Semantic Memory Control
Semantic Memory Control - Related Videos
13:37
Language: The N400 in Semantic Incongruity
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2023
Source: Laboratories of Sarah I. Gimbel and Jonas T. Kaplan— University of Southern California Understanding language is one of the most complex cognitive tasks that humans are capable of. Given the incredible amount of possible choices when combining individual words to form meaning in sentences, it is crucial that the brain is able to identify when words form coherent combinations and when an anomaly appears that undermines meaning. Extensive research has shown that certain scalp-recorded...
10:06
An Introduction to Learning and Memory
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2023
Learning is the process of acquiring new information and memory is the retention or storage of that information. Different types of learning, such as non-associative and associative learning, and different types of memory, such as long-term and short-term memory, have been associated with human behaviors. Studying these components in detail helps behavioral scientists understand the neural mechanisms behind these two complex phenomena. JoVE's overview on learning and memory introduces common...
09:13
A Real-world What-Where-When Memory Test
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Cited by 3 •
2017
The Real-World What-Where-When memory test is a novel episodic memory test, in which participants need to recall which objects have been hidden in which locations on which of two distinct occasions. It is easy to run and is sensitive to normal cognitive aging.
07:59
Memory Development: Demonstrating How Repeated Questioning Leads to False Memories
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2023
Source: Laboratories of Judith Danovitch and Nicholaus Noles—University of Louisville A person is defined as a unique individual based on the people and events they encounter in their lives. Thus, creating, storing, and recalling memories are essential elements of the human experience. However, memory, as adults experience it, takes time to develop. Although young children can learn facts and remember details of their lives from moment-to-moment and day-to-day, they do not create...
08:17
A Semantic Priming Event-related Potential (ERP) Task to Study Lexico-semantic and Visuo-semantic Processing in Autism Spectrum Disorder
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Cited by 4 •
2018
This paper describes a semantic priming ERP task using within-modality pairs of pictures and words to investigate semantic processing in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
FAQs
Executive control systems help prioritize knowledge that matches a person’s immediate goal rather than allowing every related fact or meaning to influence retrieval equally. This guidance supports selection among competing concepts, words, or interpretations. As a result, the same stored knowledge can be accessed differently depending on the task, improving the relevance of information used for comprehension and reasoning.
Competition matters because a retrieved concept may be related to a goal without being the most useful interpretation. Semantic Memory Control helps resolve this conflict by selecting relevant meanings and suppressing distracting knowledge. Studying such competition shows how people maintain task-appropriate interpretations during language comprehension, especially when several facts, concepts, or word meanings could become active.
A current goal determines which parts of stored knowledge receive priority during retrieval. The control process can favor information that supports a decision, interpretation, or reasoning step while limiting access to knowledge that is accurate but irrelevant. This goal dependence explains why semantic knowledge is not used identically across situations and why context can alter retrieval outcomes.
Researchers use experimental tasks that require participants to retrieve semantic information while following a specific goal or interpreting a particular context. These tasks can examine whether individuals select relevant knowledge, resolve competition, and suppress distractions. Performance patterns provide evidence about how semantic representations interact with executive control and reveal how flexibly stored knowledge can be used.
Controlled access to semantic knowledge helps explain how context shapes language comprehension, reasoning, and decision-making. In each activity, people must connect stored concepts or word meanings with the demands of the moment, rather than retrieve information indiscriminately. Experimental findings therefore link semantic retrieval processes to broader questions about how knowledge supports complex, goal-directed cognition.
Researchers examine these processes to clarify how changes in memory and executive function affect the flexible use of knowledge. Brain injury, aging, and neurological disorders may alter the ability to select relevant meanings, manage competition, or suppress distracting information. Controlled-retrieval tasks therefore offer a way to study how cognitive changes influence semantic processing and goal-directed behavior.