Introduction to Psychology Gateways to Mind and Behavior 13e chapter 7

Hippocampus

A brain structure associated with emotion and the transfer of information from short-term memory to long-term memory.

Echoic memory

A brief continuation of sensory activity in the auditory system after a sound in heard.

Supression

A conscious effort to put something out of mind or to keep it form awareness.

Curve of forgetting

A graph that shows the amount of memorized information remembered after varying lengths of time.

Implicit memory

A memory that a person does not know exists; a memory that is retrieved unconsciously.

Explicit memory

A memory that a person is aware of having; a memory that is consciously retried.

False memory

A memory that can seem accurate but is not.

Iconic memory

A mental image or visual representation.

Network model (of memory)

A model of memory that views it as an organized system of linked information.

Massed practice

A practice schedule in which studying continues for long periods, without interruption.

Spaced practice

A practice schedule that alternates study periods with brief rests.

Semantic memory

A sub-part of declarative memory that records impersonal knowledge about the world.

Episodic memory

A sub-part of declarative memory that records personal experiences that are linked with specific times and places.

Recognition

An ability to correctly identify previously learned information.

Electroconvulsive shock (ECS)

An electric current passed directly through the brain, producing a convulsion.

Working memory

Another name for short-term memory, especially as it is used for thinking and problem solving.

Mnemonic

Any kind of memory system or aid.

Keyword method

As an aid to memory, using a familiar word or image to link two items.

Long-term potentiation

Brain mechanism used to form lasting memories by strengthening the connection between neurons that become more active at the same time.

Encoding

Converting information into a form in which it will be retained in memory.

Priming

Facilitating the retrieval of an implicit memory by using cues to activate hidden memories.

Encoding failure

Failure to store sufficient information to form a useful memory.

Storage

Holding information in memory for later use.

Information chunks

Information bits grouped into larger units.

Relearning

Learning again something that was previously learned. Used to measure memory prior to learning.

Rote rehearsal (rote learning)

Learning by simple repetition.

Procedural memory

Long-term memories of conditioned responses and learned skills.

Retrograde amnesia

Loss of memory for events that preceded a head injury or other amnesia-causing event.

Anterograde amnesia

Loss of the ability to form or retrieve memories for events that occur after and injury or trauma.

Elaborative processing

Making memories more meaningful through processing that encodes links between new information and existing memories and knowledge, either at the time of the original encoding or on subsequent retrievals.

Positive transfer

Mastery of one task aids learning or performing another.

Negative transfer

Mastery of one task conflicts with learning or performing another.

Information bits

Meaningful units of information, such as numbers, letters, words, or phrases.

Availability (in memory)

Memories currently stored in memory are available.

Accessibility (in memory)

Memories currently stored in memory which can be retrieved when necessary are both available and accessible.

Flashbulb memory

Memory created at times of high emotion that seems especially vivid.

State-dependent learning

Memory influenced by one's bodily state at the time of learning and at the time of retrieval. Improved memory occurs when the bodily states match.

Mental images

Mental pictures or visual depictions used in memory and thinking.

Source confusion (in memory)

Occurs when the origins of a memory are misremembered.

Memory traces

Physical changes in nerve cells or brain activity that take place when memories are stored.

Reintegration

Process by which memories are reconstructed or expanded by starting with one memory then following chains of association to other, related memories.

Consolidation

Process by which relatively permanent memories are formed in the brain.

Retrieval

Recovering information from storage in memory.

Recording

Reorganizing or modifying information to assist storage in memory.

Overlearn

To continue to study beyond bare mastery.

Recall

To supply or reproduce memorized information with minimum of external cues.

Repression

Unconsciously pushing unwanted memories out of awareness.

Cognitive interview

Use of various cues and strategies to improve the memory of eyewitnesses.

Maintenance rehearsal

Silently repeating or mentally reviewing information to hold it in short-term memory.

Retrieval cue

Stimulus associated with a memory. Retrieval cues usually enhance memory.

Declarative memory

That part of long-term memory containing specific factual information.

Feeling of knowing

The ability to predict beforehand whether one will be able to remember something.

Eidetic imagery

The ability to retain a "projected" mental image long enough to use it as a source of information.

Memory decay

The fading or weakening of memories assumed to occur when memory traces become weaker.

Tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) state

The feeling that a memory is available but not quite retrievable.

Deja vu

The feeling that you have already experienced a situation that you are actually experiencing for the first time.

Sensory memory

The first, normally, unconscious, stage of memory, which holds an exact record of incoming information for a few seconds or less.

Long-term memory (LTM)

The memory system used for relatively permanent storage of meaningful information.

Short-term memory (STM)

The memory system used to hold small amounts of information in our conscious awareness for about a dozen seconds.

Memory

The mental system for receiving, encoding, storing, organizing, altering, and retrieving information.

Interferance

The tendency for new memories to impair retrieval of older memories, and the reverse.

Retroactive interferance

The tendency for new memories to interfere with the retrieval of old memories.

Proactive interference

The tendency for old memories to interfere with the retrieval of newer memories.

Serial position effect

The tendency to make the most errors in remembering the middle items of an ordered list.

Disuse

Theory that memory traces weaken when memories are not periodically used or retrieved.