Chapter 2.6 - Explanations for forgetting: Retrieval failure

Question 1

What is retrieval failure?

Answer 1

A form of forgetting. It occurs when we don’t have the necessary cues to access memory. The memory is available but not accessible unless a suitable cue is provided

Question 2

What is a cue?

Answer 2

A ‘trigger’ of information that allows us to access a memory. Such cues may be meaningful or may be indirectly linked by being encoded at the time of learning. Indirect cues may be external (environmental context) or internal (mood/degree of drunkenness)

Question 3

What is the encoding specificity principle?

Answer 3

A cue(if it going to be helpful) has to be both
1. present at encoding
2. present at retrieval
- if the cues available at encoding and retrieval are different or entirely absent, there will be some forgetting

Question 4

What are the two types of retrieval failure?

Answer 4

1. Context-dependent forgetting
2. State-dependent forgetting

Question 5

What is context-dependent forgetting?

Answer 5

Recall depends on external cues (weather or places)

Question 6

What is state-dependent forgetting?

Answer 6

Recall depends on internal cues (feeling upset or being drunk)

Question 7

Describe the research on context-dependent forgetting

Answer 7

• Godden and Baddeley (1975)
• Deep sea divers who work underwater were studied to see if training on land helped or hindered their work underwater
• The divers learned a list of words either underwater or on land and then were asked to recall the words either underwater or on land

Question 8

What were the four conditions during research on context-dependent forgetting?

Answer 8

1. Learn on land - recall on land
2. Learn on land - recall underwater
3. Learn underwater - recall on land
4. Learn underwater - recall underwater

Question 9

What were the findings and conclusions of research on context-dependent forgetting?

Answer 9

• In two conditions, the environmental contexts of learning and recall matched, whereas in the other two they did not
• Accurate recall was 40% lower in the non-matching conditions
• Concluded that the external cues available at learning were different from the ones available at recall and led to failure

Question 10

Describe the research on state-dependent forgetting

Answer 10

• Carter and Cassaday (1998) gave antihistamine drugs to their participants
• The antihistamines had a mild sedative effect making the participants slightly drowsy
• This creates an internal physiological state different from the normal state of being awake and alert

Question 11

What were the four conditions during research on state-dependent forgetting?

Answer 11

1. Learn on drug - recall when on drug
2. Learn on drug - recall when not on drug
3. Learn not on drug - recall when on drug
4. Learn not on drug - recall when not on drug

Question 12

What were the findings of research on state-dependent forgetting?

Answer 12

• When there was a mismatch between internal state at learning and recall, performance on the memory test was significantly worse
• When the cues are absent, then there is more forgetting

Question 13

What is a strength of retrieval failure? (real-world application)

Answer 13

• Retrieval cues can help to overcome some forgetting in everyday situations
• Cues may not have a very strong effect on forgetting but Baddeley suggests they are still worth paying attention to
• Research can remind us of strategies we use in the real world to improve our recall

Question 14

What is a strength of retrieval failure? (research support)

Answer 14

• There is a range of research supporting the retrieval failure explanation
• The two researches showed a lack of relevant cues at recall can lead to context-dependent and state-dependent forgetting in everyday life
• Shows that retrieval failure occurs in real-world situations as well as in the highly controlled conditions of the lab

Question 15

What is a counterpoint for the strength of retrieval failure? (research support)

Answer 15

• Baddeley argues that context effects are not very strong, especially in everyday life
• Different contexts have to be very different indeed before an effect is seen
• Learning something in one room and recalling in another is unlikely to result in much forgetting because these environments are generally not different enough
• Retrieval failure due to lack of contextual cues may not actually explain much everyday forgetting

Question 16

What is a limitation of retrieval failure? (Recall versus recognition)

Answer 16

• A replication of the underwater experiment used a recognition test instead of recall, participants had to say whether they recognised a word read to them from a list, instead of retrieving it for themselves
• There was no context-dependent effect, performance was the same in all four conditions
• Retrieval failure is a limited explanation for forgetting because it only applies when a person has to recall information rather than recognise it