interference + eval Flashcards
what is interfereence?
when 2 pieces of info disrupt each other leading to forgetting one or both.
where does interference largely occur?
in the LTM
what does interference do to the memories leading to forgetting them?
Although the memories are still available, we can’t access them a\s they’re more difficult to locate due to interference which leads to forgetting.
when is interference most likely to occur?
when the memories are similar
what are the 2 types of interferrence?
proactive and retro active
what happens in proactive interference?
an older memory interferes with a newer memory.
e.g. you got a new phone number but keep saying the old one
what happens in retroactive interference?
a newer memory interferes with an older one.
e.g. teacher learns new students names and forgets old students names.
who created the key study for the support of retroactive interference?
McGeogh and McDonald
what was the procedure of their study?
learn a list of 10 words to 100% accuracy then learn a new word list
6 types e.g. antonym, synonyms etc.
what were the findings of the procedure?
The most similar material (list of synonyms) produced the worst recall.
why did the list of synonyms produce the worst recall?
because interference is strongest and leads to the most forgetting when memories are similar.
a strength of this research is that it was in a controlled lab experiment and so…
the investigator was able to CONTROL extran variables, preventing them from becoming CONFOUNDING and lowering the IV.
Therefore, we can be SURE that it is interference which is affecting out measure of memory, in forgetting.
however,this study was artificial which is a limitation because..
it means the study lacked MUNDANE REALISM, and so findings may not be the same if we used a more REALISTIC task. Therefore the study lacks GENERALISABILITY and external validity is LOW.
Therefore, we cannot be sure it’s interference that is affecting memory just because it does in the artificial task.
However, Baddely found evidence for interference in the real world as the more rugby games players played, the more they forgot the names of the teams they played against. Therefore…
This suggests that the games they had played had INTERFERED with each other. As this is a REAL LIFE scenario, it has high ECOLOGICAL validity, and can explain forgetting in real life situations.
However, Baddeleys rugby study was a natural experiment and so…
there is LESS control over extran variables such as the amount of OTHER materials they had to memorise which may have affected their memory. e.g. illness.
Therefore, there could be CONFOUNDING variables in this study which lowered the Internal validity.
Therefore, we may NOT be measuring interference as we intended, and can’t be sure that it’s an EXPLANATION of forgetting.
