chapter 8 memory recall

Question 1

memory

Answer 1

the persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information

Question 2

recall

Answer 2

a measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test.

Question 3

recognition

Answer 3

a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test.

Question 4

relearning

Answer 4

a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material again.

Question 5

encoding

Answer 5

the processing of information into the memory system – for example, by extracting meaning.

Question 6

storage

Answer 6

the retention of encoded information over time.

Question 7

retrieval

Answer 7

the process of getting information out of memory storage.

Question 8

sensory memory

Answer 8

the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system.

Question 9

Short-term memory

Answer 9

activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as seven digits of a phone number while dialing, before the information is stored or forgotten.

Question 10

Long-term memory

Answer 10

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences.

Question 11

Working memory

Answer 11

a newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory.

Question 12

explicit memory

Answer 12

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and “declare.” (Also called declarative memory.)

Question 13

effortful processing

Answer 13

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort.

Question 14

automatic processing

Answer 14

unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings.

Question 15

implicit memory

Answer 15

retention independent of conscious recollection. (Also called nondeclarative memory.)

Question 16

iconic memory

Answer 16

a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second.

Question 17

chunking

Answer 17

organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically.

Question 18

mnemonics

Answer 18

memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices.

Question 19

spacing effect

Answer 19

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice.

Question 20

testing effect

Answer 20

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply reading, information. Also sometimes referred to as a retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning.

Question 21

shallow processing

Answer 21

encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words.

Question 22

deep processing

Answer 22

encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the words; tends to yield the best retention.

Question 23

hippocampus

Answer 23

a neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage

Question 24

flashbulb memory

Answer 24

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event.

Question 25

Long-term potentiation (LTP)

Answer 25

an increase in a cell’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory.

Question 26

priming

Answer 26

the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory.

Question 27

serial position effect

Answer 27

our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list.

Question 28

anterograde amnesia

Answer 28

an inability to form new memories

Question 29

retrograde amnesia

Answer 29

an inability to retrieve information from one’s past.

Question 30

proactive interference

Answer 30

the disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information.

Question 31

retroactive interference

Answer 31

the disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information.

Question 32

repression

Answer 32

in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from conscious anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories.

Question 33

misinformation effect

Answer 33

incorporating misleading information into one’s memory of an event.

Question 34

source amnesia

Answer 34

attributing to the wrong source an event we have experience, heard about, read about, or imagined. (Also called source misattribution.) Source amnesia, along with the misinformation effect, is at the heart of many false memories.

Question 35

déjà vu

Answer 35

that eerie sense that “I’ve experienced this before.” Cues from the current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience.