Forgetting: Retrieval failure

Question 1

What is retrieval failure

Answer 1

• form of forgetting
• occurs when we don’t have necessary cues to access memory
• the memory IS available but not accessible unless a suitable cue/trigger is provided

Question 2

What’s a ‘cue’

Answer 2

• a trigger of info
• allows us to access a memory
• such cues may be meaningful/may be indirectly linked by being encoded at the time of learning
• eg: cues may be external (environmental context) OR internal (mood/degree of drunkenness)

Question 3

Explain Encoding specificity principle (ESP)

Answer 3

• Tulving (1983)
• states that if a cue is to help us recall info it HAS to be present at encoding (when learn material) AND at retrieval (when recalling it)
• if cues available at encoding and retrieval are DIFFERENT there will be some forgetting
• some cues = linked to material-to-be-remembered in a meaningful way - eg: cue ‘STM’ may lead you to recall all sorts of info about STM
• these cues are used in mnemonic techniques
• other cues = also encoded at time of learning but NOT in meaningful way

Question 4

What is context-dependent forgetting

Answer 4

Godden and Baddeley (1975) - sea divers WORKING underwater
PR:
- divers learnt list of words either underwater or on land
- asked to recall words either underwater or on land
- created 4 conditions

Question 5

What were Godden and Baddely’s 4 conditions

Answer 5

• learn on land - recall on land
• learn on land - recall underwater
• learn underwater - recall on land
• learn underwater - recall underwater

Question 6

What were G and B’s findings

Answer 6

2 of these conditions = environmental contexts of learning and recall MATCHED but in other 2 they DID NOT. Accurate recall = 40% lower in non-matching conditions
External cues available at learning were diff from ones at recall —- led to RETRIEVAL FAILURE

Question 7

What is state-dependent forgetting

Answer 7

Carter and Cassaday (1998)
Pr:
- gave anti-histamine drugs to P’s
- anti-histamines had mild sedative effect causing DROWSINESS in P’s
- creates internal physiological state diff from ‘normal’ state of being awake/alert
- P’s = learn list of words and passages of prose, then recall info
- creating 4 conditions

Question 8

What were C and C’s 4 conditions

Answer 8

• learn on drug - recall on it
• learn on it - recall not on it
• learn not on drug - recall when on it
• learn not on it - recall when not on it

Question 9

What were C and C’s findings

Answer 9

• condition where there was mismatch between internal state at learning and recall - performance on memory test was WORSE
• when cues = absent (drowsy when recalling info but had been alert when learning) there is MORE FORGETTING

Question 10

Evaluation: Questioning context effects

Answer 10

Baddeley (1997) argued context effects aren’t very strong especially IRL

• diff contexts got to be very diff before an effect = seen
• eg: hard to find an environment as diff from land & underwater
• in contrast - learning sth in one room and recalling in another is unlikely to result in much forgetting because environments aren’t different enough
• THIS = limitation because it means the real-life applications of retrieval failure due to contextual cues don’t actually explain MUCH forgetting