herinneringsdoel

Herinneringsdoel is a Dutch noun that refers to a specific aim or objective related to memory. The term combines herinnering (memory or remembering) and doel (goal or objective). In general usage, it denotes what someone intends to remember or to remember to do.

In cognitive psychology, education, and related fields, herinneringsdoelen are explicit goals that guide encoding, storage, and retrieval of information. For example, a learner might set a herinneringsdoel to recall vocabulary words by a certain date, or to remember to complete a task at a scheduled time. In memory rehabilitation and clinical practice, professionals may establish herinneringsdoelen to support daily functioning, such as remembering appointments, medication schedules, or important cues in the environment.

The concept is closely connected to prospective memory, which concerns remembering to perform planned actions in the future. It is also linked to memory strategies and external aids, such as reminders, calendars, alarms, and checklists, which help achieve herinneringsdoelen. While widely used in Dutch-language contexts, the term appears in academic writings, coaching materials, and everyday discourse to describe memory-related aims and the processes that support achieving them.