Chapter 7 Psychology
theory suggesting that the passage of time always increases forgetting
decay theory
concentrating on more than one activity at the same time
divided attention
Dr. Marsh has her General Psychology class go through an exercise in which they look at a group of objects and attempt to remember them. Then, she has the class look at another group of objects and. create a story involving them. The class finds the second group easier to remember because of...
elaboration
the formation of a number of different connections around a stimulus at any given level of memory encoding
elaboration
the first step in memory; the process by which information gets into memory storage
encoding
the retention of information about the where, when, and what of life's happenings
episodic memory
the conscious recollection of information, such as specific facts or events
explicit memory
the memory of emotionally significant events that people often recall with more accuracy and vivid imagery than everyday events
flashbulb memory
memory in which behavior is affected by prior experience without a conscious recollection of that experience
implicit memory
theory that people forget because other information gets in the way of what they want to remember
interference theory
Neuroscientists studying memory have benefited greatly from the MRI scans. They are able to see brain activation while a person is remembering. This has led them to conclude that there is...
not one memory center of the brain
theory that memory is stored throughout the brain in connections among neurons, several of which may work together to process a single memory
parallel distributed processing
the activation of information that people already have in storage to help them remember new information better and faster
priming
situation in which material that was learned earlier disrupts the recall of material that was learned later
proactive interference
memory for skills
procedural memory
Aaron has elaborate systems set up on his computer to remind him of all the things he has to do and when he has to do them. The computer is helping Aaron with...
prospective memory
memory for future intentions
prospective memory
After years of taking French, you study Spanish. When the word for "red" in Spanish is required, you correctly say "rojo". But you can't remember the French word for "red". This is an example of...
retroactive interference
Mimi is enthusiastic about baking and has used her grandmother's apple pie recipe for a number of years. Lately, she has been enrolled in pastry classes where she has learned to make 6 varieties of apple pie, so when she tries to make her grandmother's recipe, she becomes confused about ingredients. This is an example of...
retroactive interference
situation in which material that was learned later disrupts the retrieval of information that was learned earlier
retroactive interference
memory loss for a segment of the past but not for new events
retrograde amnesia
remembering information from the past
retrospective memory
a persons knowledge about the world; everyday knowledge
semantic memory
memory of the brief time it is exposed to the visual, auditory, and other senses
sensory memory
the tendency to recall the items at the beginning and end of a list more readily than those in the middle
serial position effect
the ability to maintain attention to a selected stimulus for a prolonged period of time
sustained attention
a memory disorder that affects the retention of new information and events
anterograde amnesia
a special form of episodic memory, consisting of a person's recollections of his or her life experiences
autobiographical memory
theory stating that memory storage involves three separate systems: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory
Atkinson-Shiffrin theory