Lesson 7 Types of Long Term Memory

Question 1

Episodic Memory

Answer 1

Episodic memory is your memory for events, for example your recollection of your first day of school, a family holiday, your last birthday etc. Episodic memories have three elements, specific details of the event, the context of the event, and the emotions you were feeling at the time of the event. Episodic memories are stored in the hippocampus.

Question 2

Semantic Memory

Answer 2

Semantic memory is your memory for facts and general knowledge about the world, for example that the capital of England is London and that 2 + 2 = 4. Semantic memories may also relate to things such as the functions of an object, what behaviour is appropriate in a certain situation, as well as abstract concepts such as mathematics and language. Semantic memories begin as episodic memories because we acquire knowledge based on personal experiences. There is a gradual transition from episodic memory to semantic memory when memory slowly loses its association to particular events and is generalised. Sometimes, however, people can have a strong recollection of when and where they learned a particular fact. Semantic memories are stored in the temporal lobe.

Question 3

Procedural Memory

Answer 3

Procedural memory (sometimes called muscle memory) is concerned with motor skills and actions, such as knowing how to tie your shoelaces, knowing how to drive, or knowing how to read. Procedural memories are typically acquired through practise and repetition and seem to be more resistant to forgetting or amnesia than other types of LTM. We are less aware of procedural memories because they have become automatic and are unavailable for conscious inspection (unlike episodic memories and semantic memories) making it difficult to explain them verbally. Often, if you think too much about procedural memories it prevents you from carrying them out, if you really think about what you are doing while riding a bike, you will probably lose your balance. It is important that procedural memories are automatic so that we can focus our attention on other tasks while performing these everyday skills. Procedural memories are stored in the cerebellum.

Question 4

Advantages of Long Term Memory

Answer 4

+ Evidence for the distinction between episodic/semantic and procedural memory has come from research on patients with amnesia. Typically patients with amnesia are unable to store new episodic or semantic memories but their procedural memory appears to be largely unaffected.

+ Scientific evidence captured from brain scans supports the view that there are different types of LTM. For example, when asking participants to recall different types of information, different areas of the brain are shown to be active on an fMRI. Episodic memories are associated with the hippocampus, semantic memories are associated with the temporal lobe and procedural memories are associated with the cerebellum.

+ Case studies of brain damaged patients offer support for the different types of LTM. For example, Clive Wearing is a man who suffered from a viral infection which damaged his hippocampus. He has no episodic memory and cannot form new semantic memories. However, his procedural memory is intact (e.g. he can still play the piano).

Question 5

Disadvantages of Long Term Memory

Answer 5

• Research into the different types of LTM have typically been conducted on individual patients (e.g. Clive Wearing and HM). Case studies are highly detailed and provide a lot of information but are isolated cases of one individual. It would be inappropriate to assume that everyone’s’ LTM is formed in the same way. The findings cannot be generalised to the wider population.