Dot Point 3 Flashcards
Forgetting Curve
A graph that shows the typical rate and amount of forgetting that occurs over time
Percentages of the forgetting curve
20 minutes = 58.7%
1 hour = 44.2%
9 hours = 35.8%
1 day = 33.7%
2 days = 27.8%
6 days = 25.4%
31 days = 21.1%
What was Hermann Ebbinghaus’ procedure in obtaining the forgetting curve
Used nonsense syllables
Waited various lengths of time before testing (minutes to months)
What were Hermann’s conclusions??
Mostly forgetting occurs immediately after memorisation
Forgetting is very rapid initially with approx 1/2 of memory loss occurring within the first hour after learning
It slows after this and plateaus at around 31 days
What are the factors that affect rate and amount of forgetting
The meaning of the information - more meaningful info = longer to forget
How well the info is learned/encoded - deeper processing longer to forget
It is not effected by how easy or difficult the information is to learn or by intelligence
What are theories of forgetting?
Retrieval Failure
Interference
Motivated forgetting
Decay theory
Briefly explain / define Retrieval Failure
- cue dependent forgetting
- can occur because we lack the right cues to retrieve information
- suggests memories stored in LTM are not forgotten, but are temporarily inaccessible or unavailable because of inappropriate or faulty cues
Key elements of retrieval failure
Retrieval cue - any stimulus that assists in locating and recovering LTM’s
Context and state dependent cues
Context dependent cues
Are the environmental cues in the specific situation where the mercy was formed, including sights, sounds, smells
What are state dependent cues
Are associated with a persons internal physiological / psychological state at the to,e the memory was formed. Emotions, stress levels
Strength of retrieval failure theory
Tip of tongue is evidence that the right cue can sometimes be needed to retrieve a LTM
Limitations Of retrieval failure
No evidence that a memory was encoded or stored in the first place (consolidation may not have occurred)
Cues provided during testing may be incorrect and may not aid retrieval (everybody’s semantic network is different)
Briefly explain / define interference theory
Proposes that forgetting in LTM occurs because other memories interfere with the retrieval of what we are trying to recall
The more similar the information, the more likely it is that interference will occur
Learning information lose in time, also means interference is more likely
Key elements
Retroactive and proactive interference
What is retroactive interference
Occurs when new information interferes with the ability to remember old information
What is proactive interference
Occurs when information learned previously (old) can interfere with our ability to remember new information
Strengths of the interference theory
Easily replicated in a lab
It is supported by people’s own personal experiences
Limitations of the interference theory
Lab experiments tend to use information that is prone to interference
May not occur so readily in real life
Briefly explain the theory of motivated forgetting
Refers to forgetting that arises from a strong motive or desire to forget, usually because the experience is too disturbing or upsetting to remember
Key elements of interference
Repression and suppression
What is repression
Is an unconscious process through which an individual blocks a memory of an event or experience from entering conscious awareness
What is suppression?
Involves being motivated to forget an event or experience by making a deliberate, conscious effort to keep it our of conscious awareness
Strengths of motivated forgetting theory
Lots of examples of people with painful memories who have lost them for years and suddenly retrieved them for various reasons
Limitations of motivated forgetting
Validity is questioned, as durring hypnosis memorise hay have been implanted
Repression is controversial as adults may suddenly remember abuse as a child even though many years elapse and hard to corroborate
Briefly explain and define the decay theory
Is based on an assumption that when something new is learned, a physical or chemical memory trace of the experience is formed
According to decay theoret, forgetting occurs because a memory fades through disuse as time passes, unless it is reactivated by being used occasionally
Strengths of decay theory
Some studies of the hippocampus have shown a pattern of rapid then gradual decline of neural pathways
Evidence that memories are lost from sensory memory and STM due to decay
Limitations of decay theory
Unable to account for sudden recollection of events or information that can occur when correct cues are given
Elderly people can often recall memories from their childhood and procedural memories for years
What is forgetting
Forgetting is the inability to retrieve, recall or recognise information previously stored in memory.
