Cognitive Psychology Spotlight: Why your memory is better than you think (but also how to improve it)

Synopsis: If you find yourself wishing your memory was better, you are not alone. In school a premium is placed on memorization and we often find ourselves falling short of perfect. Instead, we are forgetful — “Where’d I put my keys??” or, “Why am I here, in this room, right now??” or even “Argh! knew that!” These everyday moments of forgetfulness don’t actually mean you have a poor memory though. Rather, they mean that you have a normal, and really a very functional memory. Human memory processes are not meant to be recorders, rather, memory is a process of transformation.

Did you know that your memory is great?

Students come into my cognitive psychology classes with a stated goal of memory improvement, because, they say, theirs sucks. When I tell students, “No! Your memory is actually great!” they give me a “side-eye” and I know what they are thinking. But really, our memories are great. Folks who think otherwise are just comparing themselves to an incorrect standard.

And this isn’t their fault. Cognition has long been compared to Computing, by design. Cognitive Psychology came into it’s own in the 1950s and ’60s because of the power of this metaphor. But the ubiquity of the comparison between humans and computers has an unanticipated side-effect: Because computers “store” and “retrieve” with 100% accuracy, we then think we humans should, too. But this is incorrect. That’s not how brains work.

Humans and computers are fundamentally different. Brains operate in “parallel” fashion, doing many things at once. In contrast, computer programs operate in “serial” fashion, doing one thing at a time. Human brains are constantly reacting to the environment. Computers only react to specific inputs and commands. Human, reactive and parallel processing opens the door for mistakes in ways that computational serial processing does not. For the sake of our self-image and sense of accomplishment, it’s important for us humans to better understand our organic hardware, and stop comparing ourselves to computers.

Memory is a process of transformation

In order to remember an experience, environmental inputs (what you experience in the world) have to be transformed into something our brain can work with: neuronal impulses! Seeing, hearing, feeling, moving: all of these experiences are registered in brains as interconnected patterns of cells firing. We don’t have separate cells for “new experience” and “old experience,” we only have one set. The more often a set of cells fires together, the more likely that set will do so again, in the future, and that’s the heart of memory.

Because we only have one set of cells though, and also because we never have the same experience twice, each time cell-firing patterns activate, they are just a little bit different. Said more plainly: we can’t not make slight “mistakes” — that is, when “mistake” is defined as different from the objective historical record. Instead, our memory processes create for us records of the past that are more “narrative” (as-in, “poetic license”) and “truthy.” We can’t create objective records of past experience. Rather, experiences transform our brain’s pathways of activation.

Memory, it turns out, is for the future, not for rehashing the past. Brains operate on a principle called “predictive processing.” This means that what our brains are doing, from moment to moment, is comparing present experience to past experience, to determine the best — most adaptive — course of action. Estimates, in this case, suffice because the past, present, and future are never the same. What makes a memory “good” is one that not only has been rehearsed multiple times, but also one that is interconnected with other knowledge and experience. Neuronal networks are interconnected, so when you connect what you are learning to what you already know, you are using your brain as it’s designed to be used.

The key to memorability: Cueing

The best way to improve your memory is to think about the future: What will be available to you in future, that can serve as a cue to activate the firing pattern of cells that represents what you are experiencing now? The more possible cues, the better. This principle is called encoding variability. The more variable the cues “at encoding” (when you are making a memory), the greater the likelihood that you will be able to remember the content at a future time point.

It’s worth repeating that it’s not just “more” that matters, rather you want the cues to be “variable.” For example, if you want to remember a list of words, “encode” the words in terms of their meaning, what they “look like” (i.e., associated images) and/or what they “sound like.” Use your language, visual, and auditory systems all at once and your chances of recalling the words at a future time point are significantly increased. In this way human learners are more alike than they are different: everyone, no matter what, benefits from varied coding. The key is to make all the coding connect together in a meaningful way.

Fun fact: This is why song lyrics are so catchy: the language, rhythm, melody, and harmony all intertwine. When you watch the music video too this adds even more variability to the memory, making it even easier to remember in future. This is because it only takes one cue to activate the network of cells. The more cues to choose from, the better your luck will be.

21st Century [Cognitive] Psychology

Psychology is about understanding the human mind, emotion, and behavior. Cognitive Psychology in the 21st century is rooted in modern neuroscience and has much to offer as we endeavor to understand ourselves and our “human” experiences! When you learn about the basics of neural and memory processing, you are learning about the roots of human experience and behavior. Before 21st century neuroscience, the way memory was discussed differed: it was described, but not explained. Now that we are gaining a deeper understanding of neural dynamics, they way we understand memory is changing, in kind. Pretty cool stuff!

For a deeper dive, check out these references

The Brain Facts Book: A free publication by the Society for Neuroscience

Budson, A. E., Richman, K. A., & Kensinger, E. A. (2022). Consciousness as a memory system. Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology, 35(4), 263-297.

Ditta, A. S., & Storm, B. C. (2018). A consideration of the seven sins of memory in the context of creative cognition. Creativity Research Journal, 30(4), 402-417.

Dunlosky, J., Rawson, K. A., Marsh, E. J., Nathan, M. J., & Willingham, D. T. (2013). Improving students’ learning with effective learning techniques: Promising directions from cognitive and educational psychology. Psychological Science in the Public interest, 14(1), 4-58.

Kleinknecht, E. (2024). Representation Matters in Psychology. Substack newsletter: https://ericakleinknechtoshea.substack.com/p/representation-matters-in-psychology

Rubin, D. C. (2019). Placing autobiographical memory in a general memory organization. The organization and structure of autobiographical memory, 6-27.

van Kesteren, M. T. R., & Meeter, M. (2020). How to optimize knowledge construction in the brain. npj Science of Learning, 5(1), 5.

Psychsoundbites’ Reach

Psychsoundbites is a media collective. The aim of this site is to shine a spotlight on modern psychology topics, and the intended audience is anyone interested in learning about the modern breadth of the field. While some technical content is presented, these articles are written for a general audience looking for something “new” to think about. It’s all too common for Psychology text books and general websites to get bogged down in presenting historical content. The field has changed significantly in recent years though, so the intent here is to feature what’s new.

What else is Psychsoundbites up to?

1. Psychsoundbites on Substack: Following the newsletter style of this media platform, essays posted to this site are about applied and professional issues in psychology. The intended audience for the Substack account is more professional — graduate students and educators — but anyone with an interest in viewing the human experience through a modern psychological lens will benefit from reading these posts. In keeping with the Miller Imperative to give psychology away, all of my stubstack content is freely accessible. If you would like to support my work though, please see entry #4 below –> psychsoundbites on Redbubble.
2. Psychsoundbites on Instagram: Psychsoundbites originated on Insta, following the roll-out of a new class assignment. Students were challenged to find a meme or video that got psychology wrong, and then to correct it. The Insta account was created to share these corrected memes (for more on this assignment, click here). Since its inception the content on this account has expanded to include graphic designs made by me (Prf. K.) as well. The intended audience for this site is anyone who loves a good psychology meme or colorful & informative posts to view and (hopefully) share on their own social media platforms.
3. Psychsoundbites on Threads & Bluesky: In an attempt to expand content dissemination beyond the “Meta algorithms”, these accounts were created to further share the graphic design content I create. Visual “psychology” media tends to feature outdated content (see here for a discussion of this issue). My aim in using graphic design tools to “dress up” psychology content is to get more modern content out and into the virtual world. I love to talk about psychology too. If you do as well, let’s connect and chat on these microblogging sites.
4. Psychsoundbites on Redbubble: Some of the graphic design content I’ve made looks really great in real life too! I have been making stickers for my students for years, and decided (at my students’ suggestion) to create a shop so that others could adorn their water bottles and laptops with psychology content, too. On this site you can find stickers, posters, and buttons. I can attest from personal experience that my posters look great on office doors!