Memory for Actions

Psychological experiments demonstrate that we remember self-performed actions better and more easily than actions performed by others, which we only perceived, or actions which were only reported to us. In everyday life, we remember whether or not we have already performed certain actions. Questions such as “Did you get some petrol?”, “Did you pay the waiter?”, “Have you posted the letter?” as a rule can be answered without difficulty. It would be embarrassing if we could not remember whether or not we had done something. Imagine forgetting that you had just put petrol in the car, and immediately driving to the next gas station to fill up again, or forgetting that you had paid the waiter in a restaurant and trying to pay again.

Originally published in 1998. the aim of this book is to explain why we remember our own actions so well. In doing so, it offers a comprehensive survey of research and theory in this field of memory psychology. The author describes the development of this research in the light of recent theory.

The broader objective of the book is to contribute to a theory of episodic memory. Although the study of memory for actions was derived from general assumptions about episodic memory, the studies quickly revealed new and surprising memory phenomena. Specific findings of memory for self-performed actions are discussed, which are entirely distinct from the laws of verbal learning. Through the discussion of these new memory phenomena, Memory for Actions makes an important contribution to the development of a general theory of episodic memory.