SOSC 2GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY

Chapter 5: Memory

Explicit memory – memory that clearly and distinctly expresses (explicates) specific information.

Episodic memory – memories of events that happen to a person or that take place in the person’s presence.

Semantic memory – general knowledge, as opposed to episodic memory.

Implicit memory – memory that is suggested (implied) but not plainly expressed, as illustrated in the things that people do but do not state clearly.

Priming – the activation of specific associations in memory, often as a result of repetition and without a conscious effort to access the memory.

Retrospective memory – memory for past events, activities, and learning experiences, as shown by explicit (episodic and semantic) and implicit memories.

Prospective memory – memory to perform an act in the future, as at a certain time or when a certain event occurs.

Encoding – modifying information so that it can be placed in memory; the first stage of information processing.

Storage – the maintenance of information over time; the second stage of information processing.

Maintenance rehearsal – mental repetition of information to keep it in memory.

Elaborative rehearsal – the kind of coding in which new information is related to information that is already known.

Retrieval – the location of stored information and its return to consciousness; the third stage of information processing.

Memory – the processes by which information is encoded, stored, and retrieved.

Sensory memory – the type or stage of memory first encountered by a stimulus; holds impressions briefly, but long

enough so that series of perceptions are psychologically continuous.

Memory trace – an assumed change in the nervous system that reflects the impression made by a stimulus.

Icon – a mental representation of a visual stimulus that is held briefly in sensory memory.

Iconic memory – the sensory register that briefly holds mental representations of visual stimuli.

Eidetic imagery – the maintenance of detailed visual memories over several minutes.

Echo – a mental representation of an auditory stimulus (sound) that is held briefly in sensory memory.

Echoic memory – the sensory register that briefly holds mental representations of auditory stimuli.

Short-term memory – the type or stage of memory that can hold information for up to a minute or so after the trace of the stimulus decays; also called working memory.

Working memory – another term for short-term memory.

Serial-position effect – the tendency to recall more accurately the first and last items in a series.

Chunk – a stimulus or group of stimuli that are perceived as a discrete piece of information.

Displace – in memory theory, to cause information to be lost from short-term memory by adding new information.

Long-term memory - the type or stage of memory capable of relatively permanent storage.

Repression – in Freud’s psychodynamic theory, the ejection of anxiety-evoking ideas from conscious awareness.

Schema – a way of mentally representing the world, such as a belief or an expectation, that can influence perception of persons, objects, and situations.

Tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) phenomenon – the feeling that information is stored in memory although it cannot be readily retrieved; also called the feeling-of-knowing experience.

Context-dependent memory – information that is better retrieved in the context in which it was encoded and stored, or learned.

State-dependent memory – information that is better retrieved in the physiological or emotional state in which it was encoded and stored, or learned.

Nonsense syllables – meaningless sets of two consonants, with a vowel sandwiched in between, that are used to study memory.

Paired associates – nonsense syllables presented in pairs in experiments that measure recall.

Method of savings – a measure of retention in which the difference between the number of repetitions originally required to learn a list and the number of repetitions required to relearn the list after a certain amount of time has elapsed is calculated.

Savings – the difference between the number of repetitions originally required to learn a list and the number of repetitions required to relearn the list after a certain amount of time has elapsed.

Interference theory – the view that we may forget stored material because other learning interferes with it.

Retroactive interference – the interference of new learning with the ability to retrieve material learned previously.

Proactive interference – the interference by old learning with the ability to retrieve material learned recently.

Dissociative amnesia – loss of memory of personal information that is thought to stem from psychological conflict or trauma.

Infantile amnesia – inability to recall events that occur prior to the age of three or so; also termed childhood amnesia.

Hippocampus – a structure in the limbic system that plays an important role in the formation of new memories.

Anterograde amnesia – failure to remember events that occurred after physical trauma because of the effects of the trauma.

Retrograde amnesia – failure to remember events that occurred prior to physical trauma because of the effects of the trauma.

Engram – an assumed electrical circuit in the brain that corresponds to a memory trace.

Long-term potentiation (LTP) – enhanced efficiency in synaptic transmission that follows brief, rapid stimulation.

Misinformation effect – the shaping of bogus or slanted memories by providing inaccurate information as, for example, in the form of “leading questions.”

References: Feldman, R. S. (2010). Understanding Psychology. 9th Edition. McGraw Hill Companies, Inc. Morris, C.G.,et al. (2007). Psychology Concepts and Applications. Pearson Education, Inc. New Jersey.Rathus, S. (2014). Psychology. 3rd edition. Cengage Learning Asia Pte Ltd. Philippines.

Prepared by:Mrs. Maria Angela L. Diopol

Instructor