Portal:Psychology/Featured article archive

This page lists articles previously featured on the Psychology Portal, with most recent articles listed at the top.

March, April, and May 2006
Memory is the ability of the brain to store, retain, and subsequently recall information. Although traditional studies of memory began in the realms of philosophy, the late nineteenth and early twentieth century put memory within the paradigms of cognitive psychology. In the recent decades, it has become one of the principal pillars of a new branch of science that represents a marriage between cognitive psychology and neuroscience, called cognitive neuroscience.

There are several ways of classifying memories, based on duration, nature and retrieval of information. From an information processing perspective there are three main stages in the formation and retrieval of memory: Note: Recollection is related to decoding.
 * Encoding (processing and combining of received information)
 * Storage (creation of a permanent record of the encoded information)
 * Retrieval/Recall (calling back the stored information in response to some cue for use in some process or activity)

February 2006
Social anxiety is an intense feeling of fear, apprehension or worry regarding any or all social situations or public events. It is sometimes known as social phobia and, less commonly, social trauma. In psychiatry, it is diagnosed as social anxiety disorder, a form of anxiety disorder. According to United States epidemiological data, it is currently the third largest mental health care problem in the world. A number of medical and therapeutic treatments are available.

Sufferers are typically more self-conscious and self-attentive than others. As a result, social phobics tend to limit or remove themselves from situations where they may be subject to evaluation. Sufferers often recognize their fear is excessive or irrational, yet can't seem to break out of the cycle. As such, the diagnosis of social phobia is made only when the fear leads to problems with occupational functioning, social activities, or interpersonal relationships.