Memory Biases
Memory is not a recording. It is a reconstruction. These biases shape what we recall, what we forget, and how certain our memories feel.
01
Availability heuristic
Judging likelihood by how easily examples come to mind.
02
Availability cascade
A repeated claim starts to feel true because many people repeat it.
03
Recency bias
Overweighting the most recent event or information.
04
Peak-end rule
Remembering an experience by its most intense moment and ending.
05
Rosy retrospection
Remembering the past as better than it felt at the time.
06
Hindsight bias
Seeing an outcome as more predictable after it happens.
07
Choice-supportive bias
Remembering your choices as better than they were.
08
Misinformation effect
Later information changes how an earlier event is remembered.
09
False memory effect
Feeling sure about something that did not happen or happened differently.
10
Source confusion
Remembering information but forgetting where it came from.
11
Cryptomnesia
Mistaking a remembered idea for a new original thought.
12
Google effect
Remembering where to find information better than the information itself.
13
Reminiscence bump
Remembering adolescence and early adulthood especially strongly.
14
Consistency bias
Remembering past beliefs as more similar to current beliefs than they were.
15
Mood-congruent memory bias
Recalling memories that match your current mood.
16
Self-serving memory bias
Remembering events in ways that favor your role or intentions.
17
Negativity bias
Giving negative memories more weight than positive ones.
18
Egocentric memory bias
Remembering your role in shared events as larger than it was.
19
Leveling and sharpening
Dropping some details while exaggerating others in retelling.
20
Serial position effect
Remembering first and last items better than middle items.
21
Primacy effect
Letting early information shape later judgment.
22
Recency effect
Remembering the latest information most easily.
23
Von Restorff effect
Remembering what stands out from its surroundings.
24
Bizarreness effect
Unusual information becomes especially memorable.
25
Picture superiority effect
Images are often remembered better than words alone.
26
Generation effect
Remembering better when you produce the answer yourself.
27
Spacing effect
Learning lasts longer when practice is spread over time.
28
Testing effect
Retrieval practice strengthens memory more than rereading.