Chapter 7 Glossary

1. algorithm A rule that, if applied appropriately, guarantees a solution to a problem.

2. amnesia Memory loss that occurs without other mental difficulties.

3. anterograde amnesia Amnesia in which memory is lost for events that follow an injury.

4. autobiographical memories Our recollections of circumstances and episodes from our own lives.

5. chunk A meaningful grouping of stimuli that can be stored as a unit in short-term memory.

6. constructive processes Processes in which memories are influenced by the meaning we give to events.

7. cue-dependent forgetting Forgetting that occurs when there are insufficient retrieval cues to rekindle information
that is in memory.

8. decay The loss of information in memory through its nonuse.

9. declarative memory Memory for factual information, names, faces, dates, and the like.

10. episodic memory Memory for events that occur in a particular time, place, or context.

11. explicit memory Intentional or conscious recollection of information.

12. flashbulb memories Memories centered on a specific, important, or surprising event that are so vivid it is as if they
represented a snapshot of the event.

13. implicit memory Memories of which people are not consciously aware, but which can affect subsequent
performance and behavior.

14. interference The phenomenon by which information in memory disrupts the recall of other information.

15. Korsakoff's syndrome A disease that afflicts long-term alcoholics, leaving some abilities intact, but including
hallucinations and a tendency to repeat the same story.

16. levels-of-processing theory The theory of memory that emphasizes the degree to which new material is mentally
analyzed.

17. long-term memory Memory that stores information on a relatively permanent basis, although it may be difficult to
retrieve.

18. memory trace A physical change in the brain that occurs when new material is learned.

19. memory The process by which we encode, store, and retrieve information.

20. priming A phenomenon in which exposure to a word or concept (called a prime) later makes it easier to recall
related information, even when there is no conscious memory of the word or concept.

21. proactive interference Interference in which information learned earlier disrupts the recall of newer information.

22. procedural memory Memory for skills and habits, such as riding a bike or hitting a baseball, sometimes referred to
as nondeclarative memory.

23. recall Memory task in which specific information must be retrieved.

24. recognition Memory task in which individuals are presented with a stimulus and asked whether they have been
exposed to it in the past or to identify it from a list of alternatives.

25. rehearsal The repetition of information that has entered short-term memory.
26. retroactive interference Interference in which there is difficulty in the recall of information learned earlier because
of later exposure to different material.

27. retrograde amnesia Amnesia in which memory is lost for occurrences prior to a certain event.

28. semantic memory Memory for general knowledge and facts about the world, as well as memory for the rules of
logic that are used to deduce other facts.

29. semantic networks Mental representations of clusters of interconnected information.

30. sensory memory The initial, momentary storage of information, lasting only an instant.

31. short-term memory Memory that holds information for fifteen to twenty-five seconds.

32. tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon The inability to recall information that one realizes one knows—a result of the
difficulty of retrieving information from long-term memory.

33. working memory A set of active, temporary memory stores that actively manipulate and rehearse information.