Unit 07 Memory

Definitions are from one or more of the following: Fiveable, Wikipedia, and my own design.

information processing model (multi-store model)

a representation that divides the human memory into three separate components: a sensory register, a short-term store, and a long-term store

sensory register/memory

the ability to retain impressions of sensory information after the original stimuli have ended; the shortest-term element of memory

visual information is retained for ~0.25 seconds, auditory information for ~0.5 seconds

iconic memory

a type of sensory memory that holds visual information for 0.25~0.5 seconds before it disappears or gets replaced by new information

echoic memory

a type of sensory memory that stores auditory information for 2~4 seconds before it disappears or gets replaced by new information

short-term memory (working memory)

part of the memory system that holds information temporarily for processing; limited capacity (can hold about 7±2 items for 20–30 seconds)

long-term memory

part of the memory system that holds information for extended periods of time; virtually unlimited capacity and duration

encoding

the process of transforming information into a form that can be stored and retrieved by the brain

storage

the process of placing newly acquired information into memory

retrieval

the process of accessing previously encoded and stored information from long-term memory when needed for recall or recognition

levels of processing model

a model proposing that memory is encoded at three levels from shallowest to deepest: structural, phonemic, and semantic

deeper levels of processing produce more elaborate and stronger memory than more shallow levels of processing

structural

the shallowest level of processing in the levels of processing model, focusing on the physical appearance of information

phonemic

the intermediate level of processing in the levels of processing model, focusing on the sound of information

semantic

the deepest level of processing in the levels of processing model, focusing on the meaning of information

episodic memory

a type of long-term memory that involves recollection of specific events, situations, and experiences in your life

semantic memory

a type of explicit memory consisting of general knowledge, including facts, concepts, and ideas that are not linked to specific personal experiences

procedural memory

a type of implicit memory which aids the performance of particular types of tasks without conscious awareness of these previous experiences

ex: knowing how to ride a bike, motor skills, language

explicit memory (declarative memory)

the conscious, intentional recollection of factual information, previous experiences, and concepts; one of the two main types of long-term human memory

implicit memory

memory that is acquired and used unconsciously; one of the two main types of long-term human memory

prospective vs. retrospective memory

a form of memory that involves remembering to perform a planned action or recall a planned intention at some future point in time

vs.

the memory of people, words, and events encountered or experienced in the past; includes episodic, semantic, and procedural memory

mnemonic devices (categories/hierarchies)

a learning technique that aids information retention or retrieval in the human memory, often by associating the information with something that is easier to remember

ex: knuckle mnemonic for days in certain months, biological categorization of organisms into classes and hierarchical titles

method of loci

a mnemonic strategy that uses visual imagination and spatial memory to organize and recall information

chunking

a process by which small individual pieces of a set of information are bound together to improve encoding and memory capacity

proactive interference

a memory phenomenon where previously learned information interferes with the learning or recall of new information

retroactive interference

a memory phenomenon where newly learned information interferes with the recall of older information

serial position effect

the tendency of a person to recall the first and last items in a series better than those in the middle

primacy effect

the tendency for information presented at the beginning of a list or sequence to be better encoded and remembered

recency effect

the tendency for information presented at the end of a list or sequence to be better encoded and remembered

spacing effect (massed vs. distributed practice)

maintenance rehearsal

elaborative rehearsal

source amnesia

reconstructive memory (memory consolidation and imagination inflation)

state-dependent memory

context-dependent memory

mood-congruent memory

testing effect

misinformation effect

anterograde amnesia

retrograde amnesia

infantile amnesia

recall vs. recognition

tip of the tongue phenomenon

repression (unit 12: personality)

Ebbinghaus’s “forgetting curve”

Baddeley’s “working memory”

note: incl. phonological loop, central executive, visuospatial sketchpad