1. Ch. 10 – Memory and Thought
Memory – capacity
for storing and
retrieving
information
2. Process of Memory
• Encoding – processing information into memory
• Storage – storing or maintaining a memory
• Retrieval – process of getting information out of memory, often
for a specific task
3. Encoding
• Encoding – processing information into memory
Types
1. Structural encoding – what a word looks like
2. Phonemic encoding – focuses on how a word sounds
3. Semantic encoding – focuses on meaning – usually
results in deeper memory because it requires a deeper
level of processing than the first two types of encoding
*Assumes memory, thought and language are all
connected – since they all use symbols – Sapir Whorf
Hypothesis
5. Storage
• Memory stored in a three-stage model…
1. Sensory Memory – what you are processing
now – very detailed but only for an instant
-Iconic – visual; Echoic - Auditory
2. Short-term memory – “Working memory”
what you can remember for a short time –
phone numbers, - lasts about 20 seconds
3. Long-term memory – what you know/have
learned experienced – can’t always retrieve
10. Specific Types of Memory
• Declarative – recall of factual information –
dates, words, faces, events, etc… 2types
1. Episodic – Recall of personal facts (what
movie you were watching on your first date)
2. Semantic – Specific facts – 1st president of
the USA; capital of South Dakota, 2nd
Amendment, birthday, etc…
• Procedural – how to do stuff (drive a
car, shuffle cards, swim, ride a bike)
13. Parts of the Brain Involved In Memory
• Hippocampus – transferring episodic and
semantic memories to Long Term Memory
• Cerebellum – nondeclarative memories
(procedural memories, conditioned memories)
• Cerebral Cortex – Short Term Memories, final
storage for visual, auditory, verbal memories
• Amygdala – involved in processing of emotional
memories, hormones enhanced emotional
memories
15. Retrieval – getting information out of
memory so you can use it…
• Retrieval cues – stimuli that help get
information out of memory
1. Associations – relating items to known
information by priming “giving hints”
2. Context – remember easier if placed in the
same event
3. Mood – Similar mood = ease in remembering
20. Relearning
Learning something again you
have already learned before
-Takes less time the second
time, third time, etc…
21. Decay – Memory fades over
Forgetting time
Interference – you forget
because new information
gets in the way
Proactive – old information
gets in the way of new
Retroactive – new
information gets in the way
of old
Repression – forgetting
information you don’t want
to remember – sometimes
done subconsciously
24. Rehearsal – Practicing material to help
remember it
• Maintenance Rehearsal – repeating things
over and over to help remember, store in long
term memory
• Elaborative Rehearsal – Organizing, thinking
about, relating to prior learning or existing
memories – making examples, creating
scenarios, etc…
• Elaborative is much better because more cues
are built
25. Overlearning
• Continuing to practice
material over and over
even after it is learned to
increase retention
• Examples – Practicing
scales in music, drilling in
wrestling, batting
practice, online map
review games, etc…
27. Distributed Practice (Zeigarnick Effect)
• Learning a little bit over time is better than
cramming
• Example – Alex studies 5 hours the day before
a test, Sarah studies 1 hour each day for 5
days, Sarah will do better on the test assuming
they are of equal intelligence, ability, etc…
28. Mnemonic Devices
• “Every Good Boy Does
Fine”
• ROY G BIV
• I before e except after c…
• My Big Green Elephant
Has Neon Colored Pants
