Essay Sample on Human Memory Distortions: Challenges in Daily Activities

Introduction

Human memory is subject to distortions, which results in severe challenges in daily activities. Human memory is reported to be an imperfect process which is not an original reproduction of previous encounters as it is prone to a wide range of distortions and errors (Schacter, Guerin & St. Jacques, 2011). Memory distortion is experienced when there is incorrect retrieval of memories, and the information to be decoded is represented in a different manner other than what initially occurred. Schacter et al. (2011) described memory distortion as a report from the memory which differs from the original occurrence. The following assignment will focus on false memories, memory improvement techniques, and strategies to improve memory and how an eye witness could improve memory for specific detail.

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Majority of people often experience the impacts of memory distortions. There are several memory improvement techniques that I have found to be very helpful in my daily life. One of the methods is undisturbed rest, which allows for memory consolidation with minimal interference. After new information has been encoded, a rest would be crucial as the memory is fragile after it has been encoded and is therefore prone to interference from the newly acquired information. The short resting periods have been reported to improve spatial memories (Cochran, Greenspan, Bogart & Loftus, 2016). Another helpful technique is the use of image clues. Using the image clue technique, I represent ideas by pictures which help trigger my brain into thinking about complex ideas. When new information is pegged into ready-made images, I often remember almost all details of an event or information stored in my memory in the long term.

Storytelling is another memory improvement technique I have found useful. When I am involved in storytelling, I tend to link image clues to lengthy chains and often automatically remember all points and processes that relate to the subject matter. The last technique is spatial systems, where I often associate key images with specific places. Again, the key images are visualized as part of a familiar route in my memory. When remembering information, I use flashback and try to identify the images previously created, which helps me to retrieve crucial details in a more accurate way quickly.

Eating a balanced diet has been associated with increased health benefits. Such a diet has been reported to increase and improve memory and also reduce the chances of dementia. Fatty acids, such as Omega-3 are beneficial to brain health (Schacter et al., 2011). My new strategy which I plan to try, implement, monitor, and also evaluate to be sure that it works out and improves my memory is eating a balanced diet.

Conclusion

As an eye witness, I would use the information from this module, such as the use of images in recalling specific details of an event in improving my memory. This is crucial as giving distorted information, specifically in the case of an eye witness could lead to dire consequences such as the conviction of an innocent individual (Cochran et al., 2016). As such, recalling information as it initially occurred is critical, and such techniques like image clues would help remember the information in specific details.

References

Schacter, D. L., Guerin, S. A., & St. Jacques, P. L. (2011). Memory distortion: an adaptive perspective. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 15(10), 467-474. doi:10.1016/j.tics.2011.08.004

Cochran, K. J., Greenspan, R. L., Bogart, D. F., & Loftus, E. F. (2016). Memory blindness: Altered memory reports lead to distortion in eyewitness memory. Memory & Cognition, 44(5), 717-726. doi:10.3758/s13421-016-0594-y