Explain The Three Main Processes Involved In Human Memory

1. In your own words, describe the three processes of memory.

The three main processes involved in human memory are encoding, storage and retrieval. Encoding involves adapting information so that it can be placed in memory;

To do this, we use visual, acoustic and semantic codes. Storage is the maintenance of information over time. There are two ways to attempt to store information in one’s memory, maintenance rehearsal and elaborative rehearsal. Maintenance rehearsal is mental repetition to retain information and elaborate rehearsal is when we relate new information to information we already know, to store it in our memory. The last process of memory is retrieval, which includes locating the information and returning it to our consciousness. Retrieval attempts may be difficult or unsuccessful depending on the information.

2. List the three stages of memory and describe how they fit together.

The three stages of memory are sensory memory, short-term memory and long-term memory.

Sensory memory can disappear quickly but lasts long enough so that sequences of perceptions are psychologically unbroken. It is believed that we have a sensory register for each sense. For visual stimuli the mental representations are called icons, and for sounds they are called echoes. Short-term memory (also called working memory) is the stage that holds information for up to one minute after the trace of the stimulus deteriorates. The introduction of new information displaces the old information, in short-term memory. The last stage, long--term memory, is capable of fairly permanent storage, ranging from a few days to years. There is no evidence that displacement occurs in long-term