Semantic memory
Semantic memory is knowledge of meanings, concepts and facts that is not dependent on recollecting a particular episode. It is distinguished from episodic memory, although knowledge and remembered experiences can interact.[1]
Representation and use
Researchers ask how knowledge is organised and how a person retrieves the information relevant to a task. Computational approaches include networks based on associations, models built from the features attributed to concepts, and distributional models derived from patterns of language use. These models differ in what they represent and in the evidence used to evaluate them.[2]
A review by Abhilasha Kumar describes a shift away from treating semantic memory as an unchanging store. Context, current task demands, attention and perceptual or sensorimotor information can influence how knowledge is used. The review also stresses that a model’s ability to represent relationships among words does not, on its own, demonstrate that it explains human performance; comparison with behavioural evidence remains necessary.[2]
Relation to brain systems
The distinction between semantic and episodic memory does not imply that each occupies a single isolated brain location. In a review of semantic memory and the hippocampus, Melissa Duff and colleagues argue that hippocampal contributions extend beyond episodic recollection to aspects of acquiring and flexibly using semantic knowledge. This is an account of interacting processes, rather than a claim that all established knowledge is stored in the hippocampus. The relationship between memory classifications and their neural organisation remains a subject of research.[3]
References
- ↑ Rose M. Spielman, William J. Jenkins and Marilyn D. Lovett. How Memory Functions. In Psychology 2e. OpenStax, 2020.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Abhilasha A. Kumar. Semantic memory: A review of methods, models, and current challenges. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 28 (2021): 40–80. doi:10.3758/s13423-020-01792-x.
- ↑ Melissa C. Duff, Natalie V. Covington, Caitlin Hilverman and Neal J. Cohen. Semantic Memory and the Hippocampus: Revisiting, Reaffirming, and Extending the Reach of Their Critical Relationship. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 13 (2020): 471. doi:10.3389/fnhum.2019.00471.
Attribution
Prepared with reference to the structure and linked topics of the English Wikipedia article, revision 1371973608. Rewritten and checked against the sources cited above; changes have been made. Wikipedia contributors’ material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.