MEMORY

MEMORY AS AN INFORMATIONPROCESSING APPROACH

ENCODING

RETRIEVAL

STORAGEthe initial perception and

registration of information.

the retention of encoded information over time.

the processes involved in using stored information.

Conversely, memory failure—for example, forgetting an important fact—reflects a breakdown in one of these stages of memory.

Whenever people successfully recall a prior experience, they must have encoded, stored, and retrieved information about the experience.

TYPES OF MEMORY

SENSORY MEMORY SHORT TERM MEMORY

LONG TERM MEMORY

SENSORY MEMORY

are momentary recordings of information in our sensor systems. In fact, most information only lasts a few seconds and is replaced with something else that captures our attention.

Recorded from Iconic memory – visual Echoic memory – auditory

Transfer to short term memory is controlled by attention

SHORT TERM / WORKING MEMORYPsychologists originally used the term

short-term memory to refer to the ability to hold information in mind over a brief period of time.

The term working memory is now commonly used to refer to a broader system that both stores information briefly and allows manipulation and use of the stored information.

Limited amount of information for a brief period of time.

Roughly seven plus minus two

SHORT TERM / WORKING MEMORYInformation is held from 15 to 20

seconds and if not transferred to long term memory it is lost primarily through interference and decay.

Memories are transferred to long term memory through rehearsal.

If you need to store more, you may be helped by the use of CHUNKING, or grouping items into categories which will be easier to store and to retrieve later. The successful formation of a chunk is known as CLOSURE.

LONG TERM MEMORYGenerally, long-term memory

describes a system in the brain that can store vast amounts of information on a relatively enduring basis.

When you play basketball, remember that you had lunch at Jack in the Box yesterday, recall your first birthday party at a club, play the Wii, or sing your favorite song, you draw on information and skills stored in long-term memory.

LONG TERM MEMORYHolds very large amount of information

for long periods of time. Information in the long term memory

become relatively permanent.Three kinds of Long Term Memory:

Episodic - refers to memories of specific episodes in one’s life and episodic memories are connected with a specific time and place.

Semantic - refers to our general knowledge of the world and all of the facts we know

Procedural - refers to the skills that humans possess

THEORIES OF FORGETTINGInterference Theory – the ability to

learn new information is disrupted by what we have learned before and what we will learn in the future. Proactive – when previous learning

interferes with later learningRetroactive – when later learning disrupts

earlier learningDecay Theory – if information is not

used with time, forgetting occursRepression - refers to forgetting an

unpleasant event or piece of information due to its threatening quality.

OTHER CONCEPTSDéjà Vu and Jamais Vu

The sense of déjà vu (French for “seen before”) is the strange sensation of having been somewhere before, or experienced your current situation before, even though you know you have not.

The sense of jamais vu (French for “never seen”) arises when people feel they are experiencing something for the first time, even though they know they must have experienced it before.

OTHER CONCEPTSFlashbulb memory

is an unusually vivid memory of an especially emotional or dramatic past event.

May also be associated with vivid emotional experiences in one’s own life: the death of a family member or close friend, the birth of a baby, being in a car accident, and so on.

Tip-of-the-tongue state. Refers to the situation in which a person

tries to retrieve a relatively familiar word, name, or fact, but cannot quite do so.

OTHER CONCEPTSEidetic imagery or photographic

memorythe ability to recall every detail after looking at a picture or page for a few seconds

Persons with this unusual form of memory must be able to hold visual images much longer and form very numerous associations in a short time

Mnemonist

AMNESIA

Inability to recall information Types

Anterograde amnesia – inability to remember information/ events after the accident or brain injury

Retrograde amnesia – inability to remember information/ events that occurred prior to the accident

BRAIN DAMAGE & ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

Brain Damage Tumors, strokes, surgery can produce various types of memory impairment

Alzheimer’s Disease A progressive mental deterioration that occurs most commonly in old age.

IMPROVING MEMORYChunking Mnemonic Devices Overlearning Organization of text materials Organization of lecture notesMethod of LociPeg Word MethodPQ4R Method - Preview, Questions, Read,

Reflect, Recite, ReviewSpaced Learning