The New Approach to Memory Improvement
Author: Douglas J. Herrmann, Ph.D.

Long before books, telling stories was the only way to pass information from one person or generation to the next. Throughout history, people have sought to improve their memory for storytelling. A variety of mental techniques have been passed down over the centuries as skills for studying. Unfortunately, the old mental techniques are just about all you get from conventional books, tapes and courses. But these don¡¯t provide the personal learning experiences that build confidence necessary for long-term success. In the last two decades, psychologists, physicians, and other specialists sought to develop a new approach to memory improvement because the ancient methods are insufficient without the aid of new modern techniques.

Because the memory improvement profession has emphasized old mental techniques, most memory experts incorporated little or nothing of new methods of modern science.

For example, any mental technique will work poorly if a skills, a person may fail to notice and remember key information during their interactions with others. The new approach to memory improvement invol person is in poor physical and/or emotional condition. Also, without awareness of the factors of good social memoryves learning much more than has been recommended in the past. The new approach shows the person intent on memory improvement the different modes, or aspects, of one's psychology (e.g., physiological, perceptual, emotional, motivational, social, and environmental). The new approach is therefore multi-modal and highly empowering.

If someone wants to improve their memory performance, in addition to learning the right ways to approach each memory skill (such as the best strategies for remembering names), attention must be paid to one's overall health and lifestyle. PMI is dedicated to helping people improve their memory skills through the new multi-modal approach. The new approach also helps explain why people¡¯s memory performance varies. People vary in their readiness to perform memory tasks because their mental, physical, and emotional states vary from week to week, day to day, and sometimes even hour to hour. Like a psychological bio-rhythm, a person¡¯s mental state, physical state, and emotional state change with stress, health status, standard of living, and other factors. Such state changes can be mistakenly attributed to a person's age, sex, or level of education.

The Practical Memory Institute endorses the science-based, multi-modal approach to memory improvement because it provides a method for improving memory readiness, the precursor to improving memory performance.

Summary
Memory performance is based on a broad array of knowledge and skills that pertain not only to memory but also to other psychological systems. Thus, the new approach endorses new methods of training, aiding, and enhancing memory.

The Practical Memory Institute teaches both traditional and multi-modal methods of memory improvement and also goes beyond these methods to review a wide variety of methods not covered before. Its MemoryWorks programs, available on CD-ROM, using realistic simulations in a fun and entertaining way, provide personal learning experiences and lots of practice.

PMI brings to the public the first comprehensive account of how a person's overall psychology can affect memory and brings them to the public in its MemoryWorks¢ç CD-ROM programs. In future programs, techniques for social interaction will be presented that give your memory a better chance at success. Also, PMI presents information on external memory aides which can enhance memory performance or even perform memory tasks for you. Finally, instead of offering people a few general procedures in conventional ways, PMI presents a wide variety of information about ways to cope with literally hundreds of individual everyday memory tasks.








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Dr. Herrmann is Executive Director of Practical Memory Institute, with over 25 years of research experience in memory and cognition. A Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society, he has served as Board Chair for the Society for Applied Research on Memory and Cognition. Dr. Herrmann is also Executive Editor of COGNITIVE TECHNOLOGY, PMI's official peer-reviewed journal. Author of several textbooks and popular press books, including SuperMemory, Dr. Herrmann is Chair of the Psychology Department at Indiana State University at Terre Haute. He can be reached by email at: Doug@MemoryZine.com.

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