Intro To Psychology (Ch. 6) Vocab Set

Front 1

Encoding

Back 1

the initial process of recording information in a form usuable to memory is the first stage in remembering something

Front 2

Storage

Back 2

the maintenance of material saved in memory

Front 3

Retrieval

Back 3

material in memory storage has to be located and brought into awareness to be useful, this is the last process

Front 4

Memory

Back 4

the process by which we encode, store, and retrieve information

Front 5

Iconic memory

Back 5

reflects information from the visual system

Front 6

Echoic memory

Back 6

stores auditory information coming from the ears

Front 7

Sensory memory

Back 7

the initial momentary storage of information, lasting only an instant

Front 8

Short-term memory

Back 8

memory that holds information for 15 to 25 seconds

Front 9

Long-term memory

Back 9

memory that stores information on a relatively permanent basis, although it may be difficult to retrieve

Front 10

Chunk

Back 10

a grouping of information that can be stored in short-term memory

Front 11

Rehearsal

Back 11

the repetition of information that has entered short-term memory

Front 12

Elaborative rehearsal

Back 12

occurs when the information in considered and organized in some fashion

Front 13

Mnemonics

Back 13

formal techniques for organizing information in a way that makes it more likely to be remembered

Front 14

Working-memory

Back 14

a memory system that holds information temporarily while actively manipulating and rehearsing that information

Front 15

Central executive processor

Back 15

that is involved in reasoning and decision making. Includes three storage and rehearsal systems: visual store, verbal store, and the episodic buffer

Front 16

Declarative memory

Back 16

memory for factual information: names, faces, dates, and the like

Front 17

Procedural memory

Back 17

memory for skills and habits, such as riding a bike or hitting a baseball; sometimes referred to as nondeclarative memory

Front 18

Semantic memory

Back 18

memory for general knowledge and facts about the world, as well as memory for the rules of logic that are used to deduce other facts

Front 19

Serial position effect

Back 19

in which the ability to recall information in a list depends on where in the list an item appears

Front 20

Primacy effect

Back 20

items presented early in a list are remembered better

Front 21

Recency effect

Back 21

items presented late in a list are remembered best

Front 22

Episodic memory

Back 22

memory for events that occur in a particular time, place, or context

Front 23

Spreading activation

Back 23

activating one memory triggers the activation of related memories

Front 24

Semantic networks

Back 24

mental representations of clusters of interconnected information

Front 25

Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon

Back 25

the inability to recall information that one realizes one knows-a result of the difficulty of retrieving information from long-term memory

Front 26

Recall

Back 26

memory task in which specific information must be retrieved

Front 27

Recognition

Back 27

memory task in which individuals are presented with a stimulus and asked whether they have been exposed to it in the past or to identify it from a list of alternatives

Front 28

Levels-of-processing theory

Back 28

the theory of memory that emphasizes the degree to which new material is mentally analyzed

Front 29

Explicit memory

Back 29

intentional or conscious recollection of information

Front 30

Implicit memory

Back 30

memories of which people are not consciously aware but that can affect subsequent performance and behavior

Front 31

Priming

Back 31

a phenomenon that occurs when exposure to a word or concept (called a prime) later makes it easier to recall related information

Front 32

Flashbulb memories

Back 32

memories of a specific, important, or surprising emotional significant event that are recalled easily and with vivid imagery

Front 33

Constructive processes

Back 33

processes in which memories are influenced by the meaning we give to events

Front 34

Schemas

Back 34

organized bodies of information stored in memory that bias the way new information is interpreted, stored, and recalled

Front 35

Autobiographical memory

Back 35

our recollections of our own life experiences

Front 36

Decay

Back 36

the loss of information in memory through its nonuse

Front 37

Interference

Back 37

the phenomenon by which information in memory disrupts the recall of other information

Front 38

Cue-dependent forgetting

Back 38

forgetting that occurs when there are insufficient retrieval cues to rekindle information that is in memory

Front 39

Proactive interference

Back 39

interference in which information learned earlier disrupts the recall of material learned later

Front 40

Retroactive interference

Back 40

interference in which material that was learned later disrupts the retrieval of information that was learned earlier

Front 41

Alzheimer's disease

Back 41

a progressive brain disorder that leads to a gradual and irreversible decline in cognitive abilities

Front 42

Amnesia

Back 42

memory loss that occurs without other mental difficulties

Front 43

Retrograde amnesia

Back 43

amnesia in which memory in lost for occurences prior to a certain event, but not for new events

Front 44

Anterograde amnesia

Back 44

amnesia in which memory is lost for events that follow an injury

Front 45

Korsakoff's syndrome

Back 45

a disease that afflicts long-term alcoholics, leaving some ablilities intact but including hallucinations and a tendency to repeat the same story