Limitations of Mnemonics While mnemonics are exceptionally good for encoding large amounts of information, they do have some

practical limitations. The following presents some factors that can have a negative influence on your ability to use mnemonics. Time The biggest limiting factor in using mnemonics is time both time spent learning the mnemonic systems as well as the time to apply them. If you are just going to use the system once it may not be worth it. However, by learning a system and using it regularly, the time it ta es to use decreases and it can be worth your while for having learned it. Information may be presented too fast to encode. It ta es time to encode information especially abstract information that re!uires the creative generation of concrete images. "urthermore, decoding information ta es time. #ut if you have the opportunity to use a mnemonic system, the time ta en to encode information can pay off by reducing the time ta en in reviewing and further study of the information. $ncoding verbal information %say in acrostic, acronym, or rhyme& also ta es time sometimes more time than to just remember the list. However, information encoded in such a way often stays in memory longer partly due to repetition. In general, practice helps reduce time ta en in both encoding as well as decoding. 's you become more proficient in mnemonic techni!ues you will begin using them !uic ly and automatically. Abstract material 's mentioned above, it can ta e longer to form an image for an abstract word or idea. It can be very difficult to form images for some abstract words. In these cases verbal techni!ues may be more effective. The images used for abstract words are really only a cue for the actual idea. It is possible that the cue may fail to wor . (ince images can have multiple interpretations it is possible that these interpretations can interfere with each other especially for abstract material. ' given image can be used to encode a variety of abstract cues. When decoding the image it may not be clear which cue was being encoded. Imagery ability )ot everyone is used to thin ing in terms of images. (tudies show that children have an easier time thin ing with images than adults do. In general, most people do have the ability to form mental images but it may ta e some practice to get used to using them. Verbatim memory *nemonic techni!ues do not lend themselves the memori+ing information verbatim such as a poem or literary passage. However, mnemonic techni!ues can be used to memori+e a framewor of the main ideas and which order they come in. Maintenance and transfer It is unclear how well mnemonic s ills get transferred to tas s other than the ones that were trained on. "or example, if you learn a techni!ue for memori+ing a shopping list, this techni!ue may not help you on your next "rench test. It can ta e some effort and initiative to figure out how to apply the specific techni!ues and the general principles of mnemonics to whatever material you are trying to learn. 'lso, many of life,s tas s may be better solved with other systems, such as writing ma ing a written list.

The use of mnemonic s ills suffers from the same problem as any s ill they often do not become habit and their use decreases. The two main ways to deal with this issue are.. Increased training and practice with strategies /. ' thorough explanation of how and why they wor and when to use them

00000 Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Mnemonics *nemonics serve an important role in memory, but they have limitations and should be used sparingly. If you use mnemonics too extensively, they become cumbersome and can add confusion to your learning process. If you do not study the mnemonics accurately, they hinder rather than help you recall information accurately. The following chart shows the advantages and disadvantages of using mnemonics. Advantages of Using Mnemonics .. They provide a memory bridge to help you recall information that otherwise is difficult to remember. /. They involve rearranging or reorgani+ing information, which also helps you personali+e the information and be a more active learner. 1. They add interest to studying by providing you with new ways to wor with information. 3. When used properly, they allow you to spend less time retrieving information from your long0term memory. Disadvantages of Using Mnemonics .. They must be recited and practiced in a precise manner in order to wor correctly.

/. They re!uire time to create, learn, and practice.

1. They can become 2crutches2 and can give you a false sense of security that you now the information. 3. They rely more on rote memory than on elaborative rehearsal, so your actual understanding of the concepts may be inade!uate. 4. 5veruse can result in confusion and an excessive expenditure of time reviewing.