Explanations for forgetting: Retrieval failure Flashcards
What is Retrieval failure?
A form of forgetting. It occurs when we don’t have the necessary cues to access memory. Memory is available but not accessible until cue is provided
What are cues?
A ‘trigger’ of information that allows us to access a memory. Include indirect external or internal cues
What is Tulving’s encoding specificity principle?
This states that a cue has to be both present at encoding and present at retrieval for it to be helpful
Give an example of cues encoded in a meaningful way?
mnemonic techniques
Give two examples of non meaningful cues
- context-dependent forgetting- recall depends on external cue (weather or place)
- State dependent forgetting- recall depends on internal cue (being upset etc)
Who did research on context-dependent forgetting?
Godden & Baddeley
Outline Godden & Baddeley’s procedure
studied deep sea divers who work underwater to see if training on land helped or hindered their work underwater
-4 conditions:
-learn on land- recall on land
-learn on land- recall underwater
-learn underwater- recall underwater
-learn underwater- recall on land
What were Godden & Baddeley’s findings?
-In two of these conditions the environmental contexts of learning recall matched
-accurate recall was 40% lower in the non-matching conditions
Who did research on state-dependent forgetting?
Carter & Cassaday
Outline Carter & Cassaday’s procedure
-gave antihistamine drugs to their participants
-had a mild sedative effect making them feel slightly drowsy
- creates an internal psychological state different from the ‘normal’ state of being awake & alert
4 conditions:
-learn on drug-recall on drug
-learn on drug- recall when not on drug
-learn not on drug-recall on drug
-learn not on drug - recall not on drug
What were Carter & Cassaday’s findings?
when cues are absent e.g. drowsy when recalling information but had been alert learning it then there is more forgetting
explain real-world application eval
-retrieval cues can help to overcome some forgetting in everyday situation
-Baddeley suggested they are worth paying attention to
-experience in one room & thinking I need to get something from another room
-go to other room and forget but the moment you go back to original room-remember
-context dependent forgetting credible -reminds of strategies used in real life
What is a strength of retrieval failure explanation?
-impressive range of research that supports
-studies by Godden & Baddeley & Carter & Cassaday show that a lack of relevant cues at recall can lead to context & state dependent forgetting
-Memory researchers argue that retrieval failure is main reason for forgetting in the LTM-real world situations
What is a limitation of retrieval failure?
- context effects depends on the type of memory being tested
-Godden & Baddeley replicated their underwater experiment but used a recognition test instead of recall
-p’s say whether they recognised a word read to them from a list
-no context-dependent forgetting=performance same
-limited explanation only applies when a person has to recall not recognise
