Interference Flashcards

1
Q

What is the Interference theory?

A
  • Interference is when you forget because one memory blocks another, which causes one or both memories to be distorted or forgotten.
  • Interference is an explanation for forgetting in LTM
  • Information is permanently stored in LTM, so if we can not remember it, it is likely due to being unable to access it
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2
Q

What are the types of interfernce?

A
  • Proactive interference - forgetting occurs when older memories disrupt the recall of newer memories
  • Retroactive interference - forgetting occurs when newer memories disrupt the recall of older memories
  • The degree of forgetting is greater when the memories are similar
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3
Q

What study was conducted to explore the effects of similarity on interference?

A
  • McGeoch & McDonald (1939) - aimed to investigate the effect of retroactive interference.
  • Participants had to learn a list of 10 words until they could remember them with 100% accuracy.
    -They then learned a new list of words; there were 6 different types of new lists compared to the original list
  • Group 1 = Synonyms
  • Group 2 = Antonyms
  • Group 3 = Unrelated
  • Group 4 = Consonant syllables
  • Group 5 = 3 digit numbers
  • Group 6 = control group (no new list - participants rested)

-When asked to recall the original list of words, group 1 performed the worst recall, which shows that interference is strongest when the memories are similar.

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4
Q

(AO3) What is a strength of interference?

A

Support from Drug Studies:

  • Coenen & Van Luijetaar (1997) - gave participants a list of words and later asked them to recall the list, assuming intervening events would interfere.
  • They found that when a list of words was learned under the influence of diazepam, the recall was better.
  • This finding shows that forgetting can be due to interference and by removing that interference, recall improves.
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5
Q

(AO3) What is a weakness of interference?
(1)

A

Interference is unusual:

  • The conditions necessary for interference to occur are relatively rare.
  • This is unlike lab studies where the high degree of control means a researcher can create ideal conditions for inference.
  • This suggests that most forgetting may be better explained by other theories, such as retrieval failure, due to a lack of cues.
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6
Q

(AO3) What is a weakness of interference?
(2)

A

Interference is temporary and can be overcome with cues:

  • Tulving & Psotka (1971) - gave participants lists of words and concluded that recall averaged about 70% for the first list, but became worse as participants learned each additional list.
  • At the end of the procedure, the participants were told the names of the categories that the lists were sorted into, in which recall rose again to 70%.
  • This shows that interference causes a temporary loss of memory accessibility to material that is still in the LTM, which is not predicted by the interference theory.
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