First I would suggest reading The Laws of Learning written by Dr. Haggerty. This article discusses 3 theories of learning which help explain how physical processes in the brain are involved in learning by the development of habit chains (i.e. memory).
As I mentioned in my "What are we arguing?" page the idea of exercising our memory can be looked at in a couple of different ways, physical exercise and mental exercise.
1) Does physical exercise improve memory?
As a matter of fact, studies point towards yes. Relationships between physical exercise and cognitive abilities in older adults details a study by Dr. Louise Clarkson-Smith which shows how physical exercise among older adults improves reaction timing, working memory, and reasoning. Table 4 on page 187 of this study shows how physically active older adults have better cognitive abilities than others who are less active.
However we need to be weary because some articles which support this theory are not exactly helpful: Exercise improves memory acquisition and retrieval in the Y-maze task: Relationship with hippocampal neurogenesis written by Dr. Van der Borght gives a great scientific explanation of how this theory applies to mice but does not explain why she claims it can be applied to humans as well. Another interesting article is Effects of aerobic exercise training, age, and physical fitness on memory-search performance by Dr. James A. Blumenthal. This article does support the idea that fitness can increase memory performance, but only actually tests reaction timing. Also, this article directs most of its attention towards whether aerobic versus anaerobic exercise provide different levels of cognitive improvement. It says that they do not, but once again it only tests reaction timing and the only difference measured between aerobic and anaerobic exercise is the total level of oxygen intake before and after the exercise regimen.
Lastly, for the effect of physical exercise on cognitive improvement,
2) Does practicing memory performance tests/games improve memory?
No. Working on memory-retrieval activities does not improve your overall memory; however, through repetition, mnemonic devices, and other memorization tools you can strengthen individual memories. Regulation of cognitive processes through perceived self-efficacy written by Dr. Bandura discusses how self-expected ability to complete mental tasks largely affects one’s ability to do so. This article explains how mnemonic devices and memory tools, aside from improving only specific memories, can increase self-confidence in memory and cognitive tasks. “People who view memory as a cognitive skill that they can improve are likely to exert the effort needed” (pg 733) to accomplish these tasks. However, this must not be misinterpreted as being capable of increasing someone’s natural ability to retain and recall information.
An Experimental Study of Memory written by Dr. Kirkpatrick is centered on a common method that people attempt to sell as self-help memory improvement. The idea that people can memorize lists of words or numbers in order to make their memory capable of absorbing larger amounts of information is false. The table on pg 603 of this article shows how after memorizing a first set of words, students showed that the minimal significant increase in recalling a second similar list was only related to “the difference in reproducing them, since they are all of the same character, must have been due mainly to the different ways in which they were impressed. [each list was provided in a different manner to test the difference between visual, auditory, motor, tactual, gustatory, and olfactory impressions of information] The difference would probably have been greater had the conditions for seeing the written words and the objects shown been as good for all the pupils as they were for the spoken words.” (pg 604)
An Experimental Study of Memory written by Dr. Kirkpatrick is centered on a common method that people attempt to sell as self-help memory improvement. The idea that people can memorize lists of words or numbers in order to make their memory capable of absorbing larger amounts of information is false. The table on pg 603 of this article shows how after memorizing a first set of words, students showed that the minimal significant increase in recalling a second similar list was only related to “the difference in reproducing them, since they are all of the same character, must have been due mainly to the different ways in which they were impressed. [each list was provided in a different manner to test the difference between visual, auditory, motor, tactual, gustatory, and olfactory impressions of information] The difference would probably have been greater had the conditions for seeing the written words and the objects shown been as good for all the pupils as they were for the spoken words.” (pg 604)
Again, like we saw above, we must be careful when coming across certain articles even when they support our arguments. Communications and discussion. Repetition versus recall in memorizing vocabularies; The effect of continuous exercise and of rest upon difficult mental multiplication written by Dr. Thorndike is a report on two different studies which support the idea that only repetition of material can improve its availability in memory. However, the first study provides minimal supporting data, and the second study does not explain how the provided data supports its conclusion.
References (in order of appearance above)
A) Haggerty, M. E. (1913). The laws of learning. Psychological Review. 20(5), 411-422.B) Clarkson-Smith, L., & Hartley, A. A. (1989). Relationships between physical exercise and cognitive abilities in older adults. Psychology and Aging. 4(2), 183-189.
C) Van der Borght, K., Havekes, R., Bos, T., Eggen, B. J. L., & Van der Zee, E. A. (2007). Exercise improves memory acquisition and retrieval in the Y-maze task: Relationship with hippocampal neurogenesis. Behavioral Neuroscience. 121(2), 324-334.
D)
E)
G) Kirkpatrick, E. A. (1894). An experimental study of memory. Psychological Review. 1(6), 602-609.
H) Thorndike, E. L. (1914). Communications and discussion. Repetition versus recall in memorizing vocabularies; The effect of continuous exercise and of rest upon difficult mental multiplication. Journal of Educational Psychology. 5(10), 596-599.
