Studies - Paper 1 Flashcards
What was the method of Peterson and Peterson’s (1959) study?
Show people trigrams and then get them to recall the letters following different delays where they count backwards in threes.
What were the results of Peterson and Peterson’s (1959) study?
3 second delay - 80% recalled correctly
9 second delay - 30% recalled correctly
18 second delay - 10% recalled correctly
What was the aim of Peterson and Peterson’s (1959) study?
To investigate how long information stays in STM
What was the aim of Baddeley’s (1966) studies?
To find out whether information in LTM and STM is measured acoustically or semantically.
What was the methodological difference between Baddeley’s 1966a and b study?
1966b had a 20 minute delay after hearing the word list, in this time they did a different task.
1966a recalled the lists immediate after hearing them.
What 4 types of lists were used in Baddeley’s (1966) studies?
- Acoustically similar
- Acoustically dissimilar
- Semantically similar
- Semantically dissimilar
What were the results of Baddeley’s (1966a) study?
People recalled more words that sounded acoustically dissimilar than similar.
There was little difference between semantically similar and dissimilar words and their effect on accuracy of immediate recall.
What were the results of Baddeley’s (1966b) study?
More people recalled semantically dissimilar words correctly than semantically similar words.
There was no difference in accuracy of recall for acoustically similar and dissimilar words.
What was the first conditions in Baddeley et al (1975) study?
Task 1: tracking a moving spot of light with a pointer
Task 2: imagining a capital letter and going to each corner of the room and staring if the corner is at the top or bottom of the letter or not.
What was condition B in Baddeley et al’s (1975) study?
Task 1: tracking a moving spot of light with a pointer
Task 2: a verbal task
What were the results of Baddeley et al’s (1975) study?
Participants performed better in condition B.
What contradictory evidence does Baddeley et al’s (1975) study provide in reference to the working memory model?
That the Visuo-spatial sketchpad should be split into two separate stores.
What was the aim of Baddeley et al (1975) study on the phonological loop.
To investigate whether short term verbal memory uses an articulatory system based on rehearsing words.
What was the method used for Baddeley et al’s (1975) study on the phonological loop?
Participants were given lists of 5 short words and 5 long words. Their memory was tested immediate
What were the results of Baddeley et al’s (1975) study on the phonological loop?
Participants could recall short words more successfully than long words.
What was the conclusion of Baddeley et al’s phonological loop study?
Word length effect is seen when trying to remember words by rehearsing them using our inner voice. The long is takes to say the word, the faster it will begin to decay.
What was the aim of Loftus’s (1979) study?
To investigate whether anxiety in EWT affected later information.
What was the first condition of Loftus’s (1979) study?
Participants overhear a discussion in a lab about equipment failure. A person emerges holding a pen in grease covered hands.
What was the second condition of Loftus’s (1979) study?
Participants overhear a heated and hostile debate between people in the lab. After the sound of breaking glass and crashing chairs, a person emerges holding a paper knife covered in blood
How did Loftus test her participants recollection of the confederate in her 1979 study?
Participants were asked to distinguish the person from 50 photos.
What were the results of Loftus’s (1979) study?
Condition 1 - 49% recalled the confederate correctly
Condition 2 - 33% recalled the confederate correctly
What was the conclusion of Loftus’s (1979) study?
Demonstrated weapon focus, which reduced the participants accuracy.
What was a strength of Loftus’s (1979) study?
Lab study - extraneous variables were controlled and it’s reproducible.
Participants were safe from harm.
What are the weaknesses of Loftus’s (1979) study?
Demand characteristics
Investigator effects
Students used so low population validity and poor generalisability.
What was the method use by Christianson and Hubinette in their 1993 study?
They questioned witnesses from 22 bank robberies and compared the recall of those directly threatened (high anxiety) with bystanders (low anxiety).
What were the results of Christianson and Hubinette’s (1993) study?
1) Those directly threaten had more accurate recall of robbers clothing, behaviour and weapon that bystanders.
2) This recall remained superior 15 months later.
What are the conclusions drawn from Christianson and Hubinette’s (1993) study?
Recall may be very good in real life, highly stressful situations.
What’s a strength of Christianson and Hubinette’s (1993) study?
Natural study
- high ecological validity
- no demand characteristics
- Opportunity sampling - real life situation
What’s a weakness of Christianson and Hubinette’s (1993) study?
- Situation variables
- Participant variables
- Based on memory
What was the aim of Loftus and Palmer’s (1974) study?
To investigate the impact of leading questions.
What was the method of Loftus and Palmer’s (1974) study?
After watching a video of two cars colliding, participants were asked to estimate the speed at which the cars were travelling, however different present-tense verbs were used in place of “collided”.
Participants were also re-interviewed a week later and asked if they say any broken glass.
What verbs replaced “collided” in Loftus and Palmer’s (1974) study?
Hit
Smashed
What were the results of Loftus and Palmer’s (1974) study?
Participants gave faster estimations of speed if they heard the word “smashed” than words like “hit”.
Those who heard “smashed” also claimed they had seen broken glass.
What’s the aim of Paulesu et al’s (1993) study?
To investigate whether the articulatory control processes and the acoustic store are located in different areas of the brain.
What was the method for Paulesu et al’s (1993) study?
Participants’ brains were scanned whilst they:
- stored a series of letters (uses both components)
- judged whether two letters rhymed (uses articulatory control processes)
Why might the Czech twins have recovered so easily from privation and severe abuse?
1) they were able to form attachments with each other
2) they were discovered earlier than genie
Summarise the Czech twins case study.
Twins boys neglected from 18 months by stepmother, kept in a cupboard, discovered at 7, unable, to talk, walk.
Gained average intelligence and generally development after rehabilitation. Progress still made at 31.
What was the aim of Genie’s case study?
Discover the negative effects of her severe social isolation and whether they were reversible.
What was the method used for Genie’s case study?
Researchers gather data using observations, testing and interviews with genie and her carers, gathered over several years.
What results were gained from Genie’s case study?
When cared for by a researcher, genie made good progress and was able to develop relationships with others, poor language skills. This stopped when her mother gained care of her, meaning her progress stopped.
Evaluate Genie’s study.
Insight into impact of sever isolation if multiple areas of human development.
Could support idea that attachment are essential for healthy adult development and that negative effects are irreversible.
Genie may have suffered brain damage from abuse causing her lack of development.
Her privacy was invade and little concern was given about her welfare.
What was the aim of Melzoff and Moore’s (1977, 1983) study?
Find out if babies and adults show interactional synchrony.
What was the method of Melzoff and Moore’s (1977, 1983) study?
Adult models displayed one of three facial expression to the baby in a lab. Baby was recorded and their facial expressions were coded by an independent observer who was unaware which expression they’d seen.
In Melzoff and Moore’s study, what expressions were shown to the baby?
Tongue protrusion
Mouth opening
Lip protrusion
What was the aim of Murray and Trevarthen’s (1985) study?
When babies show IS are they copying patterns or trying to communicate?
What was the method of Murray and Trevarthen’s study?
2 month old babies interacted with their mother via video, the mother either responded as normal, or a video of her was shown where she didn’t respond.
The babies responses were recorded ( should get upset if communicating).
What were the results of p Meltzoff and Moore’s study?
Infants as young as 3 days old show mimicry.
What was the conclusion of Meltzoff and Moore’s study?
IS may strengthen bonds between baby and carer, for survival.
What were the results of Murray and Trevarthen’s study?
Babies showed distress when their mother did not show IS.
What conclusions were made about Murray and Trevarthen’s study?
Supports the idea babies are trying to communicate, but also parents who are poor at IS can upset the baby.
What was the aim of Schaffer and Emerson’s (1964) study?
To see how attachment changes with age.
What was the method of Schaffer and Emerson’s study?
Longitudinal over 2 years with 60 babies. Each child was observed every 4 weeks until they were 1 and then once again at 18 months. They assessed if the child was attached to an adult and how many. Babies were observed in natural surroundings by direct observations and records kept by mothers.
What were the results of Schaffer and Emerson’s study?
No. of babies with attachment increased with age.
87% were attached to more than one person at 18 months.
65% first formed main attachment with their mothers.
What evidence from Schaffer and Emerson’s study contradicts the learning theory of attachment?
39% of babies weren’t primarily attached to whomever fed them.
What’s a weakness of Schaffer and Emerson’s study?
Low temporal validity
What evidence did Schaffer and Emerson’s study find of the role of fathers in attachment?
75% of babies showed attachment to their father by 18 months.