Types of Memory
Working Memory & Processing
Encoding & Study Strategies
Storage & Amnesia
Retrieval & Forgetting
100

A memory that holds sights for just a fraction of a second.

What is iconic memory?

100

The working memory component that repeats sounds or words.

What is the phonological loop?

100

Organizing information into manageable units to improve recall.

What is chunking?

100

The inability to recall personal memories from early childhood.

What is infantile amnesia?

100

Remembering information without any cues.

What is recall?

200

This type of memory stores personal life experiences.

What is episodic memory?

200

The working memory component that handles visual and spatial information.

What is the visuospatial sketchpad?

200

A memory technique that uses imagery and familiar locations.

What is the method of loci?

200

Memory rehearsal that focuses on meaning and personal connections.

What is elaborative rehearsal?

200

Improved memory when studying and testing occur in the same environment.

What is context-dependent memory?

300

A memory system responsible for skills like typing or riding a bike.

What is procedural memory?

300

The part of working memory that directs attention and coordinates tasks.

What is the central executive?

300

Better recall for the first and last items in a list.

What is the serial position effect?

300

A disorder characterized by progressive memory loss and cognitive decline.

What is Alzheimer’s disease?

300

Old information interfering with the recall of new information.

What is proactive interference?

400

This memory involves consciously recalling facts and experiences.

What is explicit memory?

400

Processing information based on its meaning.

What is semantic processing?

400

Studying in shorter sessions over time rather than cramming.

What is distributed practice?

400

Inability to form new long-term memories after brain damage.

What is anterograde amnesia?

400

When misleading information alters a person’s memory of an event.

What is the misinformation effect?

500

The memory system that stores information for long periods, possibly a lifetime.

What is long-term memory?

500

Strengthening of neural connections after repeated practice or learning.

What is long-term potentiation? 

500

Explains why distributed practice works better than cramming.

What is the spacing effect?

500

A vivid memory of a surprising or emotional event.

What is a flashbulb memory?

500

Feeling certain you know an answer but being unable to retrieve it.

What is the tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon?