Procedural Memory And Why It's Important

Procedural memory — the part of your long-term memory responsible for unconsciously recalling and performing actions — plays an important part in helping you function on a daily basis. When you type, ride a bike, or even drive a car without consciously thinking about how you are doing it, you are using your procedural memory. This article discusses procedural memory, how it develops, and its implications regarding your mental and physical health.  

What is procedural memory?

Long-term memory is divided into two subtypes, explicit and implicit memory, the latter of which can be further separated into procedural memory, conditioning, and priming. Implicit memory is utilized when you automatically recall information and events. In the case of procedural memory, the information you’re retrieving is related to a task that you’re performing. For example, when you tie your shoes, you likely do not think about the specific steps involved because your procedural memory allows you to recall the information necessary to perform this action unconsciously. In this way, procedural memory is a type of long-term memory that helps you remember how to perform tasks automatically without thinking.

Differentiating between procedural and declarative memory

Contrasting two forms of long-term memory, procedural and explicit (also known as declarative memory), can help clarify how procedural memory works. Declarative memories are the information you consciously learn, while procedural memories refer to actions you typically learn by doing. As you repeatedly practice motor skills, those actions become encoded in your procedural memory. Then, you recall them automatically. In declarative memory, the processes of learning and retrieval are typically performed consciously. 

Therapy for declarative memory impairment and procedural learning

For example, consider driving. If you had to consciously think about how to activate your blinker, turn a corner, and speed up, you may have trouble driving without getting distracted. However, if you go to a state you've visited before and someone tells you about a unique road law, you could use declarative memory to recall the law and follow it while driving. Since it isn't stored in your procedural memory with your motor skills, you must think about it to retrieve it. Procedural learning makes many parts of life simpler. 

How procedural memory is developed

The procedural memory system is complex and involves several brain regions, including the cerebellum, caudate nucleus, putamen, and motor cortex. These parts of the brain play a role in learning and remembering both gross motor skills (e.g., riding a bicycle or throwing a football) and fine motor skills (e.g., writing with a pen or playing the piano). The basal ganglia, a part of the brain's limbic system, supports learning through feedback and intrinsic rewards.

The role of procedural memory in learning motor skills

These parts of the brain work together to allow for coordinated and timed movements as you learn to perform a task. Once a task is formed, it is recalled automatically through procedural memory via the basal ganglia and cerebellum.

Procedural memory and the brain

A motor skill is primarily developed through practice and trial and error. Repeated actions must reinforce synapses in the brain to develop memory. When you first learn how to do something, you may often make mistakes and need to think about what you are doing. However, once the skill is learned, your procedural memory stores that information and recalls it automatically, without conscious thought.

Examples of procedural memory

While some uses of procedural memory—like walking and talking—are common among almost everyone, the specific tasks performed through procedural memory vary based on an individual’s experiences. Some common examples of procedural memory include:

• Typing
• Riding a bicycle
• Driving a car
• Chopping an onion
• Playing piano
• Swimming
• Climbing stairs
• Writing in print or cursive
• Answering a phone

You can probably come up with many more examples of procedural memory that are unique to what you have learned during your lifetime. 

Procedural memory impairment

Several mental and physical health challenges can affect your procedural memory.

Sleep hygiene

In recent years, several studies have examined the role of sleep in memory. The findings show that sleep hygiene affects your brain's ability to function correctly, including its ability to encode and recall memories. 

One study specifically examined procedural memory and the role of early sleep versus late nocturnal sleep. Groups were tested on procedural memory tasks with no sleep, early sleep, and late sleep. The study concluded that people who slept soundly in late nocturnal sleep were more able to perform the tasks, indicating that healthy sleep hygiene, particularly a set amount of REM sleep late at night, can significantly improve procedural memory. Likewise, people without healthy sleep patterns may have difficulty performing tasks from procedural memory.

This is one reason why people are told not to drive if they are tired. Your responses may slow while driving if you’re tired, as the body's need for sleep can overcome nearly all its other intrinsic instincts, including the need for safety.

Dementia

Different forms of dementia, including dementia that is present in Alzheimer's disease, can cause memory impairment. Cognitive abilities are typically significantly decreased with dementia, and certain forms of long-term memory can eventually fail, commonly after short-term memory has been impacted. Procedural memory works differently from other forms of long-term memory, though, so it is not affected as easily or as early. One study showed that people with Alzheimer's, even in severe stages, could develop procedural memory and retain it for up to three months. 

Parkinson's disease

There is evidence that people living with Parkinson's disease can experience deficits in procedural memory. Since Parkinson’s is associated with degeneration of the basal ganglia, which plays a key role in utilizing procedural memory, it can impair the brain’s ability to develop and maintain skills associated with procedural memory. 

Huntington's disease

Huntington's disease is a genetic condition that leads to the degeneration of brain cells. Research has shown that people with Huntington's disease can have difficulty using procedural memory.

Implications in personal life and work

Psychologists who study brain function have developed theories that procedural memory can shape a person's personality. As you grow up, you learn certain behaviors and emotional responses to different stimuli. This shapes who you are because, later in life, your brain automatically issues those responses from procedural memory.

This is one reason why people have such a hard time breaking habits such as smoking or certain emotional responses. Once a process is stored in procedural memory, it is often challenging to forget or consciously override it with a different behavior. Your procedural memory emits these responses automatically, so it sometimes takes a lot of willpower to overcome them.

Another way that procedural memory knowledge has been applied is in organizational settings, such as large corporations and non-profits. The idea is that the complex, unique routines of an organization are stored in employees' procedural memory. Therefore, it can be more difficult for organizations to make changes and improvements. Examples might include:

• Using an old, outdated, inefficient software system because it’s “how we’ve always done it.”
• Bureaucratic rules that no longer serve their purpose, such as requiring multiple managers to sign off on something because it’s a process deeply embedded in habit. 
• A department’s ritualistic, lengthy, time-consuming meeting structure that is automatically followed because it’s part of the team’s established routine. 
• “Unwritten rules,” or the tacit knowledge of navigating office politics or specific communication challenges that aren’t in any guidelines, but are automatic behaviors that no one questions.

To test this hypothesis, in 1994, researchers performed a study to determine whether procedural memory played a role in organizational functioning. They concluded that the practices specific to an organization—which may not always be efficient or productive—are stored in procedural memory. This knowledge could help organizations understand how to implement changes that enhance employee performance.

How to improve procedural memory

There are several ways you can enhance your brain’s ability to utilize procedural memory. You can sometimes improve your procedural knowledge by watching someone else do the same thing you have already practiced doing. This is called observational learning. For example, after seeing how someone else kicks a soccer ball, you might learn new techniques that you can practice, ideally making them a part of your procedural memory. 

In one study, researchers found that piano players had an increased ability to learn a new skill, similar to our ability to memorize a new subject when we already know a related subject. 

Additionally, because sleep disruptions can impair procedural memory, getting a good night’s sleep can help the brain benefit from rest. Consider creating a nighttime routine to wind down after the day and prepare for sleep. 

Online therapy with BetterHelp

Online therapy can provide you with valuable tools and support if you’re experiencing complex emotions related to memory impairment or similar life challenges. With an online therapy platform like BetterHelp, you can work with a licensed therapist from home, through video calls, voice calls, or in-app messaging. Your mental health professional can connect you with exercises and other resources that may help you work through concerns related to memory and mood on your own time. With the right tools and the guidance of a licensed therapist, you can continue down the path to improved mental health. 

Research shows that online therapy can be a useful method of treating mental health concerns associated with memory impairment. In a study on the efficacy of an online intervention for individuals with injury-related memory loss, researchers found that treatment could improve both memory and mood. These results can be added to a growing body of evidence pointing to online therapy as an effective form of care for a variety of mental health-related concerns.