Craik F.I.M. Remembering: An Activity of Mind and Brain

Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021. — 321 p.Memory is typically thought of as a set of neural representations - 'memory traces' - that must be found and reactivated to be experienced. It is often suggested that 'memory traces' are represented by a hierarchically organized system of analyzers, modified, sharpened, and differentiated by encounters with successive events.Remembering: An activity of the mind and brain is the magnum opus of one of the leading figures in the psychology of memory. It sets out Fergus Craik's current view of human memory as a dynamic activity of the mind and brain. The author argues that remembering should be understood as a system of active cognitive processes, similar to (perhaps identical to) the processes underlying attending, perceiving, and thinking. Thus, encoding processes are essentially viewed as the mental activities involved in perceiving and understanding, and retrieval is described as the partial reactivation of these same processes. This account proposes that episodic and semantic memory should be thought of as levels in a continuum of specificity rather than as separate systems of memory.In addition, the book presents Craik's views on working memory and age-related memory impairments. In the latter case, the losses are attributed largely to a difficulty with the self-initiation of appropriate encoding and retrieval operations compensated, when needed, by support from the external environment. The development of these ideas is discussed throughout the book and illustrated substantially by experiments from the author's lab, but also by empirical and theoretical contributions from other researchers.A broad account of current ideas and findings in contemporary memory research, but viewed from the author's personal theoretical standpoint, Remembering: An activity of mind and brain will be essential for researchers, graduate and postdoctoral students working in the field of human memory.Levels of Processing: Development of an Idea.
Processing Views of Remembering: A Brief Historical Survey.
Remembering: A Personal View.
Encoding and Encoding – ​Retrieval Interactions.
Retrieval Processes.
From Short-term Memory to Working Memory: Evolution of a Construct.
Aging I: Early Studies and Theoretical Views.
Aging II: Later Empirical Work.
Neuroimaging Studies.
Final Reflections and Future Trends.