus.

Classical Conditioning

A learning process that occurs when two stimuli are repeatedly paired, leading to a conditioned response.

Neuropsychological Evidence

Observations from brain-damaged individuals that help distinguish different types of memory based on the impact of brain injuries.

Hippocampus

A brain region critical for forming new long-term memories, particularly episodic memories.

Expert-Induced Amnesia

The phenomenon where highly practiced skills become automatic to the extent that the performer cannot reflect on their actions.

Memory Loss Depicted in Movies

Variations in the portrayal of memory loss in films, often blending fact with fiction, which impacts public perceptions of memory disorders.