Memory is capable of encoding, storing, and recalling information, enabling an organism to learn and adapt from prior experiences, as well as to form relationships with other memories. Encoding a memory converts a perceived item of use or interest into a construct that may be stored within the brain and later recalled from long-term memory.
The physiological method and the mental approach are the two basic approaches to coding information. The physiological approach examines how neurons firing in the brain represent a stimulus, whereas the mental encoding memory type examines how the stimulus is represented in the mind. There are many forms of mental encoding memory that are used.
Semantic Encoding
Semantic encoding is the processing and encoding of sensory data that has a specific meaning or can be related to a context. Various tactics, like chunking and mnemonics, can be used to aid with encoding and, in some situations, allow for deep processing and optimum retrieval.
Words studied under semantic or deep encoding settings are better recalled than words studied in non-semantic or shallow encoding conditions in both easy and hard groupings, with response time being the determining determinant.
Regardless of the complexity of the nonsemantic encoding task presented, Brodmann’s regions 45, 46, and 47 (the left inferior prefrontal cortex or LIPC) showed considerably greater activation under semantic encoding conditions compared to nonsemantic encoding conditions.
The same area that shows enhanced activity after initial semantic encoding also shows decreased activation during repetitive semantic encoding of the same phrases. This shows that the decrease in activation with repetition is process-specific, happening only when words are semantically reprocessed and not when they are not.
According to lesion and neuroimaging research, the orbitofrontal cortex is in charge of initial encoding and activity in the left lateral prefrontal cortex correlates with semantic structuring of encoded information.
Visual Encoding
The act of transforming images and visual sensory information to memories retained in the brain is known as visual encoding. This means that people can turn newly acquired information into mental images.
Before being put into permanent long-term storage, visual sensory information is temporarily stored into our iconic memory and working memory. According to Baddeley’s model of working memory, visual information is stored in the visuo-spatial sketchpad.
The central executive, which is a critical part of working memory, is linked to the visuo-spatial sketchpad. Another complicated component that plays a crucial part in visual encoding is the amygdala. It receives visual information as well as input from other systems and encodes positive and negative values of conditioned stimuli.
Acoustic Encoding
Acoustic encoding is the process of encoding auditory signals. According to Baddeley, the concept of the phonological loop aids in the processing of auditory information by allowing input within our echoic memory to be subvocally replayed in order to improve remembering.
When we hear a word, we hear it as a series of distinct sounds. As a result, the beginning of a new word is stored in our echoic memory until the entire sound is perceived and recognized as a word.
According to research, lexical, semantic, and phonological elements interact in verbal working memory. The phonological similarity effect (PSE) is influenced by word concreteness.
This highlights that verbal working memory performance cannot be attributed solely to phonological or auditory representation but also includes an interaction of linguistic representation.
What remains unknown is whether linguistic representation is articulated during recall or whether the representational modalities used (such as recordings, movies, symbols, and so on) have a more fundamental role in the encoding and storage of information in memory. The brain relies mostly on acoustic (aka phonological) encoding for short-term storage and primarily on semantic encoding for long-term storage.
Elaborative Encoding
Elaborative encoding is the process of purposely linking incoming information to previously stored knowledge. Because memories are a blend of old and new information, the character of every individual memory is determined by both the old information already in our memories and the new information that comes in through our senses.
In this process, an additional piece of information is attached to a memory activity, making it easier to recall. For example, one may recognize a face more easily if character attributes about the individual are also communicated at the same time.
Practitioners use multiple techniques, such as the method of loci, the link system, the peg-word method, PAO (person, action, object), etc., to store information in long-term memory and to make it easier to recall this information in the future. One can make such connections visually, spatially, semantically or acoustically.
When new information and stimuli can be linked to existing memories and experiences, they are more likely to be recalled. The type of associations you choose to make has a huge impact on the efficiency and success of encoding (and later retrieval). It is generally believed that the more unusual and meaningful these carefully encoded memories are, the easier it is to retrieve them.
References:
- Acheson, D.J., MacDonald, M.C., & Postle, B.R. (2010). The Interaction of Concreteness and Phonological Similarity in Verbal Working Memory. Journal of Experimental Psychogy: Learning, Memory and Cognition; 36:1, 17-36
- Baddeley, A., Eysenck, M.W., & Anderson, M.C. (2009). Memory. London: Psychology Press
- Belova, M.A., Morrison, S.E., Paton, J.J., & Salzman, C.D. (2006). The primate amygdala represents the positive and negative value of visual stimuli during learning. Nature; 439(7078): 865-870
- Brown, Scott C.; Craik, Fergus I. M. (2000). Encoding and Retrieval of Information. In E. Tulving; F. I. M. Craik (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Memory. Oxford University Press.
- Frey, S., & Petrides, M. (2002). Orbitofrontal cortex and memory formation. Neuron, 36(1), 171-176
- Goldstein, E. Bruce (2015). Cognitive Psychology; Connecting the Mind, Research and Everyday Experience. Stamford, CT. USA: Cengage Learning. ISBN 9781285763880
- Parker, Amanda; Bussey, Timothy J.; Wilding, Edward L. (18 August 2005). The Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory: Encoding and Retrieval. Psychology Press. ISBN 978-1-135-43073-3
- Sperling, G. (1967). Successive approximations to a model for short term memory. Acta Psychologica, 27, 285-292
Last Updated on April 5, 2024