AP Psychology Unit 7A Terms Flashcards
The persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information
Memory
The processing of information into the memory system by extracting information
Encoding
The retention of encoded information over time
Storage
Process of getting information out of memory storage
Retrieval
The immediate, very brief recording of sensory info in the memory system
Sensory Memory
Activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the 7 digits of a phone #, before the info is stored or forgotten
Short-term Memory
Relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system; includes knowledge, skills, and experiences
Long-term Memory
A newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual spatial information and information retrieved from long-term memory
Working Memory
The processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain’s natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrasts with the step-by-step processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving
Parallel Processing
Unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time frequency, and of well-learning information such as word meanings
Automatic Processing
Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort
Effortful Processing
The conscious repetition of information either to maintain it in consciousness or to encode it for storage
Rehearsal
The tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice.
Spacing Effect
Our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list
Serial Position Effect
The encoding of picture images
Visual Encoding
The encoding of sound, especially the sound of words
Acoustic Encoding
The encoding of meaning, including the meaning of words
Semantic Encoding
Mental pictures; a powerful aid to effortful processing, especially when combined with semantic encoding
Imagery
Memory aids, especially techniques that use vivid imagery and organization
Mnemonics
Organizing items into familiar manageable units; often occurs automatically
Chunking
A momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second
Iconic Memory
A momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds
Echoic Memory
The relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences
Long-term potentiation
A clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event
Flashbulb Memory
The loss of memory
Amnesia
Retention independent of conscious recollection
Implicit Memory
Memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and declare
Explicit Memory
A neural center that is located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage
Hippocampus
A measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned as on a multiple choice test
Recognition
A measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning a material for a second time
Relearning
The activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response
Priming
The eerie sense that “I’ve experienced before.” Cues from the current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience
Deja Vu
The tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current good or bad mood
Mood-congruent Memory
The disruptive effect of something you have already learned on your efforts to learn or recall new information
Proactive Interference
The disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information
Retroactive Interference
In psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness
Repression
Incorporating misleading information into one’s memory of an event
Misinformation effect
Attributing to the wrong source an event we have experience, heard about, read about, or imagined. Along with the misinformation effect, it is at the heart of much false information
Source Amnesia
