AP Psychology AMSCO Guided Notes
2.5: Storing Memories
AP Psychology Guided Notes
AMSCO 2.5 - Storing Memories
Essential Questions
- How do memory storage processes retain information in memory?
A. How Do We Remember?
1. What are the four main categories of memory and what type of information does each store?
B. Differences in Memory Storage
1. Sensory Memory
1. What is sensory memory and how do iconic memory and echoic memory differ in the type of information they store?
2. What are the capacity and duration characteristics of sensory memory?
2. Short-Term Memory
1. What information is stored in short-term memory and what are its capacity and duration limitations?
3. Working Memory
1. How does working memory differ from short-term memory in terms of the processes it involves?
2. What are the capacity and duration characteristics of working memory?
4. Long-Term Memory
1. What types of information does long-term memory store and how do explicit and implicit memories differ?
2. What are the capacity and duration characteristics of long-term memory?
C. Prolonging Storage of Memories
1. Maintenance Rehearsal
1. What is maintenance rehearsal and why is it less effective for long-term memory storage than other strategies?
2. Elaborative Rehearsal
1. What is elaborative rehearsal and how does it enhance memory encoding compared to maintenance rehearsal?
2. What are examples of elaborative rehearsal techniques and how do they create stronger memory traces?
D. Autobiographical Memory
1. What is autobiographical memory and what types of memories does it encompass?
2. What biological factors contribute to highly superior autobiographical memory?
3. How can autobiographical memory be both beneficial and problematic, and how does it shape identity?
4. Why is autobiographical memory subject to change and what factors influence memory reconstruction?
E. Factors That Negatively Affect Memory Storage
1. Physical Impairment and Developmental Limitations
1. How do physical impairments such as blindness or deafness affect memory storage processes?
2. What developmental limitations can negatively affect memory encoding and retrieval?
2. Amnesia
1. What is amnesia and what factors can cause it?
3. Retrograde Amnesia
1. What is retrograde amnesia and what types of memories are typically lost with this condition?
2. Why can individuals with retrograde amnesia still form new memories?
4. Anterograde Amnesia
1. What is anterograde amnesia and what brain structure is typically damaged to cause this condition?
2. How did H.M.'s case demonstrate the difference between long-term memory formation and procedural memory?
5. Infantile Amnesia
1. What is infantile amnesia and why are adults typically unable to recall memories from early childhood?
6. Dementia and Alzheimer's Disease
1. What is dementia and how does it affect thinking, memory, and behavior?
2. What is Alzheimer's disease and what biological factors are associated with its development?
3. What are the typical signs and symptoms of Alzheimer's disease?
Key Terms
Alzheimer's disease
amnesia
anterograde amnesia
autobiographical memory
capacity
content
duration
elaborative rehearsal
highly superior autobiographical memory
infantile amnesia
long-term memory
maintenance rehearsal
memory storage process
retrograde amnesia
sensory memory
short-term memory
working memory