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Related Concept Videos

Storage01:23

Storage

128
A schema is a mental framework that helps individuals organize and interpret information. Schemata, formed from previous experiences, influence how we process new information: how we encode it, the inferences we make, and how we retrieve it. For instance, a schema for what a typical classroom looks like might include desks, a teacher's desk, a whiteboard, and students in such an environment. This expectation helps us quickly understand and navigate new classrooms without needing to analyze...
128
Chunking and Rehearsal in Sensory Memory01:22

Chunking and Rehearsal in Sensory Memory

286
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...
286
Interference and Decay01:16

Interference and Decay

198
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...
198
Understanding Memory01:19

Understanding Memory

611
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...
611
Working Memory01:24

Working Memory

421
Working memory refers to a combination of components, including short-term memory and attention, that allow an individual to hold information temporarily as we perform cognitive tasks. It is an essential cognitive function that enables the execution of complex tasks such as problem-solving, comprehension, and reasoning. Unlike short-term memory, which simply involves the storage of information for a brief period, working memory involves the active manipulation and processing of this...
421
Forgetting01:21

Forgetting

117
Forgetting is an intrinsic aspect of human memory, characterized by the gradual loss or inaccessibility of information over time. Hermann Ebbinghaus, a pioneering psychologist, extensively studied this phenomenon and formulated the forgetting curve. This curve illustrates that memory loss occurs rapidly immediately after learning and then decelerates over time. Several mechanisms contribute to forgetting, including encoding failure, storage decay, retrieval failure, and interference.
Encoding...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 3, 2025

Using Practice Testing, Public Speaking, and Source Monitoring to Examine the Influences of Learning Strategies and Stress on Episodic Memory
07:59

Using Practice Testing, Public Speaking, and Source Monitoring to Examine the Influences of Learning Strategies and Stress on Episodic Memory

Published on: June 14, 2019

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Study effort and the memory cost of external store availability.

Megan O Kelly1, Evan F Risko1

  • 1University of Waterloo.

Cognition
|July 29, 2022
PubMed
Summary

Knowing you can access notes later reduces how much you study and remember. This study shows that reduced study effort explains some, but not all, of this memory cost.

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Memory Research

Background:

  • Individuals often exhibit reduced recall when anticipating access to external memory aids during testing.
  • A key hypothesis suggests this occurs because people reduce encoding efforts when external memory is expected.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of study effort in the "offloading" of memory to external stores.
  • To examine how instructed external store availability impacts study time and strategy use.

Main Methods:

  • Two preregistered experiments were conducted.
  • Participants studied item lists for a free recall test under conditions of instructed external store availability or unavailability.
  • Participants controlled their own study time, and the external store was never available at test.
Keywords:
Cognitive offloadingFree recallMemoryStudy effort

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Sep 3, 2025

Using Practice Testing, Public Speaking, and Source Monitoring to Examine the Influences of Learning Strategies and Stress on Episodic Memory
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Main Results:

  • External store availability significantly influenced study time and self-reported strategy use.
  • These measures of study effort partially mediated the effect of external store availability on recall performance.
  • A significant memory cost persisted even after accounting for variations in study effort.

Conclusions:

  • Reduced encoding effort contributes to memory costs associated with expected external memory.
  • The memory cost associated with external store availability is likely multiply determined, involving factors beyond encoding effort.
  • Findings support the effort-at-encoding account while highlighting the complexity of memory offloading.