Memory - Mock Flashcards
Strength of MSM - Research Support
One strength is that there is support for the existence of different memory stores
Baddeley’s study of encoding shows that STM and LTM encode information differently
This shows the two types of memory have qualitative differences
Weakness of MSM - Simple Model
One weakness is the model is too simple suggesting we have one STM and one LTM
Resear h shows STM is divided into visual and acoustic stores, and LTM into episodic, semantic,, and procedural memory
So, memory is more complex than the model proposes
Weakness of MSM - Artificial Materials
Another weakness is that Research that supports the model used artifical materials.
For example, using word lists or consonant syllables.
This means that the results would not illustrate all the different ways we use memory.
Aim of bartletts study
Bartletts investigated how memory is reconstructed when people are asked to recall an unfamiliar story - in particular a story from a different culture
Method of bartletts study
Participants were shown the war of the ghosts story. They recalled it after 15 minutes, then after weeks, months, and years. Bartletts recorded the recall
Results of bartletts study
Participants changed the story. They left out information that they were less familiar with. The story was shiortened., and phrases were changed to those used in the participants own culture.
Conclusion of bartletts study
The study shows that we use iut knowledge of social situations to reconstruct memory, as details of the story were invented to improve meaning.
Weakness of bartletts study - lacks control
One weakness relates to a lack of control.
For example, participants were not told thag accurate recall was important.
Other studies found recall was better when participants were told this
Weakness of bartletts study - results were biased
Another weakness is that bartletts own beliefs may have affected the results.
He analysed the recollections himself. His belief that recall would be affected by cultural expectations may have biased the interpretation of the results.
Therefore, we cannot fully trust the conclusion.
Weakness of bartletts study - the story was unusual
A further weakness is that the story was unusual.
Recall of the story may not reflect everyday memory processes as these would be less affected by cultural expectations.
Therefore, this study tells us little about everyday memory.
Design an experiment - context
To see if context improves recall.
Divers listen to and recall words in the same or different settings
Same context dry/dry, wet/wet
Different context wet/dry, dry/wet
Recall is highest in the two matching conditions. When a person was in the same environment for learning and recall, their memories were more accurate.
Context of learning acts as a trigger or cue when trying to remember information.
Bartletts theory - first paragraph
Bartletts theory of reconstructive memory states that memory is an active process. Bartlett’s war of the ghosts study showed that people remember the meaning of events and then when retrieving information, they rebuild the memory like effort after meaning, which is when we focus on the meaning of events and make an effort to understand it to make sense of something unfamiliar. The study also shows that memory is inaccurate. We do not have exact recall, some elements are missing and memories are not an accurate representation of what happened.
Bartlett’s theory - second paragraph
Memory is reconstructed when we record small pieces of information in the long time memory and recombine to tell the whole story during recall. Bartlett also says that the way information is stored and recalled is affected by social and cultural expectations, like when participants of the war of the ghosts study used the phrase ‘going fishing’ instead of ‘Hunting seals’.
Bartlett’s theory - realistic research
One strength of the research is that it reflects how we use memory in our everyday lives. This is because the research doesn’t use any artificial word lists but it uses a story. This makes the findings more relevant because it links to a real life memory process
Bartlett theory - memories are accurate
One weakness is that it not all memories are reconstructed. For example, in the study participants often recalled that ‘something black came out of his mouth’ because the phrase is distinctive. This shows that some memories can be accurate.
