Reconstructive memory Flashcards
What is reconstructive memory?
Fragments of stored information are reassembled during recall. The gaps are filled in by our expecations and beliefs so that we can produce a ‘story’ that makes sense
What is a schema?
A mental framework of beliefs and expectations that influence cognitive processing. We are born with some schemas but they develop in complexity with experience of the world
What is transformation?
New information added in to fill in memory, so it makes sense and becomes more consistent with the ppt’s own cultural expectations
What is rationalisation?
Changing the order of the events to make sense of it using terms more familiar to the culture of the person
What is confabulation?
False memories where new info was added in to fill in a memory so it makes sense
What is imaging?
This is when we use effort and meaning we use our own stored images to interpret the memory, we use past knowledge to create meaning to the memory, once it has meaning, it can be easier to store
What is perception?
This is applying labels to objects and events. These labels are based on past experiences and knowledge, which are then used when recalling the memory of that object.
What is simplification?
Condensing the information/event/memory so it can be easily stored
How did Bartlett demonstrate reconstrucitve memory using the War of the Ghosts’ study?
He showed British ppts a native american story. He asked them the reporduce it 15 mins later. He then showed the new version of the story to another ppts and repeated the procedd (serial reproduction).
He found that the story became shorter through omissions and phrases were altered to match the ppt culture (rationalisation) like canoe to boat.
In what 2 ways do schemas influence memory?
- What you encode and what you store
- What you retrieve
