Memory

Question 1

theory of reconstructive memory (bartlett)

Answer 1

memories are not exact copies of events but interpretations (schemas)

Question 2

barlett: war of the ghosts (1932)

Answer 2

aim: testing the nature of reconstructive memory using an unfamiliar story
procedure: 20 participants asked to read a story twice and then recall later on
results: participants tended to add meaning to story, left unpleasant parts out
conclusion: evidence for reconstructive memory. participants didn’t recall accurately or fully

Question 3

evaluation of bartlett (1932)

Answer 3

strength: real life application, eye-witness may misremember information, validity
weakness: used his own interpretation, interpretated each participants recall, lack reliablity

Question 4

peterson & peterson (1959)

Answer 4

aim: to test the true duration of STM
procedure: participants were asked to recall 3 digit numbers, then 3 letters, then count backwards on 3/4s
results: longer each student had to count backwards, less likely to accurately recall 3 letters
conclusion: STM fades rapidly. only 10% could be recalled after 18 seconds

Question 5

evaluation of peterson & peterson (1959)

Answer 5

strength: highly controlled, lab experiment of a university, controlled extraneous variables, valid
weakness: only used 24 psychology students, memory of psychology students may be different, may know ways to improve memory, ungeneralisable to others.

Question 6

reductionism v holistic

Answer 6

reductionism: describing something into its basic parts, used in lab experiments to isolate factors and for high control. e.g. MSM of memory
holistic: looking at different variables in relation to something happening e.g. barlett

Question 8

anterograde amnesia

Answer 8

only remember things before brain damage

Question 9

retrograde amnesia

Answer 9

only remember things after the event

Question 10

short term memory

Answer 10

18 seconds without rehearsal, 7+-2 items, acoustic, forgetting: displacement and decay

Question 11

long term memory

Answer 11

a few seconds to a lifetime, semantic coding, forgetting: decay, interference and retrieval failure

Question 12

accommodation

Answer 12

schema changed due to a new experience

Question 13

assimilation

Answer 13

incorporating new ideas into existing schemas

Question 14

adaptation

Answer 14

use of both assimilation and accommodation