AP Psychology Unit 7 Module 31

Echoic memory

Definition: A momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; it attention is elsewhere, sounds & words can still be recalled w/in 3 or 4 secs Application: Humans remember sounds and words in slightly different ways. Memory for sound is referred to as echoic memories, which can be defined as very brief sensory memory of some auditory stimuli. Typically, echoic memories are stored for slightly longer periods of time than iconic memories (visual memories). Echoic and iconic memories are sensory memories, not types of long-term memory, and thus are very temporary and fade quickly.

Chunking

Definition: A very basic definition is that chunking is a way of organizing information into familiar groupings. This is done with all sorts of information, including numbers, single words, and multiple-word phrases which are collapsed into a single word, to create acronyms. The main advantage of this type of mnemonic device is that it enhances retention and memory. Application: For example, how do you remember the names of the 5 Great Lakes? If you just remember the acronym, HOMES, you may find it easier to remember that the names of the Great Lakes are Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior

Effortful processing

Definition: Effortful processing is just as the name implies; learning or storing (encoding) that requires attention and effort. Application: We have the capacity to remember lots of things without putting forth any effort. However, there are lots of times when we must practice, rehearse, and try to remember things. When we engage in any technique to help remember information better, we are engaging in effortful processing.

Shallow processing

Definition: Encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words Application: They theorized that memory recall was based on the depth of processing and that deeper and more meaningful processing made recall easier. Shallow processing uses only surface features for information processing and is not as involved as deep processing.

Deep processing

Definition: Encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the words; tends to yield the best retention Application: Phonemic processing is the encoding of only the auditory information. Shallow processing usually only results in the short term retention of the information. According to this theory the best way to recall information easily is by using semantic processing which is encoding the meaning of information and relating it to similar ideas and concepts. More analysis of information and its meaning leads to better recall than shallow processing.

Iconic memory

Definition: Humans remember sounds and words in slightly different ways. Memory for visual stimuli is referred to as iconic memory, which can be defined as very brief sensory memory of some visual stimuli, that occur in the form of mental pictures. Application: For example, if I ask you to look at a picture and then close your eyes and try to see the picture, what you can "see" in your mind's eye is an iconic memory of the image in the picture. Typically, iconic memories are stored for slightly shorter periods of time than echoic memories (auditory memories). Please be aware that both echoic and iconic memories are sensory memories, not types of long-term memory, and thus are very temporary and fade quickly.

Mnemonics

Definition: Mnemonics are simply memory aids. Anything you do (any technique you use) to help you remember something can be considered a mnemonic Application: For example, if you use the phrase "Emma has a dilemma" in order to remember how to correctly spell "dilemma" you are using a mnemonic.

Implicit memories

Definition: Retention independent of conscious recollection Application: Implicit memory is sometimes referred to as unconscious memory or automatic memory. Implicit memory uses past experiences to remember things without thinking about them. The performance of implicit memory is enabled by previous experiences, no matter how long ago those experiences occurred.

Spacing effect

Definition: Spacing Effect states that we learn material more effectively and easily when we study it several times spaced out over a longer time span, rather than trying to learn it in a short period of time. Application: Spacing Effect states that we learn material more effectively and easily when we study it several times spaced out over a longer time span, rather than trying to learn it in a short period of time.

Testing effect

Definition: Testing an individual's memory makes the memory stronger and easier to retrieve. This is known as the testing effect. Application: The timing of the testing is important - the information is more likely to be remembered if tested the day after learning rather than a week after learning. The testing effect is related to the forgetting curve which shows that the most rapid loss of information occurs within the first few days after learning the new information.

Automatic procssing

Definition: Unconscious encoding of incidental information Application: Automatic processing is sort of like muscle memory. When you start to do something that you have done many times, and you can complete it successfully without giving it any thought, that's automatic processing. It can actually be disruptive to begin to think about the process once it has started automatically. If you have ever played the piano, or knitted a scarf, you know how your hands seem to move on their own while your mind goes somewhere else. When you look back at your music or yarn, you might lose your place and stumble over the next steps, interrupting the automatic process.

Working memory

Definition: a newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved fron long-term memory Application: Working memory is a system for temporarily storing and managing the information required to carry out complex cognitive tasks such as learning, reasoning, and comprehension.

Short-term memory

Definition: activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone number while dialing, before the information is stored or forgotten Application: Short Term Memory is the part of the memory system where information is stored for roughly 30 seconds. Information can be maintained longer with the use of such techniques as rehearsal. Most people can only store roughly 7 chunks of information plus or minus 2.

Explicit memory

Definition: memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare" Application: Explicit memory (or declarative memory) is one of the two main types of long-term human memory. Explicit memory involves conscious recollection, compared with implicit memory which is an unconscious, unintentional form of memory

Sensory information

Definition: the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system Application: Sensory information is stored in sensory memory just long enough to be transferred to short-term memory. Humans have five traditional senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell, touch. Sensory memory (SM) allows individuals to retain impressions of sensory information after the original stimulus has ceased.

Memory

Definition: the persistence of learning over time through the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information Application: Memory is the means by which we draw on our past experiences in order to use this information in the present. Memory is the term given to the structures and processes involved in the storage and subsequent retrieval of information.

Retrieval

Definition: the process of getting information out of memory storage Application: Psychologists distinguish between three necessary stages in the learning and memory process: encoding, storage, and retrieval. Encoding is defined as the initial learning of information; storage refers to maintaining information over time; retrieval is the ability to access information when you need it.

Storage

Definition: the process of retaining encoded information over time Application: Encoding this information makes the process of retrieval easier for the brain where it can be recalled and brought into conscious thinking. Modern memory psychology differentiates between the two distinct types of memory storage: short-term memory and long-term memory.

Encoding

Definition: the processing of information into the memory system Application: In psychology, encoding (or memory encoding) is considered the first of three stages in the memory process. In order to form a memory, the brain must process, or encode, new facts and other types of information into a storable form so that it can be recalled at a later time

Parallel Processing

Definition: the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions. Contrasts with the step-by-step (serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving Application: Parallel processing is the ability of the brain to do many things (aka, processes) at once. For example, when a person sees an object, they don't see just one thing, but rather many different aspects that together help the person identify the object as a whole.

Long-term memory

Definition: the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences Application: The term long-term memory refers to the unlimited capacity memory store that can hold information over lengthy periods of time. In addition, there are three types of memories that can be stored in LTM: procedural memory, semantic memory, and episodic memory.