Chapter6

Memory Schema

-An organized knowledge structure, such as a set of beliefs, that reflects one's past experiences, expectations, and knowledge about the world.

Consolidation

-The process of converting short-term memories into long-term memories.

Mnemonic

A device for improving memory.

Proactive Interference

A form of interference in which material learned earlier interferes with retention of newly acquired information.

Retroactive Interference

A form of interference in which newly avquired information interferes with retention of material learned earlier.

Misinformation Effect

A form of memory distortion that affects eyewitness testimony and that is caused by misinformation provided during the retention interval.

Eidetic Imagery

A lingering mental representation of a visual image (commonly called photographic memory).

Recall Task

A memory task, such as an essay test, requiring retrieval of stored information with minimal cues available.

Recognition Task

A method of measuring memory retention that assesses the ability to select the correct answer from among a range of alternative answers.

Savings Method

A method of testing memory retention by comparing the numbers of trials needed to learn material with the number of trials needed to relearn the material at a later time.

Three-Stage Model

A model of memory that posits three distinct stages of memory: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory.

Dissociative Amnesia

A psychologically based form of amnesia involving the "splitting off" from memory of traumatic or troubling experiences.

Semantic Network Model

A representation of the organizational structure of long-term memory in terms of a network of assocaited concepts.

Iconic Memory

A sensory store for holding a mental representation fo a visual image for a fraction of a second.

Echoic Memory

A sensory store for holding a mental representation of a sound for a few seconds after it registers in the ears.

Sensory Register

A temporary storage device for holding sensory memories.

Decay Theory

A theory of forgetting that posits that memories consist of traces laid down in the brain that gradually deteriorate and fade away over time (also called trace theory).

Constructionist Theory

A theory that holds that memory is not a replica of the past, but a representation, or reconstruction of the past.

Acrostic

A verse or saying in which the first or last letter of each word stands for something else.

Acronym

A word composed of the first letters of a series of words.

Tip-of-the-Tongue (TOT) Phenomenon

An experience in which people are sure they know something but can't seem to bring it to mind.

Priming Task

An experimental task in which subjects are presented with a stimulus that primes them to respond in a certain way to subsequent stimuli.

Retrieval Cues

Cues associatoin with the original learning that facilitate the retrieval of memories.

Flashbulb Memories

Enduring memories of emotionally charged events that seem permanently seared into the brain.

Repression

In Freudian theory, a type of defense mechanism involving motivated forgetting of anxiety-evoking material.

Engram

Lashley's term for the physical trace or etching or a memory in the brain.

Retrograde Amnesia

Loss of memory of past events.

Amnesia

Loss of memory.

Anterograde Amnesia

Loss or impairment of the ability to form or store new memories.

Explicit Memory

Memory accessed through conscious effort.

Implicit Memory

Memory accessed without conscious effort.

Neuronal Networks

Memory circuits in the brain that consist of complicated networks of nerve cells.

Declarative Memory

Memory of facts and personal information that requires a conscious effort to bring to mind (also called explicit memory).

Semantic Memory

Memory of facts.

Procedural Memory

Memory of how to do things that require motor or performance skills.

Retrospective Memory

Memory of past experiences or events and previously acquired information.

Episodic Memory -

Memory of personal experiences.

Prospective Memory

Memory of things one plans to do in the future.

Overlearning

Practice repeated beyond the point of necessary to reproduce material without error.

Retrieval Theory

The belief that forgetting is the result of a failure to access stored memories.

Interference Theory

The belief that forgetting is the result of the interference of memories with each other.

Levels-of-Processing Theory

The belief that how well or how long informaton is remembered depends on the depth of encoding or processing.

Encoding Specificity Principle

The belief that retrieval will be more successful when cues available during recall are similar to those present when the material was first committed to memory.

Central Executive

The component of working memory responsible for coordinating the other subsystems, receiving and processing stored information, and filtering out distracting thoughts.

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)

The long-term strengthening of neural connections as the result of repeated stimulation.

Short-Term Memory (STM)

The memory storage system that allows for short-term retention of information before it is either transferred to long-term memory or forgotten.

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

The memory subsystem responsible for long-term storage of information.

Working Memory

The memory system that enables you to hold and manipulate information in your mind for brief periods of time.

Childhood Amnesia

The normal occurance of amnesia for events occurring during infancy and early childhood.

Memory Retrieval

The process of accessing and bringing into consciousness information stored in memory.

Memory Encoding

The process of converting information into a form that can be stored in memory.

Chunking

The process of enhancing retention of a large amount of information by breaking it down into smaller, more easily recalled chunks.

Maintenance Rehearsal

The process of extending retention of information held in short-term memory by consciously repearing the information.

Memory Stage

The process of retaining information in memory.

Elaborate Rehearsal

The process of transferring information from short-term to long-term memory by consciously focusing on the meaning of the information.

Phonological Loop

The speech-based part of working memory that allows for the verbal rehearsal of sounds or words.

Visuospatial Sketchpad

The storage buffer for visual-spatial material held in short-term memory.

Sensory Memory

The storage system that holds memory of sensory impressions for a very short time.

Memory

The system that allows us to retain information and bring it to mind.

Context-Dependent Memory Effect

The tendency for information to be better recalled in the same context in which it was originally learned.

State-Dependent Memory Effect

The tendency for information to be better recalled when the person is in the same psychological or physiological state then the information was first learned.

Massed vs. Spaced Practice Effect

The tendency for retention of learned material to be greater with spaced practice than with massed practice

Serial Position Effect

The tendency to recall items at the start or end of a list better than items in the middle of a list.

Primacy Effect

The tendency to recall items better when they are learned first.

Recency Effect

The tendency to recall items better when they are learned last.