Psychology in Everyday Life Chapter 7 (Myers/DeWall)

Memory

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

Encoding

The process of getting information into the memory system

Storeage

The process of retaining encoded information over time

Retrieval

The process of getting information out of memory storage

Sensory Memory

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

Short-Term Memory

Briefly activated memory of a few items that is later stored or forogtten

Long-Term Memory

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

Working-Memory

A newer understanding of short-term memory; conscious, active processing of both (1) incoming sensory information and (2) information retrieved from long-term memory

Implicit Memories

Retention of learned skills, or classically conditioned associations, without conscious awareness

Automatic Processing

Unconscious encoding of everyday information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of familiar or well-learned information, such as sounds, smells, and word meanings

Explicit Memories

Retention of facts and personal events you can consciously retrieve

Effortful Processing

Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

Parallel Processing

Processing many aspects of a stimulus or problem at the same time

Chunking

Organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically

Mnemonics

Memory aids, especially techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices

Spacing Effect

The tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice (cramming)

Testing Effect

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

Semantic Memory

Explicit memory of facts and general knowledge; one of our two conscious memory systems

Episodic Memory

Explicit memory of personally experienced events

Hippocampus

A neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories of facts and events for storage

Memory Consolidation

The neural storage of a long-term memory

Flashbulb Memory

A clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)

An increase in a nerve cell's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. LTP is a neural basis for learning and memory

Recall

Memory demonstrated by retrieving information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test

Recognition

Memory demonstrated by identifying items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test

Relearning

Memory demonstrated by time saved when learning material again

Retrieval Cues

Any stimulus linked to a specific memory

Priming

The activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory

Encoding Specificity Principle

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

Mood-Congruent Memory

The tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with your current good or bas mood

Serial Position Effect

Our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list

Anterograde Amnesia

An inability to form new memories

Retrograde Amnesia

An inability to remember information from our past

Memory Trace

Lasting physical change in the brain as a memory forms

Proactive Interference

The forward acting disruptive effect of older learning on the recall of new information

Retroactive Interference

The backward acting disruptive effect of newer learning on the recall of old information

Repress

In psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness the thoughts, feelings, and memories that arouse anxiety

Reconsolidation

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

Misinformation Effect

Occurs when a memory has been corrupted by misleading information

Source Amnesia

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

Deja Vue

Cues from the current situation may unconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience