Strategies For People With Memory Problems
Memory is the ability to store, hold on to, and retrieve the information that we experience. For individuals with mood disorders, treatment of the mood disorder itself may result in improved memory function, but individuals may benefit from intervention directed at co-occurring cognitive impairments. For individuals with stroke or traumatic brain injury, memory difficulties will show some spontaneous improvement over time, but this improvement is greater with targeted intervention. Interventions are broadly divided between compensatory and restorative approaches. Restorative approaches aim to directly improve the memory, whereas difficulty and compensatory approaches teach strategies to help manage the impairment.
The Strategies For People With Memory Problems information handout is designed to introduce clients to memory strategies that can help to improve the encoding, storage and retrieval of important information. It can be used to introduce and highlight a particular aspect of memory processing and set of strategies relevant for a particular client or symptom. It may be used as part of a package of intervention, to start discussion of which strategies to trial once the client’s particular circumstances are taken into account. The design and language have been kept simple so that the handout can be used with a wide range of clients, including those with neurological conditions.
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Introduction & Theoretical Background
In our day to day lives we encounter all kinds of different information. Simple visual images, auditory signals, tastes and smells, as well as more complex experiences like conversations, cooking a meal or navigating a route to a new location. Memory is the ability to store, hold on to, and retrieve the information that we experience.
“Memory [is]... an array of interacting systems, each capable of encoding or registering information, storing it and making it available by retrieval. Without this capability for information storage, we could not perceive adequately, learn from our past, understand the present, or plan for the future”
(Baddeley, 2013, p.18)
In cognitive science, theories of memory have made several important distinctions (Baddeley, 1997):
- The modality of input – visual, verbal/auditory, haptic, taste/smell and motoric.
- The duration of storage – sensory memory, short term memory / working memory, and long term memory.
- Coherent bodies
Therapist Guidance
This is a Psychology Tools information handout. Suggested uses include:
- Client handout – use as a psychoeducation resource
- Discussion point – use to provoke a discussion and explore client beliefs
- Therapist learning tool – improve your familiarity with a psychological construct
- Teaching resource – use as a learning tool during training
References And Further Reading
- Baddeley, A. D. (1997). Human memory: Theory and practice. Psychology press.
- Baddeley, A. (2013). Essentials of human memory (classic edition). Psychology Press.
- Craik, F. I., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). Levels of processing: A framework for memory research. Journal of verbal learning and verbal behavior, 11(6), 671-684.
- Dams-O’Connor, K., & Gordon, W. A. (2013). Integrating interventions after traumatic brain injury: A synergistic approach to neurorehabilitation. Brain Impairment, 14(1), 51-62.
- das Nair, R., Cogger, H., Worthington, E., & Lincoln, N. B. (2016). Cognitive rehabilitation for memory deficits after stroke. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (9).
- DeLuca, J. (2005), Fatigue, Cognition and Mental Effort, Ch. 2 in: DeLuca, J. (ed.), Fatigue as a Window to the Brain, MIT Press, USA.
- Evans, F.A., Wong, D., Lawson, D.W., Withiel, T.D. & Stolwyk, R.J. (2020) What are the most common