memory: explanations for forgetting

Question 1

interference: Describe what is meant by Retroactive and Proactive Interference A01

Answer 1

retroactive = new learning interferes with the recall of old memories

proactive= old memories interfering with the recall of new memories

Question 2

interference: Give 2 factors that increase the likelihood of interference A01

Answer 2

time between leaning

effect of cues

Question 3

interference: Describe the Procedure and Findings of McGeoch and MacDonald’s study A01

Answer 3

procedure: pps learned lists of words and were given another list of words or numbers afterwards

findings: the more similar the second list was to the first, the worse the recall of the first list

Question 4

interference: How does the findings of McGeoch and MacDonald’s study supports the effects of interference on memory? A03

Answer 4

shows that similarity increases the effects of retroactive interference

Question 5

interference: Describe the Procedure and Findings of Baddeley and Hitch’s study A01

Answer 5

procedure: asked rugby players to remember names of teams they had played so far in season

findings: players had better memory of the teams if they had played less games, how long ago matches was was less important

Question 6

interference: How do the findings of Baddeley and Hitch’s study support the effects of interference on memory? A03

Answer 6

shows that interference rather than time had an impact on forgetting

Question 7

interference: Describe the Procedure and Findings of Burke and Skull’s study A01

Answer 7

procedure: participants were shown a video of a crime and asked to recall details about it. Some participants were asked leading questions implying the perpetrator’s guilt, while others were asked neutral questions.

findings: participants who were asked leading questions were more likely to falsely remember details that weren’t in the video, compared to those asked neutral questions. This suggests that leading questions can influence eyewitness memory and lead to inaccuracies in recall.

Question 8

interference: How do the findings of Burke and Skull’s study support the effects of interference on memory? A03

Answer 8

showing that leading questions can influence memory recall. When participants were asked leading questions implying the perpetrator’s guilt, they were more likely to falsely remember details not in the video. This interference from the leading questions affected their ability to recall accurately, demonstrating how external information can interfere with memory retrieval.

Question 9

interference: How does research into the effects of interference and have useful real life applications? A03

Answer 9

Legal system: It helps in questioning witnesses more effectively to get accurate information.

Education: Teachers can use it to help students learn better by reducing distractions.

Rehabilitation: In therapy, it guides interventions to improve memory after injury or illness.

Memory tricks: Individuals can use it to remember things better in daily life, like spacing out study sessions.

Question 10

interference: Why might some research into forgetting have limited application to real life? A03

Answer 10

all studies into forgetting often use controlled laboratory settings and artificial tasks that don’t fully reflect the complexities of everyday memory processes.

Question 11

interference: How does time between learning the 2 sets of material effect levels of interference? A03

Answer 11

the longer the time between learning, the worse the recall

the shorter the time between learning, the better the recall

Question 12

interference: How does using cues effect levels of interference? A03

Answer 12

interference is reduces if cues are used to aid memory as similarities effect interference

Question 13

retrieval failure: Explain what is meant by Retrieval Failure (due to absence of cues) A01

Answer 13

you can’t remember something because the right cues or hints to help you recall it aren’t available

Question 14

retrieval failure: What is meant by ‘context dependent forgetting’? A01

Answer 14

your ability to remember something is influenced by the environment or context in which you learned or experienced it.

Question 15

retrieval failure: What is meant by ‘State dependent forgetting’? A01

Answer 15

your ability to remember something is influenced by your internal state or condition at the time of learning and at the time of recall.

Question 16

retrieval failure: What is meant by the Encoding Specificity Principle? A01

Answer 16

identified by Tulving when studying retrieval failure, he stated that a cue helps us recall has to be present at encoding and retrieval and if not, forgetting occurs

Question 17

retrieval failure: Describe the Procedure and Findings of Godden and Baddeley’s study A01

Answer 17

procedure: studies recall in divers where they learned and recalled lists of words in 4 conditions
1. land-water
2. land-land
3. water-land
4. water-water

findings: recall is best when learning + recall were in the same place

Question 18

retrieval failure: How do the findings of Godden and Baddeley’s study support the effects of Retrieval failure on memory? A03

Answer 18

By showing context-dependent forgetting. They found that when scuba divers learned and recalled words underwater, their recall was better when they learned and recalled in the same environment. This suggests that the absence of cues from the learning context (being underwater) during recall (being on land) led to poorer memory retrieval.

Question 19

retrieval failure: Why might the effects of retrieval failure be exaggerated in Godden and Baddeley’s study? A03

Answer 19

because it was in a unusual, extreme context which would not be the usual day-to-day experience with retrieval failure

Question 20

retrieval failure: Describe the Procedure and Findings of Goodwin et al A01

Answer 20

procedure: 4 groups were tested on a variety of tasks
group 1- sober learnt, sober recall
group 2- sober learnt, drunk recall
group 3- drunk learnt, sober recall
group 4- drunk learnt, drunk recall

findings: recall best when in same state they were in when learning the task

Question 21

retrieval failure: How do the findings of Goodwin et al support the effects of state dependent forgetting on memory? A03

Answer 21

Goodwin et al.’s study found that recalling information while intoxicated led to poorer memory compared to recalling it while sober. This supports the idea that memory is influenced by the individual’s state at the time of learning and recall.

Question 22

retrieval failure: How does research into the effects of retrieval failure have useful real life applications? A03 (see Abernathy or Smith’s findings)

Answer 22

Education: Teachers can use it to improve teaching methods.

Memory: People can use it to remember things better in daily life.

Therapy: It guides therapy to help improve memory in patients with memory problems.

Question 23

retrieval failure: Why might research into factors affecting EWT have limited application to real life? E.g. why don’t retrieval cues always work in real life? prove a counter A03

Answer 23

Research on eyewitness testimony might not always apply well to real life because it often uses simple tasks and controlled settings. Also, retrieval cues, while helpful, don’t always work in real-life situations due to stress, distractions, or time passing.

counter: research has found that exam performance was much better when taken in the same place / room students learnt in

Question 24

retrieval failure: Why is the ‘Encoding specificity principle’ difficult to test? A03

Answer 24

it’s hard to create experiments that perfectly mimic real-life situations. Researchers struggle to replicate all the factors that influence memory, like emotions, context, and personal experiences, in controlled laboratory settings. Additionally, measuring how well memory cues match the original encoding context can be tricky, making it difficult to fully test the principle’s predictions.