| A | B |
|---|
| memory | the persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information |
| encoding | the first step in memory; information is translated into some form that enables it to enter our memory system |
| storage | the process by which encoded information is maintained over time |
| retrieval | the process of getting information out of memory storage |
| sensory memory | the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system |
| short-term memory | activated memory, which can hold about seven items for a short time |
| long-term memory | relatively permanent and unlimited capacity memory system into which information from short-term memory may pass; it includes knowledge, skills, and experiences |
| working memory | the newer way of conceptualizing short-term memory as a work site for the active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory |
| automatic processing | refers to our unconscious encoding of incidental information such as space, time, and frequency and of well-learned information |
| effortful processing | encoding that requires attention and conscious effort |
| rehearsal | the conscious, effortful reptition of information that you are trying either to maintain in consciousness or to encode for storage |
| spacing effect | the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than massed study or practice |
| serial position effect | the tendency for items at the beginning and end of a list to be more easily retained than those in the middle |
| visual encoding | the use of picture images to process information into memory |
| acoustic encoding | the processing of information into memory according to its sound |
| semantic encoding | the processing of information into memory according to its meaning |
| imagery | mental pictures; a powerful aid to effortful processing, especially when combined with semantic encoding |
| mnemonics | memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices |
| chunking | organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically |
| iconic memory | a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second |
| echoic memory | a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds |
| long-term potentiation | an increase in a synapse’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory |
| flashbulb memory | a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event |
| amnesia | the loss of memory |
| implicit memory | retention independent of conscious recollection |
| explicit memory | memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and “declare.” |
| hippocampus | a neural center that is located in the limbic system and helps process explicit memories for storage |
| recall | a measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test |
| recognition | a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test |
| relearning | a memory measure that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material for a second time |
| priming | the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory |
| déjà vu | that eerie sense that “I’ve experienced this before.” Cues from the current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience |
| mood-congruent memory | the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current good or bad mood |
| proactive interference | the disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information |
| retroactive interference | the disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information |
| repression | in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness |
| misinformation effect | incorporating misleading information into one’s memory of an event |
| source amnesia | attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined |
