Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Traumatic Memory01:20

Traumatic Memory

Emotionally traumatic events often lead to memories that are exceptionally vivid and enduring, sometimes persisting with remarkable clarity throughout an individual's life. A classic example of this phenomenon is a person who survives a car accident. Even years later, they may recall every detail of the event with startling accuracy — the screeching of the tires, the jarring impact, and the acrid smell of burning rubber. Such vividness contrasts sharply with how an individual remembers mundane...
Chunking and Rehearsal in Sensory Memory01:22

Chunking and Rehearsal in Sensory Memory

Improving short-term memory can be achieved through techniques like chunking and rehearsal. Chunking involves organizing information into larger, more manageable units. This technique is particularly useful for information that exceeds the typical memory span of between five and nine items. For instance, logging into an online account with a password like "ta89vq0179gz" involves grouping letters and numbers into three chunks—ta89, vq01, and 79gz. It makes large amounts of information more...
Understanding Memory01:19

Understanding Memory

Memory is the retention of information or experiences over time, facilitated through three main processes: encoding, storage, and retrieval. Encoding is the process of inputting information into the memory system. For instance, when listening to a lecture, watching a play, reading a book, or having a conversation, the brain is actively encoding information. This initial stage involves transforming sensory input into a form that can be processed and stored by the brain. Various factors, such as...
Higher Mental Functions of Brain: Learning and Memory01:26

Higher Mental Functions of Brain: Learning and Memory

Memory is one of the most vital higher mental functions of the brain. Memory is closely related to learning because it enables us to retain information and experiences from our past to use them in our present life. It also helps us to remember facts, events, and skills, such as riding a bike or swimming. There are two types of memory — declarative memory, which involves memorizing facts or events, and procedural memory, which enables us to remember how to do something like writing or playing an...
Interference and Decay01:16

Interference and Decay

Forgetting is a complex cognitive phenomenon influenced by several factors, among which interference and decay are particularly prominent. These processes explain why individuals often struggle to retrieve specific information from memory, leading to lapses in recall that can be observed in everyday situations.
Interference occurs when competing memories hinder the retrieval of particular information. It can be classified into two types: proactive and retroactive interference. Proactive...
Elaborative Rehearsals01:07

Elaborative Rehearsals

Elaborative rehearsal is a crucial cognitive strategy that strengthens information encoding in long-term memory by making meaningful connections between new data and pre-existing knowledge. This approach contrasts with maintenance rehearsal, which involves simple repetition without delving into the significance of the information. While maintenance rehearsal might temporarily keep information active in short-term memory, it is less effective for long-term retention.
The effectiveness of...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Aggressive Behavior in Adolescents and Emerging Adults: The Psychometrics of the Portuguese Brief Peer Conflict Scale (Brief-PCS).

Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland)·2025
Same author

The contamination effect on recognition memory: adding evidence of an adaptive mnemonic tuning.

Memory (Hove, England)·2025
Same author

Editorial: Animacy in cognition: effects, mechanisms, and theories.

Frontiers in psychology·2024
Same author

The animacy (bias) effect in recognition: testing the influence of intentionality of learning and retrieval quality.

Memory (Hove, England)·2024
Same author

The breadth of animacy in memory: New evidence from prospective memory.

Psychonomic bulletin & review·2023
Same author

The impact of COVID-19 concerns on perceiving others' faces.

International journal of psychology : Journal international de psychologie·2023

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 16, 2026

Aversive Associative Learning and Memory Formation by Pairing Two Chemicals in Caenorhabditis elegans
07:17

Aversive Associative Learning and Memory Formation by Pairing Two Chemicals in Caenorhabditis elegans

Published on: June 23, 2022

Adaptive memory: survival processing enhances retention.

James S Nairne1, Sarah R Thompson, Josefa N S Pandeirada

  • 1Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA. nairne@psych.purdue.edu

Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition
|March 14, 2007
PubMed
Summary

Memory systems evolved to remember survival-relevant information. People consistently recalled words better when rated for survival importance compared to other relevance types, suggesting a "survival tuning" of memory.

More Related Videos

A Prediction Error-driven Retrieval Procedure for Destabilizing and Rewriting Maladaptive Reward Memories in Hazardous Drinkers
08:05

A Prediction Error-driven Retrieval Procedure for Destabilizing and Rewriting Maladaptive Reward Memories in Hazardous Drinkers

Published on: January 5, 2018

Extinction Training During the Reconsolidation Window Prevents Recovery of Fear
11:17

Extinction Training During the Reconsolidation Window Prevents Recovery of Fear

Published on: August 24, 2012

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 16, 2026

Aversive Associative Learning and Memory Formation by Pairing Two Chemicals in Caenorhabditis elegans
07:17

Aversive Associative Learning and Memory Formation by Pairing Two Chemicals in Caenorhabditis elegans

Published on: June 23, 2022

A Prediction Error-driven Retrieval Procedure for Destabilizing and Rewriting Maladaptive Reward Memories in Hazardous Drinkers
08:05

A Prediction Error-driven Retrieval Procedure for Destabilizing and Rewriting Maladaptive Reward Memories in Hazardous Drinkers

Published on: January 5, 2018

Extinction Training During the Reconsolidation Window Prevents Recovery of Fear
11:17

Extinction Training During the Reconsolidation Window Prevents Recovery of Fear

Published on: August 24, 2012

Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary Psychology
  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Memory Research

Background:

  • Memory systems may have evolved to prioritize fitness-relevant information.
  • Survival is a fundamental aspect of fitness that could shape memory.
  • Previous research suggests distinct processing for different types of information.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if memory systems are tuned to retain survival-relevant information.
  • To compare memory performance for survival-related stimuli versus other categories.
  • To explore the evolutionary basis of memory encoding.

Main Methods:

  • Four incidental learning experiments were conducted.
  • Participants rated common nouns for survival relevance (food, water, protection) or control conditions (pleasantness, foreign land, personal relevance).
  • Surprise retention tests assessed recall and recognition memory.

Main Results:

  • Participants demonstrated superior memory performance for words rated for survival relevance.
  • This survival advantage was consistent across recall and recognition tasks.
  • The effect was observed in both within-subject and between-subjects experimental designs.

Conclusions:

  • Memory systems appear to be optimized for processing and retaining fitness-relevant information.
  • The findings support the hypothesis that memory has evolved to aid survival.
  • Enhanced memory for survival cues may confer an adaptive advantage.