Chapter 8

• Encoding


  Process of how information is initially learned or committed to memory
• Encoding Problem


  Problem the brain must solve to transform an experience into a memory
• Scientists use information-processing models to talk about how memories are formed and retrieved
• Memories must be stored as part of its physical structure, since the brian is a collection of neurons & not a physical landscape
• Storage


  Process of maintaining information about an event over time (long or short)
• Storage Problem


  Problem the brain must solve to maintain information in the brain over time (short & long)
• Memory's Representation


  Kind of information a memory system contains; often described in terms of how the information is represented/coded
• Inner Voice

  • Mental experience of hearing oneself talk "in their head"
  • Evidence for verbal representation in immediate memory
• Most often, errors in immediate memory are sound-alike errors, indicating primary mode of coding information in immediate memory is auditory
• Inner Eye

  • Mental experience of seeing something using imagination
  • Evidence for visual representation in immediate memory
• Mental imagery represented by the inner eye involves activity in the same structures involved in perception, strengthening that the inner eye & perception are similar
• Duration of Memories

  • The length of time a memory system can contain information before it's forgotten
  • Indefinite with rehearsal, but lasts only 3s without it
• Rehearsal 


  Process of repeating information to yourself, helping you "re-hear" the information over & over
• Capacity of Immediate Memory

  • Amount of information that can be held in a memory system at any time
  • Considered to be whatever one can rehearse in roughly 2s
• George Miller (1956) suggested that the avg person could hold about 7 separate pieces of information at a time in their mind
• Memory Span


  The number of items that can be active in immediate memory at one time
• Most modern psychologists believe it's not the number of items in immediate memory that defines its capacity, but how long it takes to rehearse information to oneself
• Chunking


  Process of arranging information into compact meaningful "chunks" so they can be more easily rehearsed in immediate memory
• Working Memory Model


  A model of immediate memory that emphasizes its role as a system for manipulating information in consciousness
• Working memory model is so popular because it argues that immediate memory is primarily a place for manipulation of information, & not a place for storage of information
• Phonological Loop


  System within the working memory model that temporarily stores and manipulates auditory & verbal information
• Visuospatial Sketchpad


  System within the working memory model that temporarily stores and manipulates visual & spatial information
• Central Executive Mechanism

  • Hypothetical portion of the working memory model that directs activities of the working memory
  • Activities include phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, & flow of information between working to long-term memory
• Episodic Memories


  Memories whose contents pertain to specific events/episodes
• In studying episodic memories, researchers may be interested in kinds of mistakes people make when remembering significant events, or have people remember simple lists of words in a lab
• Semantic Memories


  Memories whose contents relate to specific facts and pieces of meaningful information, not based on personal experience
• Semantic memory is useful for language, and also remembering general knowledge about objects and our surroundings
• Procedural Memories


  Memories whose contents pertain to how something is done or performed
• Most people are often good at recalling procedural memory but have poor insight into the contents of those memories
• Elaborative Rehearsal


  Process of actively manipulating information in immediate memory to meaningfully connect it to other information already stored in long-term memory
• Deep Processing 


  Encoding new information by making meaningful connections to existing knowledge
• Shallow Processing 


  Encoding information based on its surface characteristics only
• People who encode more meaningfully tend to remember more information than those who encode information based on surface characteristics
• Methods to Effectively Elaborate on Information

  • Imagery
  • Organization
  • Distinctiveness
  • Self-Reference
• Cautions in Using Imagery to Transfer Information to Long-Term Memory

  • More abstract, not as concrete
  • Details are not always exact, but more general
• Cautions in Using Organization to Transfer Information to Long-Term Memory

  • Often leads to mistakes within the chosen category
  • May remember the wrong piece of information
• Cautions in Using Distinctiveness to Transfer Information to Long-Term Memory

  • Time-consuming
  • Can make it difficult to remember large amounts of information is using this method alone
• Cautions in Using Self-Reference to Transfer Information to Long-Term Memory

  • More difficult to use with very detailed material
  • More effective for those coming from individualistic societies (US) than collectivistic cultures (China)
• Most psychologists recommend combining organization & distinctiveness methods in remembering information
• Massed Practice

  • Term for repeated exposure to or study of to-be-remembered information over a very short period of time, or without gaps between repetitions
  • Not effective for performance over long periods of time