Memory
Chapter 6
Memory
 Memory
is the ability to recall past
learning, events, images, and ideas
 It is also the storage system that allows
a person to retain and retrieve
information
Brain as Information Processor
 Information processing refers to
organizing, interpreting, and responding
to information from the environment
 The first process is encoding
 The second process is placing
information in storage
 The third is making the information
available through retrieval
Encoding
 Encoding
is the first step in establishing
a memory
 Encoding involves organizing sensory
information so the nervous system can
process it
 Attention, the processing of directing
mental effort to some feature of the
environment, is important for encoding
Levels of Processing
 Craik
and Lockhart argued that the
brain can encode and process
information several different ways
 Levels of processing is equated with
how deeply information is analyzed
Levels of Processing
 The encoding specificity principle states
that the effectiveness of a retrieval cue
depends on how well it matches the
originally encoded information
 A related idea is transfer appropriate
processing that occurs when the initial
processing of information is similar to the
process of retrieval
Storage
 Storage
is the process of maintaining or
keeping information readily available
Sensory Memory
 Sensory
memory is a very brief
storage area based on the sensory
system
Sensory Memory

Sperling presented research participants
with a display consisting of three rows of
letters for a fraction of a second

They typically could report only three to four
letters total

When cued, however, they could report
three or four letters from any given row
Sensory Memory

Visual sensory memory is called iconic
memory

The images in iconic memory are called icons

The storage mechanism for the auditory
system is called echoic storage

Echoic storage lasts only about three
seconds
Short-Term Storage

Information in sensory memory fades rapidly
unless transferred to short-term storage

This area was originally called short-term
memory (storage) to highlight its brief
duration

However, after its active nature was
recognized, some researchers started calling
it working memory
Early Research on Short-Term
Memory
 Peterson
and Peterson asked
participants to recall three consonant
sequences
 Recall was either immediate or after 1
to 18 seconds
 Accuracy of recall decreased as the
length of the interval increased
Early Research on Short-Term
Memory
 Miller
argued humans can retain about
seven (plus or minus two) items in shortterm memory
 This is referred to as the memory span
 People can group information in ways
that expand short-term memory
 These groups are called chunks
Early Research on Short-Term
Memory
 Rehearsal
is especially important in
memory
 It is the process of acting on or
transforming information to keep it
active in memory
Early Research on Short-Term
Memory
Maintenance
rehearsal is the repetitive
review of information with little or no
interpretation
Elaborative rehearsal involves repetition
plus analysis
Working Memory

Working memory is a storage mechanism that
temporarily holds current or recent
information for immediate or short-term use

In working memory, information is encoded
and then maintained for 20 to 30 seconds
while processing takes place
Figure 6.5 Short-Term Working Memory
Long-Term Memory

Long-term memory is a relatively
permanent storage area of unlimited
capacity

Procedural memory is memory for
skills

Declarative memory is memory for
specific items of information
Figure 6.6 Procedural and Declarative
Long-Term Memory
Episodic and Semantic Memory
 Episodic memory is memory for
specific, personal events and situations
 Episodic memory about ourselves can
be termed autobiographic memory
 Semantic memory is memory for ideas,
rules, words, and general concepts
about the world
Explicit and Implicit Memory
 Explicit
memory is memory that a
person is conscious or aware of
 Implicit memory is memory a person is
not aware she or he possesses