Retrieval:  Moving Information From Long Term to Short Term Memory:

The process of finding information in long term memory and bringing it back to working memory (so it can be used) is called retrieval.  Sometimes, when we have learned information, but can't find it when we want to use it, the problem is not that the information is not in long term memory, it is that we cannot find it in long term memory; therefore we cannot retrieve it.  Since long term memory appears to be organized mainly according to meaning, information will be easiest to retrieve if we focus on meaning and understanding as we are learning.

This page was last revised on 09/09/2008.