AP Psych Cognition Part I

memory

memory

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

encoding

the processing of information into the memory system

storage

the process of retaining encoded information over time

retrieval

the process of getting information out of memory storage

parallel processing

the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously

learning

brain neural connections change, forming and strengthening pathways that allow you to interact with and learn from the constantly changing environment

sensory memory

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

short-term memory

activated memory that holds a few items briefly before the information is stored or forgotten

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system; includes knowledge, skills, and experiences

working memory (short-term memory)

a new understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information and of information retrieved from long-term memory

explicit memory (declarative memory)

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

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

implicit memory (nondeclarative memory)

retention independent of conscious recollection

automatic processing

unconscious encoding of incidental information

ex: space, time, frequency, well-learned info (word meanings)

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

chunking

organizing items into familiar, manageable units

mnemonics

memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices

hierarchies

broad concepts divided and subdivided into narrower concepts and facts

spacing effect

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than massed study

testing effect

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information

shallow processing

encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words

deep processing

encoding semantically, based on the meaning of words; tends to yield the best retention

hippocampus

the part of the brain that lays down new explicit memories (names or events)

flashbulb memories

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

amygdala

part of the brain involved in emotional memories

long-term potentiation

an increase in a cell’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation—believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory

recall

retrieving information that is not currently in your conscious awareness but that was learned at an earlier time

ex: fill-in-the-blank

recognition

identifying items previously learned

ex: multiple choice

relearning

learning something more quickly when you learn it a second or later time

Ebbinghaus

tests or recognition and time spent learning demonstrate that we remember more than we can recall

retrieval cues

stimuli that help people retrieve memories

priming

the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response; “memoryless memory”

state-dependent memory

what we learn in one state (drunk/sober) may be more easily recalled when in that state again

mood congruent

emotions that accompany good or bad events become retrieval cues

ex: thinking of other bad times when sad, la vie en rose when happy

serial position effect

our tendency to recall best the last (recency effect) and first (primacy effect) in a list

anterograde amnesia

an inability to form new memories; can recall past

retrograde amnesia

an inability to retrieve information from one’s past

Ebbinghaus’ forgetting curve

memory for novel info fades quickly then levels out

proactive interference

when prior learning disrupts your recall of new information (forward-acting)

retroactive interference

when new learning disrupts recall of old information (backward-acting)

repression

the exclusion of distressing memories from the conscious mind (self-censoring information subconsciously)

Sigmund Freud

famous psychologist associated with repression

reconsolidation

we often reconstruct our memories as we encode them, and every time we “replay” a memory we replace the original with a slightly modified version

misinformation effect

incorporating misleading information into one’s memory of an event

Elizabeth Loftus

psychologist associated with the Misinformation Effect

source amnesia

attributed to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined

deja vu

the eerie sense that “I’ve already experienced this before.”; cues from the current situation may unconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience