There was some agreement about what memory traces were not, but little about what actually did characterize the memory trace. Yet models and theories of memory at the time could not help making implicit and often unrecognized assumptions about the memory trace. Originally published in 1982, this title aimed to strengthen the meagre base on which memory theories rested at the time. It challenges old assumptions and introduces new concepts, foremost the notion of singularity, as they become necessary to understand traces adequately. Some research data of the past was found in need of reinterpretation. The result is a new theory of the memory trace.

This Classic Edition of the best-selling textbook offers an in-depth overview of approaches to the study of memory. With empirical research from both the real world and the neuropsychological clinic, the book explains the fundamental workings of human memory in a clear and accessible style. This edition contains a new introduction and concluding chapter in which the author reflects on how the book is organized, and also on how the field of memory has developed since it was first published. Essentials of Human Memory evolved from a belief that, although the amount we know about memory has increased enormously in recent years, it is still possible to explain it in a way that would be fully understood by the general reader. After a broad overview of approaches to the study of memory, short-term and working memory are discussed, followed by learning, the role of organizing in remembering and factors influencing forgetting, including emotional variables and claims for the role of repression in what has become known as the false memory syndrome. The way in which knowledge of the world is stored is discussed next, followed by an account of the processes underlying retrieval, and their application to the practical issues of eyewitness testimony. The breakdown of memory in the amnesic syndrome is discussed next, followed by discussion of the way in which memory develops in children, and declines in the elderly. After a section concerned with mnemonic techniques and memory improvement, the book ends with an overview of recent developments in the field of human memory. Written by the leading expert in human memory, recently awarded the British Psychological Society Research Board Lifetime Achievement Award, Essentials of Human Memory will be of interest to students of Cognitive Psychology, Neuropsychology, and anyone with an interest in the workings of memory.

Working memory is the cognitive system in charge of the temporary maintenance of information in view of its on-going processing. Lying at the centre of cognition, it has become a key concept in psychological science. The book presents a critical review and synthesis of the working memory literature, and also presents an innovative new theory - the Time-Based Resource-Sharing (TBRS) model. Tracing back the evolution of the concept of working memory, from its introduction by Baddeley and Hitch in 1974 and the development of their modal model, Barrouillet and Camos explain how an alternative conception could have been developed from the very beginning, and why it is needed today. This alternative model takes into account the temporal dynamics of mental functioning. The book describes a new architecture for working memory, and provides a description of its functioning, its development, the sources of individual differences, and hints about neural substrates. The authors address central and debated questions about working memory, and also more general issues about cognitive architecture and functioning. Working Memory: Loss and Reconstruction will be essential reading for advanced students and researchers of the psychology of memory.

The fact that cognitive psychology has become largely concerned with a handful of laboratory tasks has brought expressions of concern and suggestions about how to place the field on a more solid footing. The view expressed here, however, is that the classic cognitive paradigms have become fascinating puzzles on which some of the best minds in the field have labored. An examination of the development of research in these areas yields many examples of the scientific method at its most sophisticated, as well as impressive examples of how theories and data can interact. Covering the whole temporal range of memory experiences, this volume provides a review of the major paradigms that have been used by experimental psychologists to study human memory.

Models of Human Memory provides an overview of the state of knowledge on human memory models. The book begins with an introductory chapter on the basic stages of the memory system and the historical roots of memory models. The remaining chapters are organized into five parts. Part I on memory systems covers topics such as a system for perception and memory; multi-trace strength theory of memory; and a model for postperceptual verbal memory that postulates a single memory store, with multiple copies, called replicas, created in memory by rehearsal processes. Part II presents studies phoneme storage and word recognition. Part III on memory for associations examines the storage-retrieval theory for the memorizing processes and presents simple model of short-term memory (STM) for paired associates. Part IV on storage and retrieval mechanisms deals with mechanisms of repetition and rehearsal in short-term memory; models of recall and recognition; and memory search models. Part V presents a theory of human long-term associative memory; and examines conceptual and methodological interactions between information-processing investigations of cognitive activity and attempts to build models of memory.