7.2 (Sensory Memory, Short-Term Memory, & Long-Term Memory) Three Stages of Memory 7.2 (Sensory Memory, Short-Term Memory, & Long-Term Memory)

Section 2 at a Glance Three Stages of Memory In sensory memory, each of the senses records its input in a distinct register. Sense data that receive attention are retained in short-term memory. Information from short-term memory can be stored in long-term memory if it is encoded and linked to other stored information. Information can be quickly retrieved from long-term memory because long-term memory is structured, or organized.

Sensory Memory Sensory memory is the first stage of information storage. It consists of the immediate, initial recording of data that enter through the senses. Psychologists believe that each of the five senses has a register. Mental pictures we form of visual stimuli are called icons, which are held in a sensory register called iconic memory. https://youtu.be/GkZNHe49GcA Iconic memories are very brief. The rare ability to remember visual stimuli over long periods of time is called eidetic imagery. https://youtu.be/A4ugfCjqlZ4 https://youtu.be/xg0bmHSUbps Mental traces of sounds are held in a mental sensory register called echoic memory.

Short-Term Memory Chunking Also called working memory, short-term memory is memory that holds information briefly before it is either stored in long-term memory or is forgotten. The Primacy and Recency Effects The primacy effect is the tendency to recall the initial item or items in a series. The tendency to recall the last item or items in a series is called the recency effect. There is no definitive explanation of the primacy effect or the recency effect. Chunking The organization of items into familiar or manageable units is called chunking. Psychologist George Miller found that the average person’s short-term memory can hold a list of seven items.

Short-Term Memory, cont’d Interference Interference occurs when new information appears in short-term memory and takes the place of what was already there. Short-term memory is a temporary solution to the problem of remembering information. It is the bridge between sensory memory and long-term memory.

Long-Term Memory Schemas Long-term memory is the third and final stage of information storage. It is the stage of memory capable of large and relatively permanent storage. Memory as Reconstruction Memories are not recorded and played back like videos or movies. They are reconstructed from our experiences. We shape memories according to the personal and individual ways in which we view the world. We tend to remember things in accordance with our beliefs and needs. Schemas Schemas are the mental representations that we form of the world by organizing bits of information into knowledge. Schemas influence the ways we perceive things and the ways our memories store what we perceive.

Long-Term Memory, cont’d Capacity of Memory Psychologists have not yet discovered a limit to how much can be stored in a person’s long-term memory. We do not store all of our experiences permanently. Our memory is limited by the amount of attention we pay to things. The memories we store in long-term memory are the incidents and experiences that have the greatest impact on us.