Memory

Question 1

What is memory?

Answer 1

The ability to take in information, encode it, store it, and retrieve it at a later time.

Memory is essential for linking our present to the past and maintaining a sense of continuity in life.

Question 2

What are the three main processes of memory?

Answer 2

• Encoding
• Storing
• Retrieving

These processes are crucial for the formation and recall of memories.

Question 3

What is encoding in the context of memory?

Answer 3

The process of receiving, processing, and combining information.

Encoding allows information from the outside world to reach our senses.

Question 4

What is storage in the memory process?

Answer 4

The creation of a permanent record of the encoded information.

Storage maintains information over periods of time.

Question 5

What does retrieval mean in memory?

Answer 5

The calling back of stored information in response to some cue for use in a process or activity.

Retrieval can be effortless or challenging depending on the type of information.

Question 6

What is sensory memory?

Answer 6

The ability to retain impressions of sensory information after the original stimulus has ceased.

Examples include iconic memory (visual), echoic memory (auditory), and haptic memory (tactile).

Question 7

How long does short-term memory typically last?

Answer 7

About 20 seconds.

Short-term memory can hold 7 +/- 2 items.

Question 8

What is chunking in memory?

Answer 8

The splitting of information into smaller pieces to make reading and understanding faster and easier.

This technique helps improve memory retention.

Question 9

What is long-term memory?

Answer 9

Memories held for periods longer than a few seconds, with a vast storage capacity.

Long-term memories can last from creation until death.

Question 10

What are the two main types of explicit memory?

Answer 10

• Semantic memory
• Episodic memory

Semantic memory consists of facts, while episodic memory consists of personal experiences.

Question 11

What is procedural memory?

Answer 11

A type of implicit memory that involves learning new motor skills without conscious recall.

An example is learning to ride a bike.

Question 12

What is the difference between recall and recognition?

Answer 12

Recall is retrieving information without cues, while recognition involves identifying previously learned information with cues.

Both are forms of memory retrieval.

Question 13

What does the trace decay theory of forgetting propose?

Answer 13

All memories fade automatically as a function of time.

This theory suggests a need to follow a certain path to recall a memory.

Question 14

What is proactive interference?

Answer 14

When past memories influence the recall of new memories.

This can hinder the formation of new memories.

Question 15

What is retroactive interference?

Answer 15

When new memories interfere with the recall of old memories.

This can lead to forgetting original memories.

Question 16

What is cue-dependent forgetting?

Answer 16

The failure to recall information in the absence of memory cues.

Also known as retrieval failure.

Question 17

What is anterograde amnesia?

Answer 17

The inability to create new memories after the onset of amnesia.

Long-term memories from before the event typically remain intact.

Question 18

What is retrograde amnesia?

Answer 18

The inability to recall memories from before the onset of amnesia.

Individuals may still encode new memories after the event.

Question 19

What is childhood amnesia?

Answer 19

The inability to remember events from very early childhood due to undeveloped brain regions involved in long-term memory storage.

This typically affects memories from the first few years of life.

Question 20

What is dementia?

Answer 20

A collective term for neurocognitive disorders affecting memory, often arising in old age.

Alzheimer’s disease is a common form of dementia.

Question 21

What characterizes Alzheimer’s disease?

Answer 21

An irreversible, progressive brain disorder that destroys memory and thinking skills.

Features include plaques and tangles in the brain.

Question 22

What are flashbulb memories?

Answer 22

Strong, seemingly accurate memories of learning shocking or surprising information.

These memories are about the learning event, not the event itself.

Question 23

What is repressed memory?

Answer 23

A hypothetical concept describing a significant memory, usually traumatic, that is unavailable for recall.

This concept is often debated in psychology.

Question 24

What is pseudomemory?

Answer 24

False or inaccurate memory typically implanted by suggestion.

This can lead to misleading recollections.