COGNITIVE: Laney et al

Question 1

what is the aim of experiment 1?

Answer 1

to see whether giving false feedback about a childhood love of asparagus would generate a false memory of enjoying asparagus

Question 2

what was the research method and design of experiment 1?

Answer 2

lab experiment
participants were tested in groups of 8
independent measures design
most likely volunteer sampling as participants received course credit

Question 3

what was the independent variable of experiment 1?

Answer 3

whether a participant had the false belief of enjoying asparagus as a child

Question 4

what was the dependent variable of experiment 1?

Answer 4

results on the 5 questionnaires

Question 5

what are false memories?

Answer 5

reconstructed memories where the memory never really happened and is incorrect

Question 6

what is the sample of experiment 1?

Answer 6

128 participants

undergraduate students from university of California and received course credit for participation

mean age: 20.8

99 females and 29 males

Question 7

what is the FHI?

Answer 7

food history inventory
24 items
rate 1-8
1 = definitely didn't happen
8 = definitely happened
rate their food experiences before the age of 10

Question 8

what is the RQ?

Answer 8

restaurant questionnaire
32 dishes
formatted to look like a menu
rate 1-8
1 = definitely yes
8 = definitely no
rate whether they would eat each dish

Question 9

what is the FPQ?

Answer 9

food preference questionnaire
62 items
rate 1-8
1 = definitely eat
8 = definitely won't eat

Question 10

what is the FCQ?

Answer 10

food costs questionnaire
21 items
multiple choice
how much participant would pay for each item

Question 11

what is the MBQ?

Answer 11

memory or belief questionnaire
respondents were asked if they had a memory or a belief that lacked detail about their experience on 3 items from the FHI

Question 12

what was the procedure for experiment 1 week 1?

Answer 12

participants arrived in groups of 8

they were told they were taking part in a food preference and personality study

they all completed the FHI and RQ and three other filler questionnaires

Question 13

what was the procedure for experiment 1 week 2?

Answer 13

participants returned one week later and were randomly allocated to the love condition and control group

they were told their responses went into a computer generated profile which stated that:
‘as a child, you disliked spinach, you enjoyed fried foods, and you were happy when a classmate brought sweets to school’

the critical item ‘you loved to eat cooked asparagus’ was embedded in the third position for the love condition

participants were asked questions to ensure that they processed the information like:
on a scale of 1-9, how did your experience with this food item affect your adult personality?

participants then completed the FHI and RQ to measure changes

then they completed the FPQ, FCQ and MBQ

all participants were later debriefed

Question 14

what did the computer generated profile state about participants in experiment 1?

Answer 14

‘as a child, you disliked spinach, you enjoyed fried foods and you were happy when a classmate brought sweets to school’

Question 15

what were the results from experiment 1?

Answer 15

FHI = love group was 1.5 in week 1 and became 4.1 in week 2

control group was 1.5 in week 1 and became 1.7 in week 2

Question 16

what was the aim of experiment 2?

Answer 16

to see if there is a consequence in behavior after generating a false memory

a secondary aim was to check reliability of findings

Question 17

what was the independent variable for experiment 2?

Answer 17

whether participants have the false belief ‘you loved asparagus’ or not

Question 18

what was the dependent variable for experiment 2?

Answer 18

results of three questionnaires and feedback to a slideshow of 20 pictures of common foods

Question 19

what was the sample of experiment 2?

Answer 19

103 participants
undergraduates from university of washington
mean age: 19.9
volunteer sampling

Question 20

what is the common foods slideshow?

Answer 20

20 colored photographs of common foods displayed for 30 seconds for each participant

four questions were asked for each slide with a rating 1-8:
how appetizing is the food in the photo?
how disgusting is the food in the photo?
how good is the artistic quality of the photo?
whether the photo was taken by a novice, amateur or expert

Question 21

what is the procedure for experiment 2 week 1?

Answer 21

participants were told that they’re completing questionnaires to generate a profile of eating experiences based on their responses

they completed the FHI,RQ,FPQ and two filler questionnaires

Question 22

what is the procedure for experiment 2 week 2?

Answer 22

participants returned one week later and were randomly allocated to the love condition or control group

participants were told their responses were processed into a computer generated profile of their early childhood experiences with food

the critical item ‘you loved cooked asparagus the first time you ate it’ was put in the 3rd position

they then went through the common foods slideshow and completed the FHI, RQ and FPQ again

Question 23

what are the results from experiment 2?

Answer 23

FHI = love group was 1.7 in week 1 and became 4.2 in week 2

control group was 1.5 in week 1 and became 2.5 in week 2

Question 24

what are the conclusions of experiment 2?

Answer 24

participants can be given positive false food beliefs and they have consequences on behavior towards food

Question 25

what were the conclusions from experiment 1?

Answer 25

false memories can be developed as the love condition increased its rating on asparagus on the FHI after the memory was implanted