reconstructive memory & schemas Flashcards
who proposed the theory of reconstructive memory?
bartlett
what is meant by a ‘schema’?
mental units of knowledge which store fragments of events, based off previous experiences, which allow us to make sense of things and fill in gaps in our knowledge
what is meant by ‘input’?
perception of an event
what is meant by ‘processing’?
the interpretation of an event
what is ‘effort after meaning’?
when people try to make sense of a situation in terms of what they already know by using schemas
how does information become distorted?
our schemas reconstruct our memories by filling in gaps when we forget information
what is meant by ‘rationalisation’?
getting rid of something from a memory to help it make sense using our schemas
what is meant by ‘confabulation’?
making something up in a memory to help it make sense using our schemas
what is a strength of reconstructive memory (PEE)?
- war of the ghosts
a strength of reconstructive memory is the supporting evidence from bartletts war of the ghosts study. for example, he tested participants’ recollection of a native american folk tale and found that they altered the story such as people dying at sunset instead of sunrise, or missing out parts such as the ghosts. therefore, this suggests that rationalisation and confabulation are used to make sense of something unfamiliar, using our schemas.
what is a weakness of reconstructive memory (PEE)?
- treyan and brewer 1989
a weakness of reconstructive memory is the opposing evidence from treyan and brewer. participants had to recall items from an office that they were sat in. researchers had added unusal objects and it was found that participants recalled these unusal objects such as a skull. therefore, this contradicts the idea that we use schemas to recall memories.
