Reconstructive Memory and Schema Theory

Question 1

Who was this theory proposed by and when?

Answer 1

Sir Frederick Bartlett in 1932.

Question 2

Is this theory significant?

Answer 2

Yes as it shows how scientific research proceeds as it was one of the early figures of memory research.

Question 3

Why is this theory not as reliable?

Answer 3

It goes against the typical features of cognitive approach (rejects the idea of memory being like a computer) and is much more creative yet less reliable.

Question 4

What was Bartlett’s central insight?

Answer 4

Memory doesn’t playback our experiences, it changes or reconstructs them imaginatively and therefore contains reconstructive errors.

Question 5

What are schemas?
What do they do?

Answer 5

Stored knowledge and mental representations of the world- memories are grouped into these.
They influence the way we recall information.

Question 6

What are schemas?

Answer 6

Stored knowledge and mental representations of the world- memories are grouped into these.

Question 7

What do schemas do?

Answer 7

They influence the way we recall information.

Question 8

How are memories reconstructed?

Answer 8

Based on the individuals past knowledge, experience and expectations.

Question 9

How do schemas accommodate new information and how often do they change?

Answer 9

Schemas are constantly changing when we encounter new information. We assimilate this information into our schemas and adjust them to accommodate this information.

Question 10

We perceive knowledge based upon prior knowledge, what happens then?

Answer 10

We do this in order to make judgments, and when information is ambiguous- our memory of this information is reliant on interpretation using past knowledge.

Question 11

Give an example of this question…..
We perceive knowledge based upon prior knowledge, what happens then?

Answer 11

When we see an ambiguous ink blot, we use prior knowledge to make sense of the shapes and give the random shape a meaning by likening it to a known object.

Question 12

People use 3 main strategies to help them reconstruct memories… what are they?

Answer 12

Confabulation
Rationalisation
Shortening

Question 13

People ‘fill in the gaps’ in recall with information that is consistent with their schema.
What is the word for this?

Answer 13

Confabulation

Question 14

What is confabulation?

Answer 14

Where people ‘fill in the gaps’ in recall with information that is consistent with their schema.

Question 15

People change details in their recall so that it makes sense to them to fit with their existing schema.
What is the word for this?

Answer 15

Rationalisation

Question 16

What is rationalisation?

Answer 16

When people change details in their recall so that it makes sense to them to fit with their existing schema.

Question 17

People leave out details that don’t make sense with their current schema or to simplify the memory so it’s easier to process (or aren’t as important).
What is the word for this?

Answer 17

Shortening

Question 18

What is shortening?

Answer 18

Where people leave out details that don’t make sense with their current schema or to simplify the memory so it’s easier to process (or aren’t as important).

Question 19

What can work together with shortening in reconstructive memory?

Answer 19

Confabulation, to fill in the gaps created by shortening when recalling the memory.

Question 20

How do eye-witness testimony’s come into schemas? Give detail.

Answer 20

If we witness a crime, we may not have a strong memory trace and our memory brings together lots of different details so that we can reconstruct the memory of what the suspect looks like based on prior knowledge, stereotypes, and expectations of what a criminal looks like. This may be in terms of gender, race, age, clothing and appearance.

Question 21

Why does reconstructive memory and schema theory’s pose an issue for eyewitness testimony?

Answer 21

It’s an issue for its reliability as witnesses memories of crimes may be reconstructed and therefore unreliable as evidence.

Question 22

What is a study you can use to compare Schemas and eyewitness testimony?

Answer 22

Steve Titus’ case as the victim used her schema to recreate her words as a definite reassurance for what her rapist looked like.

Question 23

What was Bartletts reconstructive memory research he conducted in 1932?

Answer 23

*War of the ghosts story.
*He gave British participants a Native American folk tale “The War of the ghosts” which was unfamiliar for the pps.
*They were asked to reproduce the story at various times after first reading it (minutes, says, weeks, months, years).
*Over time recall of the story got shorter and more coherent as parts were omitted.

Question 24

What did Bartlett find from his War of the Ghosts study?

Answer 24

*Unfamiliar concepts were transformed into familiar concepts and more modern language was used.
*EG “seal hunting” changed to fishing and “canoe” changed to boat.
*He concluded that memories are not exact copies of experience but reconstructions with error of distortion and simplification, based on prior knowledge.

Question 25

How is Bartletts “War of the Ghosts” study in 1932 a strength?
And what is it?

Answer 25

-His theory is valid and ethical.
-This study found that participants changed parts of the North American Folk tale to help it make sense.
-When recalling the folk tale days, weeks, months later, pps accounts were simplified and they replaced unfamiliar concepts.
-This demonstrates how memory isn’t an exact replica but instead is replicated based upon the individuals knowledge, experiences and expectations.

Question 26

How is Carmichael et al’s study a strength?
And what is it?

Answer 26

-It is credible.
-Participants were given simple figures and different pps were provided with different words to label the images.
-When replicating the images later, the pps would reconstruct their memory based upon the label given.
-EG reading glasses or a dumbbell.
-This gives credibility to Bartletts theory that schema affect how we reconstruct memories.

Question 27

How is Allport and Postman’s study in 1947 a strength?
And what is it?

Answer 27

-It is credible.
-The study showed participants a drawing of an argument on a subway train.
-They were asked to describe it to another pps through serial reproduction.
-The black character was better dressed and more respectable than the white character but white pps tended to reverse their appearances.
-Some described the black character as holding a knife.
-Racism was common in the US and pps used their schema that said black men were more likely to behave aggressively and criminally, adding credibility to Bartletts theory.

Question 28

How is Loftus and Palmer’s study in 1947 a strength?
And what is it?

Answer 28

-It is reliable, standardised and robust.
-Found that the verb in a critical question about car speed (EG how fast was the car travelling when it smashed the other car) affected the speed they remembered the car travelling at.
-They were more likely to inaccurately remember broken glass at the scene when the verb smashed was used rather than hit.
-These standardised laboratory experiments gave more robust reliable evidence to support Bartlett’s theory.

Question 29

How is the theory’s application a strength?

Answer 29

-It is applicable.
-The theory can explain why eye-witness testimony’s are often unreliable.
-Has been used in the Delvin report which states eye-witness testimony’s cannot be used alone to convict a person in England and Wales.

Question 30

How is the theory being holistic a strength?

Answer 30

-It is reliable.
-The theory considers the role of prior experiences, knowledge and stereotypes, explaining differences in memory recall and why people can have different memories of the same event.

Question 31

How is Bartletts “War of the Ghosts” study and theory in 1932 a weakness?
And why?

Answer 31

-It’s not reliable nor robust.
-Bartlett supported his theory with unreliable evidence from his study.
-His study had few controls in place when the story was read or recalled meaning the data could be flawed.
-Pps were not given standardised instructions and time between recall varied for different participants.

Question 32

How is Bartletts theory reductionist and therefore a weakness?
And why?

Answer 32

-It is not credible.
-It does not account for the different memory stores and transference between short-term and long-term memory so it is not fully credible as it is an incomplete explanation of memory processes.

Question 33

How is Axelrod’s study in 1973 a weakness?
And why?

Answer 33

-Not internally valid.
-Argues that schema theory can only be used to explain changes in individuals and cannot account for how changes to memory occurs in groups.
-He noticed that when groups were asked to recall events, groups often had similar recall- Bartlett’s theory does not account for this so it is incomplete.

Question 34

How is Wynn and Logie’s study in 1998 a weakness?
And why?

Answer 34

-Lacks ecological validity.
-Found that in natural situations memories are not added to over time so rationalisation can only occur in artificial situations.
-Bartlett and Loftus and Palmer’s research is laboratory based and therefore lacks ecological validity.
-In the real world it appears memory may work differently.

Question 35

How is Steyvers and Hemmer’s study in 2012 a weakness?
And why?

Answer 35

-It is not reliable.
-Argues that the experimental conditions of reconstructive memory research deliberately causes errors in recall leading to the view that memory is unreliable.
-Their research demonstrates that in a real context, without manipulated material, schematic recall can be very accurate.
-Therefore, we should be various when assuming EWR lacks reliability.