Psychology-Memory

• the ability to store and retrieve information over time
• memories are constructed, not recorded

• encoding
• storage
• retrieval

the process of transforming what we perceive, think, or feel into an enduring memory

the process of maintaining information in memory over time.

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

• the process of relating new information in a meaningful way to knowledge that is already stored in memory
• increases activity in the lower left part of the frontal lobe and the inner part of the temporal lobe

• semantic encoding
• visual imagery encoding
• organizational encoding
• survival encoding

• semantic judgement: required participants to think about the meaning of the words
• rhyme judgement: required participants to think about the sound of the words
• visual judgements: required participants to think about the appearance of the words

• the process of storing new information by converting it into mental pictures
• encoding activates visual processing regions in the occipital lobe

• the process of categorizing information according to the relationships among a series of items
• activates the upper surface of the left frontal lobe

• memory mechanism that help us to survive and reproduce should be preserved by natural selection
• resulted in higher levels of recall than several other non-survival encoding tasks

• sensory storage
• short term storage
• long term storage

type of storage that holds sensory information for a few seconds or less

• Iconic memory: a fast-decaying storage of visual information (1 sec or less)
• Echoic memory: a fast-decaying storage of auditory information ( about 5 sec)

• holds nonsensory information for more than a few seconds but less then a minute (15-20 sec)
• needs attention in order to form
• rehearsal must be maintained or info will be lost

the process of keeping information in sort-term memory by mentally repeating it

• involves combining small pieces of info into larger clusters or chunks that are more easily held in short term memory
• waitresses who use organizational encoding

• refers to active maintenance of info in short term storage
• regions within the frontal lobe

• is a type of storage that holds info for hours, days, weeks or years
• has no known capacity limits
• needs encoding in order to form and retrieval in order to remain
• hippocampal region important

the inability to transfer new info from the short term storage to the long term storage (after surgery/injury)

the inability to retrieve info that was acquired before a particular date, usually the date of an injury or surgery.

the process by which memories become stable in the brain (short term becomes long term)

memories become vulnerable to disruption when they are retrieved, thus requiring them to be consolidated again

• sending a neurotransmitter across a synapse changes the synapse
• it strengthens the connection between the two neurons, making it easier for them to transmit to each other next time
• this provides neurological basis for long term memory

a process whereby communication across a synapse between neurons strengthens the connection making further communication easier.

• occurs in several pathways within the hippocampus
• can be induced rapidly
• can last for a long time

external info that is associated with the stored info and helps bring it to mind

• states that a retrieval cue can serve as an effective reminder when it helps re-create the specific way in which info was initially encoded
• EX. sitting on the same desk in class everyday and taking the test in that same desk

• the tendency for info to be better recalled when the person in in the same state during encoding and retrieval
• when your in a sad mood, its more likelt you'll retrieve sad episodes

the idea that memory is likely to transfer from one situation to another when the encoding and retrieval contexts of the situations matches

a process by which retrieving an item from long-term memory impairs subsequent recall of related items

• regions in the frontal lobe show heightened activity when people try to retrieve info
• successfully remembering tends to be accompanied by activity in the hippocampal region and sensory features of an experience

when people consciously or intentionally retrieve past experiences

• when past experiences influence later behaviour and performance, even without an effort to remember them or an awareness of the recollection
• does not require hippocampus

• kind of implicit memory
• the gradual acquisition of skills as a result of practice, or "knowing how" to do things

• kind of implicit memory
• an enhanced ability to think of a stimulus, such as a word or object, as a result of a recent of recent exposure to the stimulus
• EX. fill-in-the-blanks

• perceptual priming: which reflects implicit for the sensory features of an item; depends primarily on regions toward the back of the brain such as visual cortex
• conceptual priming: which reflects implicit memory for the meaning of the word or how you would use the object; depends more on regions toward frontal lobe

a network of associated facts and concepts that make up our general knowledge of the world

• the collection of past personal experiences that occurred at a particular time and place
• allows us to think about the future

forgetting what occurs with passage of time

• situations in which later learning impairs memory for info acquired earlier.
• ex. cant remember what happened on Monday by end of the week

situations in which earlier learning impairs memory for info acquired later ex. same car parking spot

• a lapse in attention that results in memory failure
• less activity in lower left frontal lobe when attention divided

• remembering to do things in the future
• major source of absentmindedness

• a failure to retrieve info that is available in memory even though you are trying to produce it
• usually occurs for the names of people and places
• EX. tip of the tongue experience

• assigning a recollection or idea to the wrong source
• primary cause of eyewitness misidentification
• damage to frontal lobes are especially prone

recall of how, when, and where info was acquired

• a feeling of familiarity about something that hasn't been encountered before
• probably involves disruption to the temporal lobe

• the tendency to incorporate misleading info from external sources into personal recollections
• can develop false memories

the distorting influence of present knowledge, beliefs, and feelings on recollection of previous experiences

• consistency bias: exaggerates the similarity between past and present
• change bias: exaggerate differences between what we feel or believe now and what we felt or believed in the past
• egocentric bias: to exaggerate the change between present and past in order to make ourselves look good in retrospect.

the intrusive recollection of events that we wish we could forget

detailed recollections of when and where we heard about shocking events.