Memory rehearsal

Memory rehearsal is a term for the role of repetition in the retention of memories. It involves repeating information over and over in order to get the information processed and stored as a memory. Maintenance rehearsal is a type of memory rehearsal that is useful in maintaining information in short-term memory or working memory. Because this usually involves repeating information without thinking about its meaning or connecting it to other information, the information is not usually transferred to long-term memory. An example of maintenance rehearsal would be repeating a phone number mentally, or aloud until the number is entered into the phone to make the call. The number is held in working memory long enough to make the call, but never transferred to long-term memory. An hour, or even five minutes after the call, the phone number will no longer be remembered. In 1972, Craik and Lockhart proposed that memory recall involves multiple processes operating at different levels. Maintenance rehearsal involves repeatedly processing an item at the same level (Baddeley, 2009), which requires little attention. It has the potential for immediate recall, but has little effect in recall in long-term memory (Greene, 1987). Depending on the information that needs to be processed determines which route of recall an individual will use. For example, if the information only needs to be used temporarily, a person will use maintenance rehearsal in working memory. But, if the information needs to be used at a later date, most likely a person will use elaborative rehearsal. In elaborative rehearsal, the information is processed at a deeper level and has the ability to move to long-term memory. In a literature review, researchers proposed a hypothesis the help that, “Information entering working memory from the visual external world is processed by structures in the parietal and temporal lobes specialized for perceptual processing (Jondies, Lacey & Nee, 2005). Maintenance rehearsal has the potential to assist in long-term memory in certain situations.