Semantic and Procedural Memory

Chapter 6
Memory
Chapter Outline
Semantic Memory and Procedural Memory

Semantic Memory: (holds factual information/experience in lives. US drivers stay to the right, etc. Don’t remember how we learned this, so Semantic focuses primarily on how it is organized than on how it enters the memory) Memory for information we don’t remember acquiring at a specific time or in a specific place.
A. Concepts: mental categories for objects or events that are similar to one another in certain ways. Ex: clothing: jeans, shirts, shoes OR Vehicles: cars, bikes, trains.

Procedural Memory: a memory system that retains information we cannot readily express verbally. Ex: riding a bike, typing. AKA implicit memory
A. Implicit memory: a memory system that stores information we cannot readily put into words and of which we may not be consciously aware.


Explicit memory: Memory for information we are consciously aware of and can readily put into words.