Reconstructive model of memory (Bartlett, 1932), (CP)

Question 1

What is reconstructive memory according to Bartlett (1932)?

Answer 1

• Memory is not a perfect recording of events, but a reconstruction influenced by prior knowledge.
• Retrieving a memory often results in a version different from the original experience.
• Memory should be studied as part of the overall cognitive process, not as an isolated function.

Question 2

What is a schema?

Answer 2

an organised package of information that stores out knowledge about the world - made up of all our previous scenarios and expectations about an event

Question 3

Explain how schemas aid recall?

Answer 3

links to past events that have occured in our life to help when understanding and remembering a certain memory

Question 4

What is good about a schema?

Answer 4

• predict things and make shortcuts when encountering a new situation

Question 5

What is bad about a schema?

Answer 5

• could make wrong assumptions
• could increase prejudice due to assumptions

Question 6

What are the three patterns of distortion Bartlett found?

Answer 6

• Confabulation
• Levelling
• Rationalisation

Question 7

What is confabulation?

Answer 7

• Details added or changed so more aligned with someone’s culture and schemas. The story became more consistent with the participants’ own cultural expectations (British norms).
• E.g. objects within the ‘war of the ghosts’ story were made more familiar – ‘canoe’ was changed to ‘boat’, ‘hunting seals’ changed to ‘fishing’.

Question 8

What is levelling?

Answer 8

• Memories are shortened as you omit information you deem unimportant.
• The ‘war of the ghosts’ story also became shorter with each retelling as participants omitted information which was seen as not important. (330 words – 180 words)
• E.g. Names of places like ‘Egulac’ and ‘Kalama’ and many participants did not grasp the role of the ghosts in the story, so simply omitted to mention them.

Question 9

What is rationalisation?

Answer 9

• Parts are changed as they are deemed irrational, could be order of events, reason behind behaviour or character motivations. - Participants also tended to change the order of the story in order to make sense of it using terms more familiar to the culture of the participants.
• E.g. “The youths were at first frightened”

Question 10

Evaluate a strength of reconstructive memory

Answer 10

I - A strength of reconstructive memory is that is has had useful, real-life applications in the legal field.
J - Experimental demonstration that eyewitnesses are unreliable when recalling events, and they may recall what they expect to see rather than what we actually see, which is explained by the role of schemas outline in this theory.
E - Due to this, criminal convictions are no longer solely based on the testimony of eyewitnesses, but requiring further evidence, reducing the inaccurate conviction rates and changing the legal system for the better.

Question 11

Evaluate a weakness of reconstructive memory

Answer 11

I - Further research has showed that Bartlett may be incorrect in suggesting that memory is reconstructed and therefore distorted upon each recall.
J - Wynn and Logie (1998) conducted a replication of Bartlett’s ‘War of the Ghosts’ but used a real-life situation. They asked first year psychology students to recall events from their first week at university and found that there was only a small reduction in the amount of information recalled even after 6 months.
E - Therefore, real-life situations which are more familiar may be less susceptible to the reconstruction Bartlett suggested (e.g. schema influence/confabulation/levelling, etc) and they are in fact more like a tape recorder.