Types of long term memory

Types of Long Term Memory

• EPISODIC MEMORY
• SEMANTIC MEMORY
• PROCEDURAL MEMORY

EPISODIC MEMORY

• These are personal memories of events, e.g. what you did yesterday or a teacher you liked. This type of memory includes contextual details and an emotional tone
• This kind of memory is called episodic memory because its like an episode/ events that happened in your life.
• This memory is KNOWING THAT;
• I took the bus to school
• I was scared of the ride
• It was my first day at work
• The key things to know:
• Episodic memories include
• specific detail
• The context of the event
• Emotions involved

SEMANTIC MEMORY

• These are shared memories for facts and knowledge. These memories may become concrete e.g. knowing ice is made up of water.
• Semantic memory is responsible for storing information about the world.
• This memory is KNOWING THAT;
• Hello is an introduction
• Paris is the capital of France
• 2+2 =4
• The function of objects
• How to behave in social situations
• HOW ITS DIFFERENT FROM EPISODIC:
• The memories are things that are shared amongst all/ most people and not personal knowledge / facts.
• Most semantic memories start of as episodic memories due to the fact that we gain knowledge from personal experiences. This knowledge then becomes generalised and is known as a semantic memory.

PROCEDURAL MEMORY

• This is the memory for how to do things. These memories are automatic as a result of repeated practice.
• These memories are knowing how to do things
• E.G.
• How to tie your shoes
• Ride a bike
• Write
• These memories are acquired through practice and repetition. We are less aware of these memories because they become automatic. This means they are implicit. Focusing on the automatic tasks too much would prevent us from acting them out successfully.

Evaluation

• BRAIN SCANS : Research shows that different parts of the brain become active when different types of memories are being created. Episodic memories are associated with the hippocampus and other parts of the temporal lobe. Semantic memories are associated with the temporal lobe also and procedural memories are located at the cerebellum.
• HM : His hippocampus was affected, he could not form new episodic or semantic memories but he could form new procedural memories which is evidence that there is a difference between procedural and declerative memories.
• SEMANTIC MEMORIES: Studies on people with alzheimers, show that semantic memories can in fact be formed without episodic memories forming first. This suggest that these memories are indeed separate.
• PRS: This stands for perceptual representation system. This is when priming is used to form implicit memories in participants to affect their response to stimulus. E.g. giving participants a list of words with the word yellow in it and asking them to name a fruit, most likely they would say banana.