Key Terms
Automatic processing
Happens without conscious effort. Time, space, frequency, word meaning.
Effortful processing
Requires attention and work. Studying for a test.
EXPLICIT (DECLARATIVE) MEMORY
Consciously recalled. Can be put into words.
IMPLICIT MEMORY
Outside conscious awareness. Demonstrated through behavior, not verbal report.
Recall
Accessing information without cues. Essay tests.
Flashbulb memory
An exceptionally clear, vivid recollection of a highly emotional event. Where you were when you heard shocking news.
Memory formation involves
Epinephrine, dopamine, serotonin, glutamate, acetylcholine. Repeated neuron activity strengthens synaptic connections —
Amnesia
Loss of long-term memory due to disease, physical trauma, or psychological trauma.
Anterograde amnesia
Cannot form NEW memories after the injury. Old memories remain.
Retrograde amnesia
Cannot retrieve memories from BEFORE the injury. Difficulty with episodic memories of the past.
Construction
Forming new memories. Reconstruction: bringing up old memories; vulnerable to modification by new information.
Suggestibility
Misinformation from external sources creates false memories.
Eyewitness misidentification
Leading questions, lineup procedures, and post-event feedback can corrupt eyewitness memory. Innocence Project data show
Three categories
Forgetting, distortion, intrusion.
Proactive interference
OLD information blocks recall of NEW information. Writing last year's date in January.