definitions

• capacity

  the maximum amount of information that memory can hold
• central executive

  an important feature of the working memory model that is poorly understood, but is said to direct information to the appropriate slave systems in the model
• coding

  the way different memory systems store information, by converting that information into a suitable format for our brain
• duration

  the length of time a memory stays stored in memory
• episodic buffer

  A component of the working memory model that puts information from all the other components to make a combined, sensible memory.
• episodic memory

  A type of conscious long-term memory which consists of multiple senses integrated together to form “every-day” memories.
• leading questions

  A type of question which when asked, encourages a certain answer. For example, “Was the perpetrator black?” being asked instead of the question “What ethnicity was the perpetrator?”
• long-term memory

  A type of memory storage that has potentially unlimited storage, in which we hold different kinds of memories for potentially unlimited time.
• phonological loop

  A component of the working memory model that holds information regarding words, composed of words we repeat in a loop to ourselves and perceiving words we hear for a short duration of time.
• proactive interference

  An explanation for forgetting which suggests information we have learned previously interferes with new information we are trying to store. For example, a psychology teacher forgetting the names of her new students, and instead remembering the names of her old students. (Proactive = forward acting = new memories are interfered with.)
• procedural memory

  A type of unconscious long-term memory that stores information regarding the way we carry out actions without conscious involvement i.e. walking, driving.
• retroactive interference

  An explanation for forgetting which suggests new information we learn interferes with information we already know. For example, a psychology teacher forgetting the names of her old class because of her new students. (Retroactive = backwards acting = old memories are interfered with.)
• semantic memory

  A type of conscious long-term memory that contains information regarding “facts” we have learned. This type of memory is uncomplicated and does not include contextual information as episodic memory does.
• sensory register

  A place that holds information gathered through your senses for a very short amount of time, perceiving information before it is stored or processed by any other memory store.
• short-term memory

  A type of memory store lasting about 30 seconds that can hold 5-9 pieces of information. Information from here can be moved into long-term memory via rehearsal.
• visa-spatial sketchpad

  A component of the working memory model in which visual and spatial information is stored for a short amount of time.