explanation for forgetting - interference Flashcards
define interference.
forgetting because one memory blocks another, causing one or both memories to be distorted or forgotten.
outline the interference theory.
interference has been proposed as an explanation for forgetting mainly in the LTM.
once info has reached the LTM it is more or less permanent. therefore any forgetting of LTMs is likely because we cant get access to them even though they are available.
interference between memories makes it harder for us to locate them, and this is experienced as forgetting.
name the two types of interference.
proactive.
retroactive.
describe proactive interference.
give an example.
forgetting occurs when older memories, already stored, disrupt the recall of newer memories. The degree of forgetting is greater when the memories are similar.
e.g. your teacher has learned so many names in the past that she now has difficulty remembering the names of her current class.
describe retroactive interference.
give an example.
forgetting occurs when newer memories disrupt the recall of older memories already stored. the degree of forgetting is greater when the memories are similar.
e.g. your teacher has learned so many new names this year that she has difficulty remembering the names of her students last year.
who researchers the effect of similarity on interference?
McGeoch and McDonald (1931).
describe the research of McGeoch and McDonald (1931).
in both PI and RI, interference is worse when the memories are similar, which was discovered by McGeoch and McDonald (1931).
studied RI by changing the amount of similarity between two sets of materials. ptps had to learn a list of 10 words until they could remember them with 100% accuracy. they then learned a new list.
when ptps were asked to recall the original list of words, the most similar material (synonyms) produced the worst recall. this shows that interference is strongest when the memories are similar.
discuss real world interference as a strength of interference.
one strength is that there is evidence of interference effects in more everyday situations.
Baddeley and Hitch (1977) - asked rugby players to recall the names of the teams they had played against during a rugby season. the players all played for the same time interval but the number of intervening games varied because some players missed games due to injury. players who played the most games had the poorest recall.
this shows that interference can operate in at least some real world situations, increasing the validity of the theory.
however -
interference causing forgetting in everyday situations is unusual, due to the fact that the conditions necessary for interference to occur are relatively rare. Unlike lab studies, where researchers can create ideal situations with a high level of control, two memories being fairly similar does not happen often in everyday life - unless for example you are studying two similar subjects at school at the same time.
this suggests that most forgetting may be better explained by other theories such as retrieval failure due to a lack of cues.
discuss interference being temporary as a limitation of interference theory.
one limitation is that interference is temporary and can be overcome by using cues.
researchers gave ptps lists of words organised into categories, one list at a time. recall averaged at 70% for the first list and got progressively worse as ptps learned each additional list. at the end of the procedure the ptps were given a cued recall test - they were told the names of the categories. recall rose again to around 70%. ‘
this shows that interference causes a temporary loss of accessibility to material that is still in LTM, a finding not predicted by interference theory.
it is however explained by RETIEVAL FAILURE, which proposes that when information is initially placed in memory, associated cues are stored at the same time. if these cues are not available at the time of recall, it may appear as if you have forgotten the info but in fact this is due to retrieval failure - not being able to access memories that are there.
this suggests that retrieval failure is a more valid explanation of forgetting than interference theory.
