Ap Psychology: Memory & Intelligence
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Created by:
ChrisWysong on February 21, 2010
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101 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Memory | the power of retaining and recalling past experience |
| Memory Encoding | process of converting info into a form that can be stored mentally |
| Memory Storage | process of retaining info in memory |
| Memory Retrieval | process of accessing and bringing into consciousness info stored in memory |
| Retrieval Cues | stimuli that aid the recall or recognition of information stored in memory |
| Encoding Specificity Principle | belief that retrieval will be more successful when cues available during recall are similar to those present when the material was first committed to memory |
| Context-Dependent Memory Effects | The tendency for information to be better recalled in the same context in which it was originally learned |
| State-Dependent Memory Effects | The tendency for information to be better recalled when the person is in the same psychological or physiological state as when the information was first encoded or learned |
| Three-stage Model | A model of memory that posits three distinct processes or subsystems of memory(sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory) |
| Sensory Memory | the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system |
| Sensory Register | A temporary storage buffer or holding device for storing sensory memories |
| Short-term Memory | The memory subsystem that allows for retention of newly acquired information for upwards of 30 seconds. Also called working memory |
| Long Term memory | the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. |
| Iconic Memory | The sensory store for holding a mental representaion of a visual image for a fraction of a second |
| Eidetic Imagery | A lingering mental representation of a visual image. Commonly called photographic memory |
| Echoic Memory | A momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds. |
| Chunking | A process of enhancing retention of larger amounts of information by breaking them down into smaller, more easily recalled chunks |
| Maintenance Rehearsal | A process for extending retention of information held in short-term memory by means of repetitive rehearsal of the information |
| Phonological Loop | In Baddeley and Hitch's three-component model, the speech-based part of working memory that allows for the verbal rehearsal of sounds or words |
| Visuospatial Sketchpad | In Baddeley and Hitch's three-component model, the storage buffer for visual-spatial material held in short-term memory. |
| Central Executive | In Baddeley and Hitch's three-component model, the component of working memory responsible for coordinating the other subsytems, processing stored information, and filtering out distracting thoughts |
| Consolidation | The process of converting short-term memories into long term-term memories |
| Elaborative Rehearsal | A process of transfering information from short-term to long-term memory by means of conscious elaboration of the meaning of the information |
| Levels-of-processing Theory | The belief that differences between short-term and long-term memory reflect different levels of processing rather than distinct stages of memory. |
| Semantic Network Model | A representation of the organizational structure of long-term memory in terms of a network of associated concepts |
| Spreading Activation | a principle that explains how information is retrieved in semantic network theories of memory |
| Declarative Memory | Memory of facts, figures, and personal information that requires a conscious effort to bring to mind, the type of memory involved in knowing "what" and "that". |
| Semantic Memory | Memory of general facts and information |
| Episodic Memory | Memory of personal experiences for the stories of our lives |
| Retrospective Memory | Memory of past events or previously acquired information |
| Prospective Memory | Memory of things that one plans to do at particular time in the future |
| Procedural Memory | memory for skills, including perceptual, motor, and cognitive skills required to complete tasks |
| Implicit Memory | the unintentional influence of prior experiences |
| Explicit Memory | the process in which people intentionally try to remember something |
| Priming Tasks | an experimental task in which subjects are present with a stimulus that primes them to repsond in a certain way to subsequent stimuli |
| Constructionist Theory | The theory that holds that memory involves a process of representing or reconstructing past events and experiences |
| Memory Schemas | An organized knowledge structure, such as a set of belifs, that reflect one's past experiences, expectancies, and knowledge about the world. |
| Flashbulb Memories | Enduring memories of emotionally charged events that seem seare into memory |
| Decay Theory | Theory that each item in memory decays spontaneously as time passes. |
| Savings Theory | A methos of testing memory retention by means of comparing the numbers of trials needed to learn material with the number of trials needed to relearn the material at a later time. |
| Massed vs. spaced practice theory | The tendency for retention of learned material to be greater following spaced practice rather than massed practice |
| Interference Theory | Belief that forgetting occurs because other items get in the way of the information a person wants to remember. |
| Retroactive Interference | A form of interference in which newly acquired information interferes with retention of earlier learned material |
| Proactive Interference | A form of interference in which newly acquired information interferes with retention of earlier learned material |
| Serial Position Effect | The tendency to recall material placed at the start or end of a list better than material placed in the middle of the list |
| Primary Effect | Tendency to recall items better when they are learned first |
| Recency Effect | With respect to memory, the tendency to recall items better when they are learned last |
| Retrieval Theory | The process of recalling information stored in memory |
| Tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) phenomenon | An experience in which people sense that they know something but can't seem to bring it to mind. |
| Repression | in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness |
| Recall Tasks | memory task in which one must retrieve information from long-term memory with only minimal retrieval cues |
| Recognition Tasks | A method of measuring memory retention, such as multiple choice tests, which assess the ability to recognize the correct answer among a range of alternatives |
| Free Recall | A type of recall task in which individuals are asked to reproduce as many stored items as possibe in any order |
| Serial Recall | A type of recall task inwhich individuals are asked to recite a list of items or number in a particular order |
| Paired Associates Recall | A type of recall task in which individuals first learn a list of paired words or items and then are asked to reproduce the correct pair member when given the other item in the pair |
| Amnesia | Loss of Memory |
| Anterograde Amnesia | a loss of memory for any event that occurs after a brain injury |
| Retrograde Amnesia | a loss of memory for events prior to a brain injury |
| Childhood Amnesia | normal occurrence of amnesia for events occurring during infancy and early childhood |
| Dissociative Amnesia | sudden loss of memory usually following a particularly stressful or traumatic event |
| Neural Networks | Memory circuits in the brain that consist of complicated networks of nerve cells |
| Engram | Lashley's term for physical trace or etching of memory in the brain |
| Hippocampus | a neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage |
| Long Term Potentiation | The long-term strengthening of neural connections by means of repeated stimulation |
| Cell Assemblies | Hebb's Concept of a grouping of cells in the brain that reverberate electrically together in the process of forming new memories |
| Mnemonics | Strategies for placing information in an organized context in order to remember it |
| Acronyms | words that are made up of the first letters of other words |
| Acrostics | A verse or saying in which the first or last letter of each word stands for something else |
| Method of Loci | A mnemonic based on linking items to be remembered with objects in familiar locations. Also called the method of places |
| Cognitive Psychology | branch of psychology that focuses on such mental processes as thinking, problem solving, decision making, and use of language |
| Thinking | process of mentally representing and manipulating information |
| Mental Image | mental picture of representation of object or event |
| Concepts | a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people |
| Logical Concepts | concepts with clearly defined rules for membership |
| Natural Concepts | concepts with poorly defined or fuzzy rules for membership |
| Superordinate Concepts | the broadest concepts in a three-level hierarchy of concepts |
| Basic Level Concepts | mid level of concepts in a 3 level heirarchy of concepts, corresponding to the categories we most often use in grouping objects and events |
| Specific Concepts | The narrowest or most specific level of concepts in a three-level hierarchical ordering of concepts |
| Positive Instances | an object that fits a particular concepts |
| Negative Instances | object that doesn't fit a particular concept |
| Problem Solving | the thought processes involved in solving a problem |
| Algorithms | very specific, step-by-step procedures for solving certain types of problems |
| Heuristics | Time-saving mental shortcuts used in reasoning |
| Analogies | In problem solving, the attempt to apply knowledge gained from solving similar problems to the problem at hand |
| Mental Set | A tendency to approach a problem in a particular way, especially a way that has been successful in the past but may or may not be helpful in solving a new problem |
| Functional Fixedness | A tendency to perceive the uses of objects as limited to the customary finctions they serve |
| Decision Making | the cognitive process of reaching a decision or determining a course of action |
| Confirmation Bias | The tendency to maintain allegiance to an original hypothesis despite strong evidence to the contrary |
| Representativeness Heuristic | judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead one to ignore other relevant information. |
| Availability heuristic | The tendency to judge events as more likely to occur when they are more readily called to mind |
| Creativity | Originality of thought associated with the development of new workable products or solutions to problems |
| Divergent Thinking | Ability to conceive of novel ways of viewing situations and of alternate uses for familiar objects |
| Convergant Thinking | Ability to bring together different sources of information to find the one correct answer to a problem |
| Language | a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols |
| Grammar | The set of rules that govern how symbols in a given language are used to form meaningful expresions |
| Phonemes | The basic unit of sounds in a language |
| Morphemes | The smallest units in a language that convey meaning |
| Syntax | the rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences in a given language |
| Semantics | The meanings of words or other symbolic expressions in a language |
| Language Acquisation Device | According to Chomsky, the hypothetical prewired innate mechanism in the brain that allows children to naturally acquire language |
| Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis | The proposition that the particular language we use determines how we think and percieve the world. |
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