The information we store varies depending on how long it is kept. The first sensory stores, which are the most basic, retain and store information from very few milliseconds to a few seconds. Therefore, the traces susceptible to these stores disintegrate in very short and accelerated times and are not directly accessible to consciousness.
Sensory memory represents the first phase of memory which, as can easily be deduced from the name, is inextricably and irremediably linked to the senses. With this Psychology-Online article, we will then see what What is sensory memory, the different types and some examples.
What is sensory memory
We speak of sensory memory when we are in the presence of a process capable of storing sensory, auditory, visual, tactile, olfactory or gustatory information, for a few seconds or milliseconds. In fact, sensory memory processes and retains information from the senses in less than a second from the perception of an object. In this article, you will find information about .
One of the examples of sensory memory is our ability to look at an object or hear a word and remember what it looks or sounds like within a fraction of a second of looking or listening. This type of memory is a automatic response to a sensory stimulususually outside conscious control.
What function does sensory memory serve?
In the definition of sensory memory, reference is made to the ability to acquire and transmit the signal that enters the system. In a certain sense, it coincides with the ability of receptors to be modified in their specific way and, therefore, to instantly register the arrival of a certain stimulus.
This type of memory is completely deactivated under anesthesia and in a state of medium and deep coma. Furthermore, sensory memory is hypofunctional when there is interference in the signals incoming, that is, when attention is not well focused or when one is not in a state of wakefulness. In these cases, sensory or immediate memorization is fragmentary or inconsistent.
How long does sensory memory last?
One of the characteristics of sensory memory is that it works like a “snapshot”, just after being captured it is destroyed and replaced by another. Although sensory memory is very precise, to the point of allowing the storage of a replica of the sensory stimulus, of any type, can only retain information for 1 or 2 seconds. If the information is not passed to the , which can retain it for up to a few minutes, it is permanently lost.
Types of sensory memory
Sensory memory refers to the memory system that retains purely sensory information. The thunder of the storm, the pain caused by a sunburn are just some of the stimuli that are stored in the first storehouse of memory. Depending on the nature of the incoming information, a specific form of sensory memory is activated. Let’s see what types of sensory memory exist:
- iconic memory: used to store information from the visual system: a ray of light or the inscription on an advertisement.
- echoic memory: stores the acoustic information that comes from the auditory system: the sound of a bell or the sound of a telephone.
- Haptic memory: it stores information that comes from the tactile modality: the touch of the grass or the touch of the sand.
It is also possible to empirically demonstrate the existence of sensory memory stores such as after images (visual) and visual persistence (visual). After the action of sensory memory, other memory processes are activated. Discover what others exist
Examples of sensory memory
They may have once felt like they’ve “seen” or “felt” more than you can really say. Sensory memory also does the dirty work of analyze the mass of sensory stimuli and decide which of these stimuli are worth making available to our consciousness.
It is a kind of “gatekeeper” that stands at the entrance to our conscious brain and decides who is worth letting in and who is better left out. This selection work It is done by identifying discrete information and classifying them by ascension.
Cocktail part effect
One of the examples of sensory memory would be the so-called “cocktail part effect”. When you are in a crowded and noisy place like a pub, a stadium or a party with many people, our brains try to separate the different auditory stimuli in different flows they are more relevant.
It is through this selection mechanism that we can focus on a single conversation although there are many in the same environment, some of which can be noisier. If someone at the next table said our name or something that concerns us, sensory memory would come into play again and alert us to the presence of some bits of salient information that are worth paying attention to.
Speech recognition
If we talk about examples of sensory memory, this one is very clear. There are situations in which you hear someone’s voice and, immediately, you recognize who it is without needing to see it. This ability is possible thanks to sensory memory, since it processes information in seconds and allows us to perceive if that voice is known, if it is part of our consciousness, to whom it belongs, and decides if it is important to retain that stimulus.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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Bibliography
- Bottiroli, S., Cavallini, E. (2011). 101 consigli to fill my memory. Rome: Newton Compton.
- Canestrari, R., Godino, A. (2002). Introduction to general psychology. Milan: Mondadori.
- Ienca, M. (2019). Intelligence2. For a union of natural and artificial intelligence. Turin: Rosenberg & Sellier.