It is no secret that memory in the life of every person plays absolutely precisely the primary role. And this applies to any sphere of life, whether it is study, work or even personal life. Memory can be considered both under the prism of psychology, and from a medical point of view. From a psychological point of view, memory is a mental activity whose task is to accumulate and correctly use information in the organization of any activity. Without this, a person can neither think nor learn anything new. Depending on the presence of the target, the memory is divided into arbitrary and involuntary.
What types of memory exist?
There are several categories on which the classification of memory depends. They are as follows:
- nature of activity;
- purpose of activity (voluntary / involuntary);
- the duration of memorization and storage of information.
Consider the types of memory for the purpose of the activity.
Involuntary memory
This type of memory can be defined as memorization, reproduction of information in which there is no specific purpose to remember something. Just some situations, words, events cut into our memory completely involuntarily. Many experiments were carried out, as a result of which arbitrary and involuntary memorization processes were studied. An example is the following case, when the scientists who conducted the research, unexpectedly for the subjects, were asked to recall absolutely everything that they remembered on the way from home to work. During the study, the following conclusions were drawn: people most often remembered what they were doing, and not what they thought about, they also thought about what contributed to the achievement of the goal or, conversely, remembered strange and atypical events.
The experiments
The author of the study, P.I. Zinchenko in his experiment analyzed the productivity of involuntary memory in relation to the same information depending on the motive, purpose of the activity, and so on. The result of the experiment was as follows: that information that is associated with a goal is remembered faster and better than information that is aimed at the conditions for achieving this goal. Worst of all, background irritants are remembered by a person. Another important work of the scientist concerned the features of the memory, depending on the activity and content of a specific mental activity. The experimental goal was to remember the words or find a semantic connection between them. As a result of the experiment, it turned out that the words were remembered by people much better, if their contents were understood. Moreover, the level of memorization depended on the level of activity of comprehension. Psychologists have come to the conclusion that involuntary memorization directly depends on the main goal of the activity during which this memorization was carried out. Also, motive, intention has its importance - it is they who determine this activity.
Arbitrary memory
The essence of this type of memory is to memorize any information on purpose, to learn what is needed. Arbitrary memory has also been devoted to many studies and experiments. From the point of view of psychology, this type of memory is a process that is carried out thanks to the control of consciousness. This goal is achieved by setting specific tasks, using special methods, and applying efforts. Simply put, when we have a goal to remember any information, we set this goal consciously and make certain efforts to achieve it. Free memory plays an important role in the normal functioning of each person, since it helps in the implementation of any activity, in the process of development, self-improvement, personality formation, and so on. This works according to the following principle: initially, a specific goal is set to remember, to leave in the head some information that in the future will need to be reproduced as the acquired knowledge, skills acquired earlier. Of all the types of memory that an individual possesses, it is arbitrary that is considered the most productive.
Development of arbitrary memory
We train our body, go to the gym to keep ourselves in shape, but what about the brain? After all, he, like muscles, can grow and develop. Our task is to provide him with favorable conditions for development. Try to set one specific goal. So you can train even the arbitrary memory of a preschooler.
Of course, multifunctionality or the ability to perform several tasks at one time is a very important quality in the modern world. However, as practice shows, the constant switching of attention from one task to another negatively affects the overall productivity of a person. Especially if you switch to such unimportant things as checking social networks. There is only one way out of this situation - start accustoming your brain to longer periods of concentration. Distribute all available cases in the order of priority and concentrate on each for at least 15 minutes, without being distracted by external factors.
Learn to remember
Try saying your mobile number out loud. Divide the numbers into blocks and do not call them consecutive solid text? That's because our brain, when it remembers lists of words or numbers, leaves only the first and last points in our heads. Conduct an experiment when you go to the store with a shopping list, try to remember it, previously divided into groups. For example, three products from the dairy department, four from groceries, two from the meat department. Thus, there will be less points between the first and last number and the list will be remembered faster. This item is especially important for training voluntary memory in children.
How not to forget the names of new friends?
Often meet new people and can not keep all the new names in your head? Try the following technique: when meeting, repeat the name of the interlocutor at the beginning of the dialogue and at the end. When we speak out loud, most of the brain is activated, including the one that is responsible for pronunciation. As a result, we pay more attention to the name of a newly made acquaintance and remember it faster.
What to do with tasks that are performed automatically?
Scientists have proven that about 50% of their daytime people are in a kind of "autopilot". Try to remember how many things you did today on the machine? Did you make breakfast? Have a shower? Did you go to work? To keep the brain in good shape, you should train it with new activities in the same way as the body in the gym. Do not be lazy to throw new tasks to the brain. For example, try to get to work in an unusual way or prepare a new dish for breakfast.
Learn new languages
No one talks about becoming a polyglot, just when setting off on a journey to a new country, learn at least basic phrases. At a minimum, you will have no difficulty in ordering a banal meal in a restaurant. Well, one cannot mention that scientists have proved that the study of foreign languages is an increase in intellectual abilities in general.