COGNITIVE: Grant et Al. (1998) Flashcards
What was the aim of the study?
To test the effect of noise as a source of context on the studying and retrieval of meaningful material in an academic context.
What theory was this study based on? What is it?
CONTEXT DEPENDENT MEMORY.
The idea that retrieval is best when in the same environment as when the learning happened.
Why did grant carry this study?
to see whether amount of noise would affect tests because exams are held in silent conditions but students tend to study in noisy conditions/listening to music.
What design is the study??
A laboratory experiment using independent measures
What was the independent variable?
- the condition they read the article in (loud/silent)
- whether the condition for test was matched or mismatched to the condition they read in.
What was the dependent variable?
The test scores of the short answer 10Qs and the multiple choice 16Q
TO TEST RECALL AND RECOGINITION
Who participated in the study?
39 participants from 17yrs-56yrs
How was the sample recruited.
8 psychology students recruited 5 acquaintances each. (one participant was excluded from results)
through OPPORTUNITY SAMPLING.
Describe the procedure.
1) Each participant was asked to read 2 page article ONCE (highlighting if they wanted)
Reading time was recorded but not controlled.
Participants either read in noisy conditions or silent.
2) After 2 minutes they were given 2 tests: 1. 10Q short answer to test RECALL 2. 16Q multiple choice to test RECOGNITION.
How was the ‘noisy’ condition achieved?
Wore headphones of a recording of university cafeteria at lunchtime.
(Hum of noise/ sounds of chairs and dishes/ occasional words but no phrases that were audible)
Why was the short answer test given before the multiple choice test?
To ensure material was being recalled from article and not the multiple choice test.
What article did they read? WHY?
A 2 page article on PSYCHOIMMUNOLOGY.
Its an interesting read but not a familiar subject
What were the results?
- There were differences in reading time but no significant consistent pattern between conditions.
- For both tests, performance was significantly better in MATCHING conditions than mismatched.
eg. short test = silent study with silent test - mean 6.7 but silent study with noisy test - mean 4.6 - No significant pattern for performance on test with individual condition
What were the 2 conclusions made?
1) No independent effect of noise on performance.
2) As context-dependent affects retrieval in both tests, students should study in quite surroundings (like test environment)
Was the study valid?
Lacks ecological validity as article is not own student’s subject and 30mins (the overall time of procedure) cannot be generalised to the long study/test sessions.
But good as using the short answer test before the multiple.
