Cognitive Study - Grant

Question 1

What is the background of the study?

Answer 1

Goddon and Baddly (195) tested context dependent memory on deep sea divers - the divers had to learn a list of words either on land or underwater and recall the words either on land or underwater. Results showed recall was better when divers studied and tested in the same place

Question 2

What is context dependent memory?

Answer 2

Memory is improved if the environment that the learning takes place in its the same as the environment where memory is recalled

Question 3

What is recall memory?

Answer 3

When you have to remember information with no prompts to remind you

Question 4

What is recognition memory?

Answer 4

When you have to remember things and then recognise them in a list

Question 5

What is outshining hypothesis?

Answer 5

Context dependent memory will not benefit recognition tasks

Question 6

What was the aim?

Answer 6

To investigate context dependent memory effects of both recall and recognition for meaningful information (as opposed to just list of words)

Question 7

What was the research method?

Answer 7

Lab experiment

Question 8

What was the IV?

Answer 8

Sound for learning and testing

Question 9

What was the DV?

Answer 9

Memory - recognition and recall

Question 10

What was the experimental design?

Answer 10

Independent measures

Question 11

How was the sample obtained?

Answer 11

8 psychology students from Iowa State Uni acted as experiments in the study. They each recruited 5 acquaintance as participants in the study

Question 12

What were the characteristics of the sample?

Answer 12

39 participants (1participant’s results were not included) who ranged in age from 17 to 56 (mean age 23.4), 17 females and 23 males

Question 13

What were the four conditions?

Answer 13

Silent study + silent test, noisy study + noisy test, Silent study + noisy test, noisy study + silent test,

Question 14

How was recall measured?

Answer 14

10 short answer (recall tasks requiring one word or short phrase answers)

Question 15

How was recognition measured?

Answer 15

16 multiple choice (recognition task of 4 answers)

Question 16

What was the procedure?

Answer 16

Participants were asked to read once through a two-page academic article on the subject of psychoimmunology while wearing a pair of headphones. The time taken to read was recorded and then they were given a 2 minute break. - then they completed the questions

Question 17

What was the background noise from?

Answer 17

A cafeteria

Question 18

What were the controls?

Answer 18

The questions, the article, sound, all read at once, 2 minute break, all wore headphones, standardised instruction, recall test done first, noisy condition played at moderately loud level, always tested individually

Question 19

What was the mean reading time in the silent study + silent test, condition?

Answer 19

15.0

Question 20

What was the mean reading time in the silent study + noisy test, condition?

Answer 20

11.8

Question 21

What was the mean reading time in the noisy study + silent test, condition?

Answer 21

13.8

Question 22

What was the mean reading time in the noisy study + noisy test, condition?

Answer 22

14.0

Question 23

What was the mean amount of correct answers out of 10 for the recall task for the silent study + silent test?

Answer 23

6.7

Question 24

What was the mean amount of correct answers out of 10 for the recall task for the noisy study + silent test?

Answer 24

5.4

Question 25

What was the mean amount of correct answers out of 10 for the recall task for the silent study + noisy test?

Answer 25

4.6

Question 26

What was the mean amount of correct answers out of 10 for the recall task for the noisy study + noisy test?

Answer 26

6.2

Question 27

What was the mean amount of correct answers out of 10 for the recognition task for the silent study + silent test?

Answer 27

14.3

Question 28

What was the mean amount of correct answers out of 10 for the recognition task for the noisy study + silent test?

Answer 28

12.7

Question 29

What was the mean amount of correct answers out of 10 for the recognition task for the silent study + noisy test?

Answer 29

12.7

Question 30

What was the mean amount of correct answers out of 10 for the recognition task for the noisy study + noisy test?

Answer 30

14.3

Question 31

What was the type of data which was collected?

Answer 31

Quantitative

Question 32

What were the conclusions?

Answer 32

Context dependent memory aids participants in both recall and recognition tests.
Grant suggests that it is because in this study participants were learning ‘meaningful prose’ like students really do rather than just a list of words

Question 33

What ethical guilelines were upheld?

Answer 33

Consent, withdrawal, debrief, confidentiality

Question 34

What ethical guidelines were broken?

Answer 34

Deception, and protection from harm

Question 35

Point for internal reliability

Answer 35

Lots of controls

Question 36

Point for external reliability

Answer 36

Recognition - suspicious, maybe too consistent, results look eerily patterned

Question 37

Point for internal (construct) validity

Answer 37

only looking at noise (one type of context)

Question 38

Point for external (ecological) validity

Answer 38

Students would have to read article, noise was normal for them, not tested 2 minutes after reading normally

Question 39

Is this study applicable only to the culture in which the research was carried out, or could the findings apply elsewhere?

Answer 39

Based in America, cognition should be the same everywhere.