Forgetting

Question 1

Define forgetting

Answer 1

Inability to recall a stored memory

Question 2

2 reasons forgetting occurs

Answer 2

Interference and retrieval failure due to absence of cues

Question 3

What is interference

Answer 3

• Confusion between newly coded information and a previously stored memory, where one memory disrupts the recall of another
• inaccurate recall might result in forgetting and distorting one or the other or both memories

Question 4

What might make interference more likely

Answer 4

If memories are similar

Question 5

2 types of interference

Answer 5

Proactive and retro active

Question 6

Define proactive interference

Answer 6

An older memory stored interferes with our attempts to recall something new (forwards)

Question 7

Retroactive interference

Answer 7

Coding new information interferes with information already stored
(Backwards)

Question 8

Research support in lab studies - interference theory

Answer 8

Postman
- ppts split into 2 groups, both had to ember a list of parked words
- experimental group, learn another list of words where the second paired word was different
- control was not given a second list
- all ppts asked to recall items from the first list

Findings
- the recall of the control group was more accurate

Conclusion
- learning the 2nd last interfered with ptps ability to recall items from the first list , retroactive interference occurred

Evalution -
- lab experiment
- setting and task artifical it difficult to make a generalisation of the role of interference in forgetting in IRL situations

Question 9

Supporting research in real life setting - interference

Answer 9

Schmidt et al
procedure
- 700 former students of a Dutch primary school selected t random and sent a questionnaire - 211 responded age ranging 11 - 79
- given a map of the neighbourhood where they had been to school with all the street name replaced by numbers
- asked to remember as many of them as possible
- ppts where where assessed on the amount of retroactive interference they experienced by the number of times they ha moved neighbourhood or cities ( thus earning new sets of street names)

Findings
- positive association between number of times a ptp had moved neighbourhoods and the number of street names forgotten

Conclusion
- retroactive interference occurred as learning new sets of street names when moving neighbourhoods makes recalling an older set of street names harder

Question 10

Evaluation of real life research in interference

Answer 10

Strengths
- greater ecological validity
weakness
- lacks control, alternative reasons for the difference in accuracy of recall other than the number of neighbourhoods moved
- one extraneous variable may have confounded results is age, older ppl more likely to have moved often and may have worse memory generally
- not very useful as it can only explain forgetting when 2 or more similar memory’s

Question 11

What retrieval failure due to absence of cues

Answer 11

• when information in the LTM cant be accessed
• in order to recall information the right retrieval cues need to be present

Question 12

What are retrieval cues

Answer 12

Anything linked to the memory eg first letter of a word, related word

Question 13

Who proposed the encoding - specificity principle

Answer 13

Tulving

Question 14

What is the encoding- specificity principle proposes

Answer 14

• We code information into memory we also code the context (external cues) in which we learn the information and the mental or physiological state we are in (internal cues)
• forgetting may occur is cues aren’t present

Question 15

2 types of cues

Answer 15

Context (extend cues) and state (internal cues)

Question 16

Describe context (external) cues

Answer 16

The external environment is different at recall from how it was at coding

Question 17

Describe state (internal) cues

Answer 17

A persons internal environment is different at recall to when info was coded

Question 18

Supporting research for context cues

Answer 18

Abernethy
Procedure
- all ppts learnt some material in te same classroom with the same teacher
- half where tested by the same teacher in the same class room
- half by an unfamiliar teacher and classroom

Findings
- ptps tested by the unfamiliar teacher and classroom recalled the material significantly less well than those tested by ppts tested by the same teacher and classroom

Conclusion
- shows that if the external context from coding is missing when memory is retrieved its more difficult to recall information

Question 19

Supporting research for state cues

Answer 19

Overton
procedure
- ptps learnt material when either drunk or sober and then had to recall the material when in the same state they were in at learning or when in the other state

Findings
- recall was significantly worse when ptps were in a different state at recall than from that at learning

Conclude
- shows that ppl internal physiological or mental state is different to when the info was encoded the info its more difficult to retrieve it

Question 20

Weaknesses of retrial of failure due to absence of cues

Answer 20

• lack ecological validity - lab study’s based on artificial tasks unlike real life memory, tells us little about forgetting in real life