Interference Theory of Forgetting Flashcards
What store does forgetting usually refer to?
LTM
Interference
The theory that forgetting is due to other information in our LTM interfering with our ability to retrieve a memory.
Proactive Interference
When our old memories affect newer memories.
What can cause proactive interference?
Competition between information, when the incorrect response is strong and the correct response is very weak.
Retroactive Interference
When our new memories affect our older memories.
What causes retroactive interference?
The correct response is hard to retrieve, the incorrect response is highly accessible, the information is very similar.
McGeoch and McDonald (1931) - Aim
To investigate retroactive interferences by changing the similarity of two sets of information.
McGeoch and McDonald (1931) - Procedure
Participants learnt a list of 10 words until they could remember them with 100% accuracy. They then learned a new list of words, and were placed in one of six conditions:
1. Synonyms
2. Antonyms
3. Unrelated words
4. Nonsense syllables
5. Three-digit numbers
6. No new list - participants rested
Participants then had to recall the original list of words.
McGeoch and McDonald (1931) - Findings
The recall of the original list depended on their second list. Those in the synonyms condition recalled fewer words than those in the other conditions.
McGeoch and McDonald (1931) - Conclusion
Forgetting through interference happens most when the information is most similar.
Which type of interference does McGeoch and McDonald demonstrate?
Retroactive Interference
McGeoch and McDonald (1931) - Strengths
- Multiple conditions used allows findings to be compared.
- High control of extraneous variables, meaning for increased validity.
- Control allows for accurate replication - good reliability.
McGeoch and McDonald (1931) - Limitations
- Artificial task - lacks mundane realism, lowered validity. This lowers generalisability to real-life situations.
- Artificial setting - low ecological validity.
- Lab experiment may cause for demand characteristics.
- The experiment took place in a short time frame. This lacks application to real-life as most forgetting would take place over a longer period of time.
Keppel and Underwood (1962) - Aim
To examine the effect of proactive interference on long-term memory, in an experiment that resembles Peterson and Peterson (1959).
Keppel and Underwood (1962) - Procedure
Participants were presented with meaningless three-letter consonant trigrams at different intervals (increasing in threes). To prevent rehearsal, the participants had to count backwards in threes before recalling.
Keppel and Underwood (1962) - Findings
Participants typically remembered the trigrams that were presented first, irrespective of the interval length.
Keppel and Underwood (1962) - Conclusion
The earlier trigrams of consonants had transferred to LTM, and as the following information was similar, it made learning and therefore, remembering the new trigrams more difficult.
Which type of interference does Keppel and Underwood (1962) demonstrate?
Proactive Interference
Keppel and Underwood (1962) - Strengths
- Supported by Peterson and Peterson’s research, good reliability.
- High control of extraneous variables, good validity.
- Control allows for accurate replication - good reliability.
Keppel and Underwood (1962) - Limitations
- Artificial task - lacks mundane realism, low validity, low generalisability to real-life situations.
- Artificial setting - low ecological validity.
- Possibility of demand characteristics.
- Carried out within a short time frame, limited application to real-life situations.
Interference Theory - Strengths
- Supporting evidence from McGeoch and McDonald.
- Supporting evidence from Keppel and Underwood.
- Good testability - research is replicable and reliable.
- Supporting evidence from Baddeley and Hitch (1977) - asked rugby players to remember names of the teams they played that season. Found that recall was better when there were less games in the meantime, not the amount of time in the meantime. Supports retroactive interference, and is more applicable than lab studies.
Interference Theory - Limitations
- Opposing theory - retrieval failure.
- Limited testability - artificial tasks and environments used in research.
- Limited usefulness - findings from research lack useful application, due to the artificial experiments.
- Contradictory evidence from Tulving and Psotka (1971) - gave participants five lists of 24 words, each organised in six categories. Found that recall was 70% for the first list, and fell for the others. However, recall was back at 70% when participants were cued with category names. Shows that information that is supposedly lost, is still in the LTM just not easily accessed.
