psyc101 ch7

memory

memory

learning over time thru encoding, storage, retrieval of info

encoding

putting info into memory system

storage

keeping encoded info over time

retrieval

getting info out of memory storage

sensory memory

immediate, brief recording of sensory info in memory system

short-term memory

briefly activated memory of a few things, later stored or forgotten

long-term memory

• permanent, limitless archive of memory

• knowledge, skills, experience

working memory

• short-term memory

• conscious active processing of incoming sensory info, info retrieved from long-term mem

implicit memory

• retention of learned skills without conscious awareness

• nondeclarative memory

automatic processing

• unconscious encoding of everyday info — space, time, frequency, familiar info

explicit memory

• retention of facts, personal events you can consciously retrieve

  • declarative memory

effortful processing

encoding that uses attention and conscious effort

parallel processing

processing many aspects of stimulus or problem at same time

chunking

• organizing items into familiar, manageable units

• automatic

mnemonics

memory aids; uses vivid imagery, organizational devices

spacing effect

better long-term retention from distributed study

testing effect

• better memory after retrieving instead of rereading info

• retrieval practice effect / test-enhanced learning

semantic memory

explicit memory of facts and general knowledge

episodic memory

explicit memory of personally experienced events

hippocampus

• neural center in limbic system

• processes explicit, conscious memory for storage

memory consolidation

neural storage of long-term memory

flashbulb memory

clear memory of emotionally significant moment or event

long-term potential (LTP)

• inc in nerve cell’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation

• neural basis for learning and memory

recall

• retrieving info learned before

• fill-in-the-blank

recognition

• identifying items previously learned

• multiple choice test

relearning

time saved relearning material

retrieval cue

any stimulus linked to specific memory

priming

unconscious activation of particular associations in memory

encoding specificity principle

cues and contexts specific to memory will be most effective in helping us recall it

mood-congruent memory

tendency to remember experiences that match current mood

serial position effect

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

anterograde amnesia

can’t form new memories

retrograde amnesia

can’t remember info from past

memory trace

lasting physical change in brain as memory forms

proactive interference

older learning makes recall of new info difficult

retroactive interference

newer learning makes recall of old info hard

repression

• psychoanalytic theory

• basic defense mechanism that stops anxious memories in consciousness

reconsolidation

• prev stored memories gets altered after retrieval

• altered version gets restored

misinformation effect

memory corrupted by misleading info

source amnesia

faulty memory for how, when, where info was learned or imagined

deja vu

cues from present unconsciously triggers retrieval of earlier experience