reconstructive memory Flashcards
1
Q
what are schemas?
A
- cognitive plans/scripts that are built up using experiences about everyday life, affects processing of information
2
Q
how do schemas influence memory?
A
- new knowledge that conflicts with existing schema might fail to be encoded
- when you later try and recall the memory, only recall elements that fit with the relevant schema
3
Q
what is assimilation?
A
- making new information fit with your existing understanding of the world
4
Q
what is accommodation?
A
- new information causes you to change your existing schemas
5
Q
what is rationalisation?
A
- reasoning about what happened so it makes sense to you
6
Q
what is confabulation?
A
- unconsciously filling in any gaps in recall with previous experiences
7
Q
what is simplification?
A
- simplifying the story by removing parts that dont fit into schemas
8
Q
what is reconstructive memory?
A
- an active process
- highlights how recall is affected by previous experiences and highlights importance of schemas
9
Q
summarise the procedure of bartletts war of the ghosts study
A
- 20 students shown a native american story with unusual features
- recalled after hours,days,weeks and even years
- serial reproduction design
- compared reproduced versions to the original
10
Q
how did participants in the war of the ghosts study use rationalisation and simplification?
A
- rationalisation = didnt grasp the role of the ghosts so described it as a battle between native american tribes
- simplification = story became shorter each time, after 6 sessions it reduced from 330 to 180
11
Q
what was the opposing study of wynn and logie?
A
- asked uni students to recall their first week several times throughout the year
- accuray of descriptions remained the same each time
- memories for familiar events doesnt change over time
12
Q
what is the opposing study of Yuille and Cutshall?
A
- witnesses of a real life crime who had observed a gun shooting in vancouver
- 13 interviewed after crime and 4 months later
- 2 misleading questions asked
- leading questions had little effect 10/13 accounts didnt change or recall misleading information
13
Q
how can you evaluate bartletts study for task validity?
A
- low
- not usually asked to remember and recall a random story
14
Q
why may other theories such as flashbulb memories be better?
A
- reconstructive memory doesnt tell us how memory is reconstructed
15
Q
what did bartlett do that improves the reliability of his theory?
A
- repeated his study using 8 different stories on different participants
- same overall general shortening, transformation and omission
