AP Psychology Unit 2: Cognition (Memory)

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

Working memory

the part of memory that holds a limited amount of information at the ready for immediate use

Long-term memory

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

Maintenance rehearsal

repeatedly verbalizing or thinking about a piece of information; allows information to be held from 20-30

Elaborative rehearsal

transferring something to long-term memory by thinking about its meaning, as opposed to simply repeating it over and over

Memory retention

the ability to retain and use information

Autobiographical memory

a form of episodic memory consisting of a person's recollections of his or her life experiences

Retrograde amnesia

loss of memory from the point of some injury or trauma backwards, or loss of memory for the past

Anterograde amnesia

inability to form new memories while still maintaining past memories

Alzheimer's disease

a specific type of dementia characterized by progressive memory loss and cognitive decline

Infantile amnesia

inability of adults to remember personal experiences that took place before an early age

Retrieval

the process of bringing to mind information that has been previously encoded and stored

Recall

retrieving information from past learning or experience without a memory cue

Recognition

identifying information previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test

Retrieval cues

stimuli that aid the recall or recognition of information stored in memory

Context-dependent memory

the theory that information is better remembered when when a person is present in the same environment in which the original memory was formed

Mood-congruent memory

a phenomenon that explains how a person is able to recall a memory in more detail if it coincides with their mood at the current time

State-dependent memory

a phenomenon that explains why a memory is improved when the person is in the same biological or psychological state as when the memory was initially formed

Testing effect

the phenomenon that testing an individual's memory makes the memory stronger and easier to retrieve

Metacognition

the phenomenon that learners can improve retrieval by understanding and regulating their own learning process, including their beliefs about learning

Forgetting curve

a mathematical formula by Ebbinghaus that demonstrates the rate at which information is forgotten over time if there is no attempt to retain it

Encoding failure

the inability to recall specific information because of insufficient encoding for storage in long-term memory

Proactive interference

the disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information

Retroactive interference

the disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information

Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon

the temporary inability to remember something you know, accompanied by a feeling that it's just out of reach

Repression

a theory that information or memories can be forgotten to defend the mind from distress

Misinformation effect

when misleading information encountered after an event has corrupted one's memory of the event

Source amnesia

the inability to recall where, when, or how one has learned something

Constructive memory

the theory that memories may not fully recall what actually happened since they can be "updated" by new information that is inaccurate

Imagination inflation

a phenomenon in which vividly imagining an event (that may not have happened) greatly increases one's confidence that the event actually occurred