Increasing the amount of information that can be held in short-term memory by grouping related items together into a single unit, or chunk.

Transcription

1 chunking Increasing the amount of information that can be held in short-term memory by grouping related items together into a single unit, or chunk. clustering Organizing items into related groups during recall from long-term memory. elaborative rehearsal Rehearsal that involves focusing on the meaning of information to help encode and transfer it to long-term memory.

2 Encoding The process of transforming information into a form that can be entered into and retained by the memory system. episodic memory Category of long-term memory that includes memories of particular events. explicit memory Information or knowledge that can be consciously recollected; also called declarative memory.

3 implicit memory Information or knowledge that affects behavior or task performance but cannot be consciously recollected; also called nondeclarative memory. long-term memory The stage of memory that represents the longterm storage of information. maintenance rehearsal The mental or verbal repetition of information in order to maintain it beyond the usual 20-second duration of short-term memory.

4 memory The mental processes that enable you to retain and retrieve information over time. procedural memory Category of long-term memory that includes memories of different skills, operations, and actions. Retrieval The process of recovering information stored in memory so that we are consciously aware of it.

5 semantic memory Category of long-term memory that includes memories of general knowledge, concepts, facts, and names. semantic network model A model that describes units of information in long-term memory as being organized in a complex network of associations. sensory memory The stage of memory that registers information from the environment and holds it for a very brief period of time.

6 short-term memory The active stage of memory in which information is stored for up to about 20 seconds. stage model of memory A model describing memory as consisting of three distinct stages: sensory memory, shortterm memory, and long-term memory. Storage The process of retaining information in memory so that it can be used at a later time.

7 working memory The temporary storage and active, conscious manipulation of information needed for complex cognitive tasks, such as reasoning, learning, and problem solving. context effect The tendency to recover information more easily when the retrieval occurs in the same setting as the original learning of the information. cued recall A test of long-term memory that involves remembering an item of information in response to a retrieval cue.

8 encoding specificity principle The principle that when the conditions of information retrieval are similar to the conditions of information encoding, retrieval is more likely to be successful. flashbulb memory The recall of very specific images or details surrounding a vivid, rare, or significant personal event; details may or may not be accurate. mood congruence An encoding specificity phenomenon in which a given mood tends to evoke memories that are consistent with that mood.

9 recall A test of long-term memory that involves retrieving information without the aid of retrieval cues; also called free recall. recognition A test of long-term memory that involves identifying correct information out of several possible choices. retrieval The process of recovering information stored in memory so that we are consciously aware of it.

10 retrieval cue A clue, prompt, or hint that helps trigger recall of a given piece of information stored in long-term memory. retrieval cue failure The inability to recall long-term memories because of inadequate or missing retrieval cues. serial position effect The tendency to remember items at the beginning and end of a list better than items in the middle.

11 tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) experience A memory phenomenon that involves the sensation of knowing that specific information is stored in long-term memory, but being temporarily unable to retrieve it. decay theory The view that forgetting is due to normal metabolic processes that occur in the brain over time. deja vu experience A memory illusion characterized by brief but intense feelings of familiarity in a situation that has never been experienced before.

12 encoding failure The inability to recall specific information because of insufficient encoding of the information for storage in long-term memory. forgetting The inability to recall information that was previously available. The theory that forgetting is caused by one memory competing with or replacing another. interference theory

13 proactive interference Forgetting in which an old memory interferes with remembering a new memory; forwardacting memory interference. prospective memory Remembering to do something in the future. repression Motivated forgetting that occurs unconsciously; a memory that is blocked and unavailable to consciousness.

14 retroactive interference Forgetting in which a new memory interferes with remembering an old memory; backwardacting memory interference. source memory Memory for when, where, and how a particular experience or piece of information was acquired. suppression Motivated forgetting that occurs consciously; a deliberate attempt to not think about and remember specific information.

15 false memory A distorted or fabricated recollection of something that did not actually occur. imagination inflation A memory phenomenon in which vividly imagining an event markedly increases confidence that the event actually occurred. misinformation effect A memory-distortion phenomenon in which your existing memories can be altered if you are exposed to misleading information.

16 Schema An organized cluster of information about a particular topic. source confusion A memory distortion that occurs when the true source of the memory is forgotten. Progressive disease that destroys brain neurons, gradually impairing memory and other cognitive functions, resulting in the inability to care for oneself; most common cause of dementia. Alzheimer's disease (AD)

17 amnesia Severe memory loss. anterograde amnesia Loss of memory caused by the inability to store new memories; forward-acting amnesia. dementia Progressive deterioration and impairment of memory, reasoning, and other cognitive functions as the result of disease, injury, or substance abuse.

18 long-term potentiation A long-lasting increase in synaptic strength between two neurons. memory consolidation The gradual, physical process of converting new long-term memories to stable, enduring memory codes. memory trace The hypothetical brain changes associated with a particular stored memory.

19 retrograde amnesia Loss of memory, especially for episodic information; backward-acting amnesia. Warning: not all of the key ideas are on this list of key terms