Long Term Memory Flashcards
What are the three types of LTM?
Episodic, semantic, procedural
What are the two categories for LTM?
- Explicit- conscious memory (knowing that)
- Implicit- Unconscious memory (knowing how)
What is Episodic memory?
Memory for personal events in an individuals life. Explicit
What is Procedural memory?
Memory for actions, tasks and skills. Implicit
What is Semantic memory?
Memory for facts and knowledge shared by everyone. Explicit
What is the case study which provides evidence for different types of LTM?
Clive wearing- contracted a virus which caused him brain damage. He lost his episodic memory (couldn’t remember going to university to study music) but procedural memory still intact (can still remember how to play the piano)
HM- had seizures so they removed his hippocampus. He could not remember things he had done like stroking a dog half an hour before, episodic but he knew what a dog was, semantic
What are the strengths of LTM?
Clinical evidence- evidence from studies such as Clive and HM. Both had damage to episodic memory but not to semantic.
counter- The injuries and damage to memory were unexpected so they could not study before the injury. therefore they don’t know what there memory was like before the accident. lack of control variables.
Real-life application- being able to identify different aspects of LTM allows us to target certain kinds of memory to better peoples lives, such as Belleville (2006) episodic memories can be improved in older people who have mild cognitive impairments.
What are the weaknesses of LTM?
Conflicting neuroimaging evidence- Brain scanning studies linking LTM to different areas of the brain. Buckner and Peterson (1996) concluded that semantic memory is located on the left of the prefrontal cortex and episodic is on the right. However, others link the left prefrontal cortex encoding of episodic memory and right with episodic retrieval.
Debate about three types- Some researchers have disagreed with the three divisions of LTM and say that episodic and semantic are stored together memories that can be consciously recalled whereas procedural is non-declarative. Cohen an Squire (1980)
