Stages of Memory: Structures Processes

Stages of Memory
Encoding Storage and Retrieval
Memory is the process of maintaining information over time. (Matlin, 2005)

Memory is the means by which we draw on our past experiences in order to use
this information in the present (Sternberg, 1999).
Memory is the term given to the structures and processes involved in the storage
and subsequent retrieval of information.
Memory is essential to all our lives. Without a memory of the past we cannot
operate in the present or think about the future. We would not be able to remember
what we did yesterday, what we have done today or what we plan to do tomorrow.
Without memory we could not learn anything.
Memory is involved in processing vast amounts of information. This information
takes many different forms, e.g. images, sounds or meaning.
For psychologists the term memory covers three important aspects of information
processing:
1. Memory Encoding
When information comes into our memory system (from sensory input), it needs to
be changed into a form that the system can cope with, so that it can be stored.
Think of this as similar to changing your money into a different currency when you
travel from one country to another. For example, a word which is seen (in a book)
may be stored if it is changed (encoded) into a sound or a meaning (i.e. semantic
processing).
There are three main ways in which information can be encoded
(changed):
1. Visual (picture)
2. Acoustic (sound)
3. Semantic (meaning)
For example, how do you remember a telephone number you have looked up in the
phone book? If you can see it then you are using visual coding, but if you are
repeating it to yourself you are using acoustic coding (by sound).
Evidence suggests that this is the principle coding system in short term memory
(STM) is acoustic coding. When a person is presented with a list of numbers and
letters, they will try to hold them in STM by rehearsing them (verbally). Rehearsal is
a verbal process regardless of whether the list of items is presented acoustically
(someone reads them out), or visually (on a sheet of paper).
The principle encoding system in long term memory (LTM) appears to be semantic
coding (by meaning). However, information in LTM can also be coded both visually
and acoustically.
2. Memory Storage
This concerns the nature of memory stores, i.e. where the information is stored, how
long the memory lasts for (duration), how much can be stored at any time
(capacity) and what kind of information is held. The way we store information
affects the way we retrieve it. There has been a significant amount of research
regarding the differences between Short Term Memory(STM ) and Long Term
Memory (LTM).
Most adults can store between 5 and 9 items in their short-term memory. Miller
(1956) put this idea forward and he called it the magic number 7. He though that
short-term memory capacity was 7 (plus or minus 2) items because it only had a
certain number of slots in which items could be stored. However, Miller didnt
specify the amount of information that can be held in each slot. Indeed, if we can
chunk information together we can store a lot more information in our short-term
memory. In contrast the capacity of LTM is thought to be unlimited.
Information can only be stored for a brief duration in STM (0-30 seconds), but LTM
can last a lifetime.
3. Memory Retrieval
This refers to getting information out storage. If we cant remember something, it

may be because we are unable to retrieve it. When we are asked to retrieve
something from memory, the differences between STM and LTM become very clear.
STM is stored and retrieved sequentially. For example, if a group of participants are
given a list of words to remember, and then asked to recall the fourth word on the
list, participants go through the list in the order they heard it in order to retrieve the
information.
LTM is stored and retrieved by association. This is why you can remember what you
went upstairs for if you go back to the room where you first thought about it.
Organizing information can help aid retrieval. You can organize information in
sequences (such as alphabetically, by size or by time). Imagine a patient being
discharged from hospital whose treatment involved taking various pills at various
times, changing their dressing and doing exercises. If the doctor gives these
instructions in the order which they must be carried out throughout the day (i.e. in
sequence of time), this will help the patient remember them.
Criticisms of Memory Experiments
A large part of the research on memory is based on experiments conducted in
laboratories. Those who take part in the experiments - the participants - are asked
to perform tasks such as recalling lists of words and numbers. Both the setting - the
laboratory - and the tasks are a long way from everyday life. In many cases, the
setting is artificial and the tasks fairly meaningless. Does this matter?
Psychologists use the term ecological validity to refer to the extent to which the
findings of research studies can be generalized to other settings. An experiment
has high ecological validity if its findings can be generalized, that is applied or
extended, to settings outside the laboratory.
It is often assumed that if an experiment is realistic or true-to-life, then there is a
greater likelihood that its findings can be generalized. If it is not realistic (if the
laboratory setting and the tasks are artificial) then there is less likelihood that the
findings can be generalized. In this case, the experiment will have low ecological
validity.
Many experiments designed to investigate memory have been criticized for having
low ecological validity. First, the laboratory is an artificial situation. People are
removed from their normal social settings and asked to take part in a psychological
experiment. They are directed by an 'experimenter' and may be placed in the
company of complete strangers. For many people, this is a brand new experience,
far removed from their everyday lives. Will this setting affect their actions, will they
behave normally?
Often, the tasks participants are asked to perform can appear artificial and
meaningless. Few, if any, people would attempt to memorize and recall a list of
unconnected words in their daily lives. And it is not clear how tasks such as this
relate to the use of memory in everyday life. The artificiality of many experiments
has led some researchers to question whether their findings can be generalized to
real life. As a result, many memory experiments have been criticized for having low
ecological validity.
References
Matlin, M. W. (2005). Cognition. Crawfordsville: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Miller, G. A. (1956). The magical number seven, plus or minus two: Some limits on
our capacity for processing information. Psychological Review, 63 (2): 8197.
Sternberg, R. J. (1999). Cognitive psychology (2 nd ed.). Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt
Brace College Publishers.
Reco Renzon M. Oliveros

PSYCHOLOGY
BSIT 3-1
GENERAL
How can improve my waking consciousness, using my knowledge

and altered state of consciousness?
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For centuries, human beings have been looking to the dream state as a pathway to
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Improve your motivation.
Help you become happier.
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Meditation and relaxation are 2 great techniques to improve your mental and
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Our subconscious is the gateway to everything that was, is and will be. It is a vast
source of information, learning how to cooperate with it can only improve our lives.
Mindset
Step 1: Before you turn out the light,

Step 2: Take two minutes to visualize yourself actually able to do this thing
Step 3: Take two minutes to imagine the feeling that will occur when you are able
to accomplish this new thing

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What are the three main ways information can be encoded?

What are the differences between short term memory and long term memory?

Stages of Memory

Encoding Storage and Retrieval

Memory is the process of maintaining information over time. (Matlin, 2005)

This refers to getting information out storage. If we cant remember something, it

Reco Renzon M. Oliveros

How can improve my waking consciousness, using my knowledge

Step 1: Before you turn out the light,

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