Understanding Psychology (10th Ed)

explicit memory
Intentional or 
conscious recollection of information.
implicit memory
Memories of which 
people are not consciously aware but 
that can affect subsequent performance 
and behavior.
priming
A phenomenon in which 
exposure to a word or concept (called a 
prime) later makes it easier to recall 
related information, even when there 
is no conscious memory of the word or 
concept.
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Module 21 
Recalling Long-Term Memories 
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presented earlier, priming has taken place. Clearly, the earlier stimulus has been 
remembered—although the material resides in implicit memory, not explicit memory. 
The same thing happens to us in our everyday lives. Suppose several months ago 
you watched a documentary on the planets, and the narrator described the moons of 
Mars, focusing on its moon named Phobos. You promptly forget the name of the moon, 
at least consciously. Then, several months later, you’re completing a crossword puzzle 
that you have partially fi lled in, and it includes the letters obos . As soon as you look 
at the set of letters, you think of Phobos, and suddenly you recall for the fi rst time 
since your initial exposure to the information that it is one of the moons of Mars. The 
sudden recollection occurred because your memory was primed by the letters obos . 
In short, when information that we are unable to consciously recall affects our 
behavior, implicit memory is at work. Our behavior may be infl uenced by experi-
ences of which we are unaware—an example of what has been called “retention 
without remembering” (Horton et al., 2005).
Flashbulb Memories
Where were you on February 1, 2003? You will most likely draw a blank until this 
piece of information is added: February 1, 2003, was the date the Space Shuttle 
Columbia broke up in space and fell to Earth. 
You probably have little trouble recalling your exact location and a variety of 
other trivial details that occurred when you heard about the shuttle disaster, even 
though the incident happened a few years ago. Your ability to remember details 
about this fatal event illustrates a phenomenon known as fl ashbulb memory.  Flash-