Types of LTM

• Long-term memory (LTM)


  A major limitation of the MSM is its description of LTM as a single, unitary store
• Types of LTM (Tulving, 1985)

  • Episodic memory
  • Semantic memory
  • Procedural memory
• Episodic memory


  A long-term memory store of personal events e.g. a diary. It retains memories of when events occurred and of the people, objects, places and behaviours involved. Memories from this store have to be retrieved consciously and with effort. It also refers to our ability to recall events from our lives. Memories are 'time-stamped'.
• Semantic memory


  A long-term memory store for our knowledge of the world e.g. facts, meaning of words, what concepts mean. These memories need to be recalled deliberately. Memories aren't 'time-stamped'. Semantic knowledge is less personal, it is a large collection of material which is constantly being added to.
• Procedural memory


  A long-term memory store for our knowledge of how to do things, including our memories of learned skills. These memories can be recalled without making a conscious or deliberate effort.
• Cohen and Squire (1980) disagree with the division of the LTM into three types. They argued that episodic and semantic memories are stored together in one LTM store (declarative memory).