Encoding is transferring information from working memory to long term memory and retrieval is bring back the information from LTM to WM. Encoding is constructive and retrieval is reconstructive. Prior knowledge changes the encoding process and it destroys the information. Maintenance rehearsal and elaborative rehearsal are two different aspects of encoding. Maintenance rehearsal may not head to the information being encode to LTM and it efficient for short period of time. The elaborative rehearsal is linking the new things to what you learnt with what you already know and it resulting in a permanent change in LTM. There are three types of elaborative rehearsal for simple information: mediation, imagery and mnemonics. Encoding complex information, there are also three types. Schema activation guided questioning and level of processing.

Although some information requires deliberate, effortful processing to store in long-term memory, a vast amount of information is encoded automatically, without effort or awareness. For example, people do not have to make a conscious effort to remember the face of a person they meet for the first time. They can easily recognize the person’s face in future encounters. Also that people also encode information about spatial locations, time, and the frequency of events without intending to. People can recognize how many times a certain word was presented in a long series of words with relative accuracy.