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Eye Movement Monitoring of Memory
Published on: August 15, 2010
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What memory is.
1Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews. Cognitive Science
|August 12, 2015
Summary
The current definition of memory is too broad, encompassing nearly all mental states. This paper proposes a narrower definition focusing on the subjective feeling of reacquaintance with the past.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Philosophy of Mind
- Neuroscience
Background:
- The prevailing definition of memory encompasses encoding, storage, and retrieval, leading to its application across most mental states.
- This broad application risks diluting the term 'memory' and its scientific utility.
Purpose of the Study:
- To challenge the epistemic warrant of the current, expansive definition of memory.
- To propose a more circumscribed view of memory grounded in subjective experience.
Main Methods:
- Phenomenological analysis of memory experiences.
- Historical examination of the concept of memory.
- Conceptual analysis of memory's defining characteristics.
Main Results:
- The current 'received view' of memory is epistemically underspecified.
- A proposed definition of memory emphasizes a direct, non-inferential feeling of reacquaintance with the past.
- Memory is characterized as the subjective manner of experiencing retrieved content, linked to autonoetic awareness.
Conclusions:
- Adopting a more circumscribed definition of memory enhances its theoretical and practical implications.
- This revised view distinguishes memory from mere information retrieval, highlighting its unique phenomenological quality.
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