Short-term memory is a type of human memory that allows you to retain a small amount of information for a short time. The duration of information storage during its one-time perception is estimated at several seconds. Short-term memory is also called primary or active memory. Short-term and long-term memory are opposed to each other, they differ in the amount of time information is retained.

Short-term memory in children can simultaneously hold no more than 5-6 elements (various images, words or numbers). In an adult, it can save 7-9 elements for a short time. These figures are approximate, since there are individual characteristics of memorization.

Many scientists argue that short-term memory in children has the highest intensity of development at preschool age. Just this period is considered the basis of its further development.

Poor short-term memory can be associated with various disorders. Such disorders are pathological conditions that are characterized by the inability to store and use the information received. Statistics show that problems with short-term memory occur in a quarter of the world's population. Most of all, problems with both short-term and long-term memory affect the elderly, they may experience both episodic disorders and permanent ones.

Short-term memory is quite vulnerable and suffers greatly from the development of pathological conditions that affect it. Memory problems are manifested in a decrease in the intensity of a person's learning, forgetfulness and the inability to concentrate on a particular subject. At the same time, a person remembers well what happened to him a year or even a decade ago, and tries, but cannot remember what he was thinking about or what he was doing a couple of minutes ago.

Problems with short-term memory occur with, or with the use of alcohol or drugs. There may be other causes of memory problems, for example, tumors of brain structures, trauma, or.

Signs of a short-term memory disorder can appear instantly, in the event of an injury, or appear gradually, from age-related changes or schizophrenia.

The amount of short-term memory

The volume of short-term is a characteristic that determines the amount of potentially memorized material.

The short-term memory capacity is quite limited, and on average it stores 7 +/- 2 units of memory. The breadth of the covered volume of short-term memory has an individual character and tends to be preserved throughout life. The volume first of all establishes the feature of mechanical memorization, which functions without the active involvement of thinking in memorization.

The feature of short-term memory, due to its limited volume, is called substitution. With the help of substitution, the process of partial displacement of already stored information with new material takes place. This can be expressed in a person's involuntary switching of his attention from memorization to some other process.

Short-term memory is capable of processing a significant amount of information, in which excess material is eliminated and, as a result, long-term memory is not overloaded with unnecessary information.

Short-term and long-term memory are dependent on each other. Long-term memory cannot function without short-term memory.

Short-term memory acts as a kind of filter that allows only the necessary information to pass into long-term memory, while at the same time making a strict selection.

One of the main features of short-term memory is that, under certain conditions, this type of memory has no memory limits in time. This condition consists in the possibility of continuous repetition of just heard numbers, words, and so on.

To store information in short-term memory, it is necessary to maintain activity aimed at memorization, without being distracted by other activities or complex mental work.

The term "short-term memory" speaks of the external, temporal property of a phenomenon without regard to its connection with human activity, goals and motives. Nevertheless, here one must remember the connection between the temporal characteristics of events and their importance for the organism.

The duration of an event is very significant for short-term memorization, even for memory itself, since a long-term impact contains the very possibility of repetition, which requires greater readiness.

Consolidation of traces is considered as a kind of assessment of the significance of the material for the fulfillment of the upcoming significant goals. But the influence of the time factor alone is not unlimited. Long-term repetition of one stimulus causes only protective inhibition, and not the transition of information into long-term memory.

Medical studies that are related to memory impairments demonstrate that short-term and long-term memory exist as independent ones. For example, with retrograde, a person does not remember recent events, but remembers those that happened a long time ago.

Poor short-term memory may be associated with anterograde amnesia, in which both short-term and long-term memory remain intact. However, this affects the ability to store new information in long-term memory.

Information first enters the department of short-term memory, which ensures the storage of information presented once for a short time (up to seven minutes), after which the information can be completely erased or transferred to the department of long-term memory, subject to single or double repetition.

The above recalled formula for the amount of short-term memory (7+/- 2) means that it is limited in its volume. But the main thing that is needed is to ensure that the parts of the memorized material (numbers, figures, pictures) are informationally saturated due to their grouping, combining and uniting into a coherent image.

Short-term memory is connected with the current state of human consciousness, therefore, to maintain information, it is necessary to maintain attention to the memorized information throughout the entire time of its retention, in the case of long-term memorization, this is not necessary.

In the process of filling the volume of short-term memory with information, the temporal coding mechanism operates, as a display of memorized information in the form of sequentially placed symbols displayed in the auditory and visual human systems.

Very often, when they need to remember something, people try to come up with an association and evoke an emotional reaction, which can be considered as a psychophysical mechanism that activates and integrates processes that serve as a way of remembering and reproducing information.

A person is able to increase the amount of short-term memory and memorized information through the recoding of material into new structural elements. The operational units of short-term memorized material depend on the ability of the individual to form the perception of information. It has been determined that one single letter is displayed much better than two letters, and two than three. When a combination of letters forms a word familiar to a person, then it is as well reproduced as a single letter.

It has also been shown that memorization improves not only when letters are organized into words, but also when nonsense syllables are pronounced as a rhythmically connected sequence. In this case, the average number of memorized objects increases. Any means of organizing information can reduce a significant amount of material into a much smaller number of operational or structural elements.

Limitations on the amount of short-term memory are considered not only the average depth of the presented phrase, but also the average length of the words themselves. The researchers found that in different languages ​​the most common (90-99% of the total frequency of all words) are words from one to four syllables. Words with a length of 5-9 syllables are much less common, which indicates the limited amount of short-term memory, and even longer words are used even less often. Thus, Braille (the creator of the font for the blind) came to the conclusion that it is impossible to use more than six dots when constructing an alphabet for blind people.

How to improve short term memory

There are several ways to improve short-term memory, which will be discussed below. Improving memorization is associated with the development of creative thinking and training when using associations. To better remember long multi-digit numbers, they can be represented in the form of animals or plants or some inanimate objects that come to mind. For example, the number two appears in the form of a swan or a hanger, one - a pole or nail, seven - braids, antennas, number eight - a bow, butterflies. Any round object can be associated with the number zero - a ball, an eye, a moon, and others. If it is difficult to keep the association in mind, then you can transfer the imaginary picture to a drawing, a sketch.

Training of short-term memory should be carried out under the guidance of certain principles. One of them is repetition. But the main thing is to observe the measure, otherwise frequent repetition will lead to cramming. You can memorize absolutely everything that is necessary, but the unpleasant moment here may be that all the memorized information will not be conscious and will be remembered for a short time. Therefore, it is best not to repeat the material many times in a row, but to consolidate the information by repeating it once for several days.

Another principle is the need to concentrate on the memorization process itself. All presented and stored information must be meaningful. If possible, analogies should be established with data already in the head, stored data or some specific life factors. The more extensive and strong the parallels being established, accordingly, the process of remembering something really significant will be better.

An active lifestyle, movement, positive mood favorably affect the improvement of short-term and long-term memory. Physical activity, sports, dancing, fitness stimulate blood circulation in the body, in particular in the brain, which in turn activates mental processes that are associated with the perception, processing and reproduction of information.

Proper diet and proper nutrition play an important role in improving memory. Foods such as vegetables, cereals, fish, seafood and eggs have a positive effect on the memory process.

To improve short-term memory, a mnemonic is used, with the help of which a certain reaction of the individual is determined. Mnemonics include images, colors, sounds, contact, language, tastes and smells. Almost all elements are associated with the senses and help people quickly remember what they need. For example, if you combine a color or sound with certain information, then later it will be much easier to remember. Created with the help of mnemonics, mnemonic images must be positive and pleasant for a person, otherwise these images will be rejected.

Let's say this is an example of using mnemonics. If a person likes a certain melody, he may try to remember the phone number or something else, in the rhythm of this melody. It is necessary to speak and sing the memorized material several times to the melody. Using this method, you can make sure how much more firmly the information lingers in the head.

Training short-term memory using the mnemonic method is useful if a person needs to constantly meet with the problem of remembering, especially when it comes to the type of activity. This method will help develop short-term memory, which is often used when doing operations with numbers in the mind.

Researchers have found out how long short-term memory can store the necessary knowledge. Information begins to be “erased” 18 seconds after it has been consumed. Some people after 18 seconds can only hold 10% of the information in their short-term memory, but if there is no way to write down what needs to be remembered (phone number or address), then this may not help. Therefore, it is necessary to repeat to yourself the numbers necessary for memorization for every 15 seconds, thus updating the received data.

Short-term memory training includes the body analogy method. With this method, you can remember a lot more small details. The way of memorizing parts of the human body by landmarks is unusual, but in practice it has proven to be an excellent method of retaining material, and extracting information at the right time. The bottom line is to connect the necessary information directly with a specific part of the human body, while creating in the imagination a certain image associated with the knowledge necessary for a person.

So, if you need to remember a number of fruits, then they can be associated: an apple with an eye, a carrot with a nose.

Many students (pupils and students) are sure that the switched on TV or computer does not interfere with their studies at all, but during the study it turned out that extraneous sounds, music, or even more flickering images become an obstacle to remembering very important information.

No matter how hard a person tries, he cannot do several things at the same time, or he can, but then one of his activities will be damaged. It is important to remember that this applies only to external activities, and does not apply to such natural processes as breathing and walking, since these processes cannot be processed by consciousness.

Short-term memory training in the connected storytelling technique is a method that is designed to remember things that have a loose connection with each other. When you need to remember a shopping list or something else, you can come up with a story that will mention items that need to be remembered. Stories can turn out to be the most crazy, but the method really works, which has already been proven by many scientists. The only drawback of this method is that if the list of elements needed for memorization is too extensive, then you will have to come up with a story that is too long or several short stories.

The "keywords" method is often used at school when learning foreign languages, this kind of trick can be very helpful. For example, to memorize the word “look” (look), you can pick up the Russian word - onion, while creating the phrase: “I don’t look when I cut the onion.” Thus, it turns out that when memorizing, an image is created, a new word is pronounced and its meaning is remembered.

The Locus method of training short-term memory is also called the “travel method” or the “Roman room method”. This method originated from the ancient world. The principle of implementation of this method is as follows: a person mentally imagines himself in a room or on a street that is very familiar to a person and leaves pieces of information near different landmarks, by which this information can be easily recognized. When a person needs information, he again mentally moves himself into a room or onto a street, where he comes to the place where he left the information about the information for storage.

Short-term memory can be improved by breaking information into blocks. It has been proven that a person's short-term memory can store from five to nine elements, but many people easily remember phone numbers that consist of ten digits. Since most numbers are written with a dash or spaces. If the numbers were always written together, and not in blocks, then their memorization would be worse.

Short-term memory is trained using the method of restoring the environment. So, for example, when children have lost something, they are told to go to the place where they last saw the item they were looking for, and indeed, this is how the item was located. This process is called context-sensitive. Memory is affected by the environment, the situation and the restoration of the conditions in which a person saw the thing for the last time and remembered the lost object there, this may lead to the idea that the thing was lost or left in that place, this works with the memorization mechanism.

For example, scuba divers are given certain information when they are in the water that will be easier for them to remember if they are in the water again.

Context-dependent memory suggests that things recorded while intoxicated are much more quickly recalled if the person re-enters the state of intoxication.

Another way to improve short-term memory is to remember smells. Researchers say that smell is one of the most powerful memory tools that can be used to retrieve the deepest memories.

To improve short-term memory in children, it is necessary to make the right diet. Children who are malnourished and therefore do not receive the necessary amount of vitamins and minerals remember information much worse. Therefore, the food of a child, like an adult, should be rich in proteins (therefore, it is not necessary to attach vegetarianism to a child from childhood) and sugar (healthy sugar, so as not to provoke overeating and obesity) and include vitamin supplements.

In addition, intellectually directed classes with a child should be carried out in short periods, for example, for 15-20 minutes with the transfer of the child's attention to another type of activity. At the same time, the child must rest from intellectual activity, engage in motor activity and receive physical activity. Active games and physical education improve the blood supply to the brain, which in turn activates short-term and long-term memory.

Short-term memory (STM) can be defined as a memory mechanism that allows us to store a limited amount of information for a short period of time. Short-term memory temporarily holds processed information before it is forgotten or transferred to long-term memory storage. Thus, short-term memory has two main properties: limited capacity and finite duration.

  • Short term memory capacity: If you are asked to memorize a series of 10 digits, you will most likely memorize 5 to 9 digits. This is because the amount of information that short-term memory can store typically includes 7 elements, with an error of plus or minus 2 elements. Naturally, the capacity of the KVP is somewhat variable, so there are people with a greater or lesser capacity. Also, KVP can vary depending on the material that needs to be remembered (the length of words, the emotional meaning of stimuli, and other individual differences are important). In addition, depending on the type of information organization (crushing), the number of individual items that need to be remembered increases. For example, when remembering a phone number, we can group numbers into pairs or triplets.
  • Duration of short-term memory: The amount of time we can keep numbers or information in memory is not infinite. Our short-term memory can store information for up to 30 seconds. However, we can extend the storage time of information in KVP if we constantly repeat this information or give it a special meaning (for example, we identify the number Pi as a set of numbers “3 - 1 - 4 - 1 - 5 - 9 ...”) .

Short-term memory acts as one of the doors of access to long-term memory, or as a "storage" that allows us to store information that is not needed in the future, but is needed at the moment. This means that damage to the CVJ may prevent new memories from forming in long-term memory.

In case of damage to exclusively short-term memory, the ability to store information for a short period of time necessary for its operation is lost. Thus, we would not be able to understand the meaning of long phrases and keep up the conversation.

Short-term memory and its relationship with other major types of memory

When we talk about memory, we are usually talking about experiences and memories, but memory includes many more processes. In general, there are four relatively independent memory mechanisms:

  • sensory memory: saves for a very short period of time sensory stimuli that have already disappeared in order to process and send them to the STOC.
  • Short term memory (STM): stores a limited amount of information for a short period of time.
  • : This is an active process that allows you to manage and work with the information stored in the KVP.
  • : Stores an almost infinite amount of information, some of which comes from the CWP, indefinitely.

Thus, information can go through different phases before it is forgotten or stored:

  • we perceive information that passes through sensory memory (our senses).
  • It is then transferred to our short-term memory, where it is stored for a short period of time.
  • Sometimes information can be reorganized (eg ordered). This is where our working memory comes into play. This step is not always performed.
  • In the last step, our brain has to decide if this information is relevant and we should keep it in memory, or if it is no longer relevant and can be forgotten. If the information is valuable, the memory will be stored in our long-term memory.

Besides, in case of damage to short-term memory, the system undergoes changes that depend on it, for example, working (operative) and long-term memory. If we can't hold information in short-term memory, RAM won't be able to process that information. With regard to long-term memory, the creation of new memories will be impaired, since the transfer of information from the SEP to the LEP cannot be performed correctly due to a disorder in short-term memory. However, it is possible to recover memories that were previously formed in long-term memory.

Examples of Short Term Memory

  • In order to understand a long sentence in a conversation, we must remember the beginning of the sentence in order to understand its end. Short-term memory helps us briefly remember the beginning of a sentence. After we have understood the information, and we no longer need to remember the beginning of the sentence, we forget specific words.
  • When we read, our short-term memory operates in the same way as in the previous example. We must remember the beginning of the phrase in order to understand its meaning. A long and complex sentence will be much harder to understand than a short and simple one. So, when studying, it is very important to have a good short-term memory, as this is associated with the correct understanding of reading, which is crucial for academic performance.
  • When someone dictates a phone number to us, our short-term memory works during the time that passes from the moment we hear the information to the recording of the number.
  • As a rule, the processes of creating long-term memories require the preliminary work of short-term memory. Therefore, when we try to learn textbook material, remember a password or a few lines of a poem, our short-term memory is at work.

Pathologies and disorders associated with short-term memory loss

If the different types of memory were not independent, the error of one would always lead to the failure of the other. Fortunately, different areas of the brain are dedicated to each type of memory, so changes in LTP, for example, should not affect CEP. As a rule, all types of memory work together, and it would be very difficult to determine at what point one starts and another ends. When one of the types of memory is damaged, our brain cannot fully perform its functions, which entails negative consequences in our daily life.

Violation of short-term memory can reduce both the time and the number of items processed. Thus, with a slight change, most likely we will remember less information for a shorter time, so the damage will be negligible. Conversely, a serious failure in its operation can lead to the loss of STOL functions, with tangible consequences.

Short-term memory can be damaged in a variety of ways. It was found that CVP is impaired in moderate stages of the disease. Alzheimer's, although MTP damage is more severe in this disease. The importance of short-term memory is also observed in cases dyslexia because the difficulty of storing phonological information can lead to problems in learning to read. In addition, the use marijuana is another factor that can affect the integrity of the STOC. Brain damage resulting from stroke or traumatic brain injury can also impair short-term memory.

How to measure and evaluate short-term memory?

Short-term memory is involved in most of our daily tasks. The ability to correctly interact with the external environment and other people directly depends on our short-term memory. Thus, assessing short-term memory and knowing what state it is in can be useful in various areas of life: in education (this will allow us to know if the child will have difficulty learning to read or problems understanding long or complex phrases), in medical areas (to know that the patient needs to be given as simple instructions as possible, or that he has problems forming new memories), in professional areas (short-term memory can serve as an indicator of readiness to assimilate new information and work with complex tasks).

You can assess various cognitive functions, including CEP, reliably and efficiently using . Tests offered by CogniFit for the assessment of short-term memory are based on the Wechsler Psychometric Memory Assessment Method (WMS), the Long-Term Maintenance Test (CPT), the Simulated Memory Impairment Test (TOMM) and the Tower of London Test . In addition to short-term memory, these tests also measure spatial perception, planning, processing speed, and working memory.

  • : A series of balls with different numbers appears on the screen. It is necessary to memorize a series of numbers in order to repeat them later. At first, the series will consist of only one number, but the number of numbers will gradually increase until a mistake is made. You will need to play each set of numbers after each presentation.
  • : Stimuli will appear alternately on the screen. Keeping order, stimuli will be highlighted and accompanied by sound until the end of the series. During the presentation, you need to pay attention to the sound and lighting of the images. The user, in turn, will have to remember the order in which the stimuli appeared in order to then play them in the same order as they were presented.

How to restore or improve short-term memory?

Short-term memory can be trained and improved just like other cognitive abilities. CogniFit gives you the ability to do it like a pro.

Rehabilitation of short-term memory is based on. CogniFit offers a series of clinical exercises aimed at restoring STD and other cognitive functions. The brain and its neural connections are enhanced by the use of the functions in which they are involved. Therefore, if short-term memory is regularly trained, the neural connections of the involved brain structures will be strengthened. Due to this connection, they will work faster and more efficiently, improving short-term memory.

CogniFit is comprised of an experienced team of professionals who specialize in the study of synaptic plasticity and neurogenesis. This made it possible to create program for personal cognitive stimulation that adapts to the needs of each user. This program begins with an accurate assessment of short-term memory and other fundamental cognitive functions. Based on the results of the evaluation, the CogniFit Cognitive Stimulation Program automatically suggests a personal training regimen to enhance short-term memory and other cognitive functions that, according to the evaluation, should be improved.

Regular and adequate exercise is essential for improving short-term memory. CogniFit offers a range of tools to assess and restore this cognitive function. Proper stimulation requires 15 minutes a day, two or three times a week..

CogniFit cognitive stimulation program available online. It contains many interactive exercises in the form of fun brain games that you can play with your computer. At the end of each session CogniFit will show you a detailed progress bar your cognitive state.

Man lives in a world of continuous information. Moreover, information is understood not only as verbal and written meanings, but also as surrounding objects, things, people that have their own meaning, create situations, make a person turn on his memory. Short-term memory is always necessary. If you need to remember something for a short period of time in order to use this information later, this is called short-term memory. However, it is not always possible to remember everything at once. And here you need to use exercises that can improve short-term memory.

Why does a person need short-term memory? To answer this question, it is necessary to clarify the definition of the phenomenon under consideration. Short-term memory is the ability of the mind to remember information at a given moment in time for the purpose of its further use. Unlike long-term memory, you remember not to use this information months and years later, but to use it now.

Here are some examples of when short-term memory is needed:

  • You write from dictation, so you listen and memorize what the teacher says so that you can later reflect what was said on the letter. In doing so, you use long-term memory when you remember how individual words are spelled and what grammar rules to apply.
  • You memorize the prices of a particular category of goods in order to compare them and choose where the product is more profitable to buy.
  • You listen to the interlocutor to understand his thoughts, so you use the information you hear to build your thoughts.
  • You are interested in the weather forecast to decide how to dress for the street.

Short-term memory is needed to remember information that is important at a given moment in time. However, it also has difficulties. A person cannot remember information, remembers it partially and even incorrectly. That is why it is difficult to use it..

What is Short Term Memory?

Already from the name itself, you can determine what short-term memory is. Its difference from long-term memory lies in the duration of information storage. With short-term memory, you need to remember information for a few seconds or minutes. So, students often use it when they write off: they read information from a cheat sheet, memorize it, and then express it on a piece of paper.

Short-term memory is a type of memory in which a person remembers information for a short period of time. After a person remembers it and uses it for its intended purpose, the information can be forgotten. However, in some cases, information that was stored in short-term memory goes into long-term memory - when you can reproduce it months and years later.

With short-term memory, information is used once at the moment. Only the information that is needed now is remembered. A person uses short-term memory constantly and everywhere. You can recall information that you have learned a long time ago, however, using short-term memory, you measure the need for it in a given period of time. How useful is your knowledge at this particular moment? This is what short-term memory does when long-term memory is used.


Short-term memory affects a person's intelligence - when he can quickly navigate in space and use the knowledge from long-term memory that is needed in a specific period.

Short-term memory in children can include up to 5-6 elements, while in adults - up to 7-8 elements. However, these numbers are relative. Often in adults, short-term memory does not work well. But in preschool children with short-term memory, everything is in order. It is its development that contributes to what it will be like in the future and how developed long-term memory will be.

Why do problems with short-term memory occur?

Every adult has a deterioration in short-term memory - when a person is not able to remember partially or completely the information that contacted him just a few seconds or minutes ago. What is the problem with such an occurrence? There are many reasons why short-term memory suffers:

  1. Damage, brain injury. If a person suffers from some kind of brain disease, this can affect the ability to remember.
  2. Mental disorders. Pathological disorders also affect the functioning of the brain. So, with schizophrenia, a problem with remembering information develops.
  3. Senile or just old age. Here, memory deteriorates due to the development of various diseases, disorders and atrophic processes.
  4. Use of drugs or alcohol, exposure to chemicals or poisons. When intoxicated, a person loses the ability to remember information normally.
  5. Chronic fatigue. Try to memorize something if you have not slept for two days or are very tired, want to sleep, or are so exhausted that you are no longer interested in anything.

A modern person is very tired, so this factor becomes the most frequent. Not only short-term, but also long-term memory does not work well for a person, because he does not rest much, constantly gets tired, exhausts himself with work and other duties.

  1. Wrong nutrition. When the body does not receive the necessary vitamins and elements, then the body cannot work effectively.
  2. . This factor, combined with constant fatigue and impotence, leads to the fact that a person becomes helpless. During stress, the perception of the situation narrows. A person is only concerned with protecting himself by flight or stupor, and not by solving the problem, when short-term memory should be used.

The work of short-term memory is quite limited by the amount that it can accommodate. However, it is she who affects the work of long-term memory. Short-term memory is not "rubber", so it remembers only what is considered important at a given time. Depending on what a person remembers now, this information enters long-term memory.


It is necessary to distinguish between information from the subconscious and long-term memory. Everything that a person has seen, heard, encountered is recorded in the subconscious. However, everything that a person consciously remembered and used in short-term memory is recorded in long-term memory.

Significant information goes into long-term memory, as well as that which a person has heard, seen, felt several times. For the functioning of short-term memory, you need to be conscious and active. For effective memorization, a person must be attentive and not be distracted by other processes. And distraction of attention often occurs during fatigue.

How to improve short term memory?

Everyone would like to improve their memory. To improve short-term memory, you can use many exercises:

  1. To better remember information, you need to present it. The brain does not perceive words and numbers, but images. Remembering information, present it in a figurative form.
  2. Make associations. Some information should be related to what you already know and know well. For example, the number two can be remembered by the fact that it resembles a floating swan.
  3. Repeat. In order for information to go into long-term memory, it must be repeated many times. However, it must be repeated correctly. To memorize the information, you need to repeat it several times after it has been mastered, and then repeat it several times in the following days every day. It is not necessary to memorize in one day, as this is not effective. It takes several days to repeat the necessary information.
  4. Associate the new information with some activity. It is easiest to remember what is meaningful to you in the process of solving a task or problem. Don't try to memorize dry material. It is best to memorize the information that you immediately apply in the course of your activities.

Modern man does not understand the full significance of the words that he says to other people. Understanding that you can say whatever you want and then retract your words has allowed many people not to watch what they say. However, everything matters. After all, as you know, even a word can kill. But the killing will not take place on a physical level, but on an emotional or spiritual level. Therefore, it is very important to watch what you say and how your words affect other people.


Ancient people spoke little, but listened a lot. What is the benefit of this rule? While you are silent, you have a chance to consider your words. It is not known where you get the desire to say this or that word. However, if you remain silent, then other people will not know what you later want to renounce. But in this case, you no longer have to justify yourself to someone or offend someone. You didn’t say anything that you really didn’t want to say, which means you just forget about it, without offending either yourself or other people.

While you are thinking about the correctness and usefulness of your words, other people are telling you something. It is better to listen to what they tell you than to interrupt them and choose words to prove their truth, which may turn out to be unimportant and inappropriate. What do people around you say? They tell you about their desires, about what they think, feel. Sometimes they say something unpleasant and even false. However, people themselves will then be responsible for their words, although many are sure that one can not be held responsible for words. At the same time, think for yourself, you get useful information about what the other person thinks and wants. Isn't that the best thing another person could give you?

The words you said leave wounds and cut into memory. Don't think that people don't hear you and don't remember what you say. It may seem to you that you were just joking or talking nonsense, and for another person your words turned out to be more than serious, meaningful. He remembered everything that you told him, although you yourself have already forgotten everything.

What happens to a person if you say something unpleasant to him? You can even apologize for what you said, but memory does not obey the will of people, so it remembers all the hurtful words that you said. Do you need the other person, willy-nilly, to remember everything offensive that you said to him? If not, then why do you say something for which you will later repent and apologize? A partner may forgive you, but memory may not do this, periodically reminding his master of those offensive speeches that were addressed to him. And why do you need a person to forgive you, but still keep hurtful moments in your memory?


Using this information, you can derive a formula for improving short-term memory: turn on emotions. It does not matter if you experience negative or positive emotions, information is remembered in any case. And information is always remembered well when a person experiences some kind of it.

How to improve short-term memory?

For short-term memory to always work well, you need to train it daily. Just as you keep your muscles in good shape through constant physical training, memory needs to be developed. Every day memorize any information, even the most unnecessary. Try to remember, and after a couple of minutes to reproduce. Such training will soon affect your ability to remember more serious and important information.

short term memory

The term is based on the belief that memory can be divided into two separate systems: short-term and long-term. It is assumed that short-term memory has a limited capacity (material is lost after a few seconds or minutes). This material is fixed in short-term memory through repetition, and then either lost (forgotten) or selected for transfer to long-term memory. One model that distinguishes between short-term and long-term memory is the Atkiisop-Shiffrin model of memory.


Psychology. AND I. Dictionary-reference book / Per. from English. K. S. Tkachenko. - M.: FAIR-PRESS. Mike Cordwell. 2000 .

See what "Short-term memory" is in other dictionaries:

    short term memory- (English short term - short term, memory memory) a memory system that receives and quickly processes new information in order to use it to solve current problems and then send it to long-term storage in long-term memory ... Encyclopedic Dictionary of Psychology and Pedagogy

    - (short term memory) a memory system that collects new information. Also called working memory... General Psychology: Glossary

    SHORT TERM MEMORY (or STORAGE)- See memory, short term... Explanatory Dictionary of Psychology

    The processes of organizing and preserving past experience, making it possible to reuse it in activity or return to the sphere of consciousness. P. connects the past of the subject with his present and future and is the most important cognitive function ...

    A memory subsystem that provides operational retention and transformation of data coming from the senses and from long-term memory. A necessary condition for the transfer of material from sensory memory to P. to. is considered to be paying attention to it. ... ... Great Psychological Encyclopedia

    short term memory- (short-term) - a form of memory that provides short-term storage and reproduction of information coming from the senses and from long-term memory. P. to. ensures the existence of information during its processing in the brain ... ... Dictionary of trainer

    short-term- See short-term memory... Dictionary of trainer

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    Sen Similya- Marijuana is a psychoactive substance derived from the variety of hemp that contains the highest amount of psychoactive substances (cannabinoids). There are approximately 60 cannabinoids in nature, the most effective of which is delta 9 ... ... Wikipedia

    Cannabis (drug)- Marijuana is a psychoactive substance derived from the variety of hemp that contains the highest amount of psychoactive substances (cannabinoids). There are approximately 60 cannabinoids in nature, the most effective of which is delta 9 ... ... Wikipedia

Books

  • Attention and memory Salomatina Elena Ivanovna. At the age of three, short-term memory is formed in babies, observation develops at a faster pace, the baby can already concentrate for a short period of time and get ...

Short-term memory is the primary or active type of memory, in which the information that we are currently processing plays an important role. In Freudian psychology, this kind of memory is called consciousness. The information contained in short-term memory depends on sensory perception.

Length of short term memory

Most of the information contained in short-term memory is stored for about 20 to 30 seconds, but this time can be reduced to only a few seconds if there is no repetition of information or active maintenance of it in memory. Many of our short-term memories are quickly forgotten, making way for this information held in long-term memory.

Short term memory capacity

The amount of information that can be stored in short-term memory can vary depending on a person's abilities. The number "7 ± 2," is often quoted, based on the results of a well-known short-term memory experiment. In a highly acclaimed paper entitled "The Magic Number 7±2," psychologist George Miller suggested that humans can store between five and nine pieces of information in short-term memory. More recent research shows, however, that people are able to store about four items in short-term memory.

Differences between short-term and working memory

The term "short-term memory" is often used interchangeably with the term "working memory", but the two types of memory must be clearly distinguished. Working memory implies the process of temporary storage of information, its organization and management. Short-term memory, on the other hand, refers only to the temporary storage of information in memory.