Types of Long-Term Memory Flashcards
Who theorised about the 3 types of long-term memory and what are they?
Tulving - Episodic, Semantic and Procedural.
What is episodic memory?
Our ability to recall events from our lives. These memories are complex and time-stamped. It includes several elements, such as people, places, objects and behaviours. You have to make a conscious effort to recall these.
What is semantic memory?
Our shared knowledge of the world - a combination of an encyclopaedia and a dictionary. These are not time-stamped. They are also impersonal and about facts we all share. It is less vulnerable to distortion and forgetting than the others.
What is procedural memory?
Memory for actions or skills. We can recall these without conscious effort.
What is the strength - Clinical evidence?
HM and Clive Wearing - episodic memory in both was impaired due to brain damage, but their semantic memories were unaffected. They still understood the meaning of words. HM couldn’t remember stroking a dog half an hour ago, but remembered the concept of a dog. This supports Tulving’s view that there really different memory stores - one can be damaged but the others intact.
What is the limitation - Clinical studies unreliable?
They lack control of variables. The brain injuries were unexpected so the researched had no way of controlling what happened before, after or during the injury. This lack of control limits what clinical studies can tell us about different types of LTM.
What is the limitation - conflicting neuroimaging evidence?
There are conflicting research findings linking types of LTM to areas of the brain. Buckner and Peterson reviewed evidence on the location of Semantic and Episodic memory - they concluded semantic is on the left and episodic on the right of the PFC, whereas Tulving has them the other way round. This challenges any neurophysical evidence.
What is the strength - RWA?
Understanding of LTM helps people with memory problems. As people age they experience memory loss, but research has shown this is specific to episodic memory, it is harder to recall memories of personal events that occurred recently although older memories are intact. The shows that distinguishing between types of LTM allows specific treatments to be developed.
