Declarative Memory Model

As per the Multi store model, the final destination of the memory process is Long term Memory. This may be divided according to the types of information being processed. This can take two forms: Explicit (or declarative) and Implicit (or procedural) memory. Declarative memory is information that can be easily verbalized or declared hence they need to be recalled through conscious effort. It is a subset of explicit memory since declarative memory comprises of information that can be explicitly stored and retrieved (Human-memory.net, n.d). Declarative memory can be further divided into Episodic and Semantic Memory. Semantic memory is memory for facts and other verbal information. This is the memory used to answer questions like “Who won the

At one point they also believed that the hippocampus was involved in declarative memory. However with time it was found that the Hippocampus did not hinder the ability to learn and get better at new skills like solving a puzzle, playing a musical instrument. This proved that the process involved in learning a task is governed by regions other than the Hippocampus in the brain (Eichenbaum, 2002). Psychologist Brenda Milner who studied HM’s case thoroughly focused on his sensorimotor skills. His performance on activities like tracing basic diagrams and reverse-mirror drawing improved gradually with practice, as he had learnt new eye-hand coordination (Milner, 1966) This showed that there was learning taking place. Hence, HM was actually capable of holding a basic job at a residential place. However, he would not be able to explain this job after working there for almost six months. It was also found that despite HM’s amnesic condition he had and an above average IQ score of 118. Unlike the other patients who suffered from frontal lobe damage, HM‘s social behavior has been normal. Although there was a slight speech defect, which could have been there before the surgery or may have been caused as a result of the damage to the lateral temporal lobe, his language skills in terms of grammar, comprehension and memory of words remained unaffected. For instance, he understood jokes without anyone having to explain to him and had a very good sense of humour (Corkin, 2002). When Milner had asked him what he was doing to try to remember, he replied “Well, I don’t know, because I don’t remember what I tried”. The inability to keep refreshing and updating your memories is a crucial part in Amnesic syndrome (Baddeley, 1997). HM possessed a capacity for having working memory, as he could have a normal