types of long term memory Flashcards
what did Endel Tulving 1985 say about long term memory?
he was one of the first cognitive psychologists to realise that the MSM’s view of the long term memory was to simplistic. he proposed 3 LTM stores, containing different types of information
what are the 3 long term memory stores?
episodic
semantic
procedural memory
what is the unconscious memory type called?
information you remember unconsciously and effortlessly is implicit memory
what is the concious memory type called?
information you have to consciously work to remember is explicit memory
what is the episodic memory?
this refers to our ability to recall events from our lives. this has been likened to a diary, a record of daily happenings
what are the memories like in the episodic memory?
- they are time stamped so you remember when they happened (e.g. recently, last week, this morning)
- your memory of a single episode will include several elements (e.g. people and places, objects and behaviours are all interwoven to produce a single memory)
- you have to make a conscious effort to recall episodic memories. you may be able to do this quickly, but you are still aware that you are searching for your memory of what happened when)
what are some examples of episodic memories?
- memories of a specific birthday
- certain visit to the doctors
- breakfast you ate that morning
- first date
- first day at school
- what you watched on TV last week
what is semantic memory?
this store contains our knowledge of the world. this conscious type of memory is like a combination of an encyclopaedia and a dictionary. these memories are not ‘time-stamped’, that is, we don’t usually remember when we first learned about these things
what is semantic knowledge?
it is less personal and more about facts we all share. however, it is much more than memory about facts- it contains an immense collection of material which is constantly being added to.
what are some examples of semantic memory?
- taste of an orange
- meanings of words
- knowing capital cities
- purpose of a piggy bank
- your address
- words of a song
what is procedural memory?
it is our memory for, actions, skills or basically how we do things. we can recall these memories without concious awareness or a great deal of effort (muscle memory). our ability to do this eventually depends on our procedural memory. these skills we might find hard to explain to someone else, if you try to describe what you are doing whilst doing it, the task can become more difficult
what are some examples of procedural memory?
- driving a car
- checking a bill
- ride a bike
- make a cake
AO3: how is ‘clinical evidence’ a strength to the types of long term memory?
the case studies of HM and Clive Wearing supports Tulvings view that there are different memory stores in the LTM. episodic memory in both men was severely impaired as a consequence of amnesia. they had great difficultly recalling events that had happened to them in their pasts. but their semantic memory’s were relatively unaffected. for example, they still understood the meaning of words. HM would not be able to recall stroking a dog half an hour before and could not remember having owned a dog in the past, but he would not need to have the concept of dog explained to him over and over again. their procedural memories were also intact. they both knew how to tie there shoelaces, how to walk and speak, and, in Clive Wearings case (he was a professional musician), how to read music, play piano and sing. therefore, one store can be damaged but other stores are unaffected. this is clear evidence that not only these types of memory are different, but they are stored in different parts of the brain.
AO3: how is ‘neuroimaging evidence’ a strength to the types of long term memory?
brain scan studies show that different types of memory are stored in different types of the brain. for example, Tulving et al 1994, got their participants to perform various memory tasks whilst their brains were scanned using a PET scanner. they found that episodic and semantic memories were both recalled from an area of the brain called the prefrontal cortex. this area is divided into two, one on each side (or hemisphere) of the brain. the left prefrontal cortex was involved in recalling semantic memories. episodic memories were recalled from the right prefrontal cortex. this finding supports the view that there is a physical reality to the different types of LTM within the brain. it has also been confirmed many times in later research studies, further supporting the validity of the findings.
AO3: how is ‘real life application’ a strength to the working memory model?
being able to identify different aspects of LTM allows psychologists to target certain kinds of memory in order to better people’s lives because it can lead to specific treatments being developed. Belleville et al. (2006) demonstrated that episodic memories could be improved in older people who had mild cognitive impairment. The trained participants performed better on a test of episodic memory after training compared to the control group.
