EFF: Retrieval Failure due to absence of cues (+Ev) Flashcards
(19 cards)
What is retrieval failure due to absence of cues?
Retrieval failure occurs when information is stored in LTM but cannot be accessed because appropriate cues are not present at the time of recall.
Define cue-dependent forgetting.
Context-dependent cues are aspects of our external environment (such as sights, sounds, and smells) that serve as cues to aid memory recall.
How does a change in environment affect context-dependent memory recall?
Being in a different environment (place) restrains memory recall because environmental cues present during encoding are missing.
What are state-dependent cues?
State-dependent cues are aspects of our internal environment (such as emotions, drugs, or state of arousal) that serve as cues to memory recall.
How does a change in emotional or physical state affect state-dependent memory recall?
Being in a different emotional or physical state restrains memory recall because state-dependent cues present during encoding are absent.
What are organisational-dependent cues?
Organisational-dependent cues involve providing cues related to the organisation of memories, which aids recall.
What makes organisational cues most effective?
The most effective organisational cues have fewer things associated with them, making them more distinct and easier to use for recall.
What happens when there is a lack of organisational cues?
A lack of organisational cues restrains memory, making recall more difficult.
Give an example of a context-dependent cue.
The smell of a particular perfume reminding you of a specific event or person.
Give an example of a state-dependent cue.
Remembering information learned while happy only when you are happy again.
Give an example of an organisational-dependent cue.
Using headings or categories to organise revision notes, which then act as cues during recall.
Why do cues aid memory recall?
Cues act as triggers that help access information stored in LTM by recreating the conditions present during encoding.
What is meant by encoding specificity principle?
The idea that memory is most effective when information available at encoding is also present at retrieval.
What is a strength of retrieval failure as an explanation for forgetting?
Evaluation…
Evidence from lab studies consistently demonstrates support for retrieval failure as an explanation for forgetting.
What study provides evidence for context-dependent forgetting?
Godden and Baddeley found that accurate recall was 40% lower in non-matching context conditions, showing that external cues available at learning were different from those at recall, leading to retrieval failure.
How does the Godden and Baddeley study support retrieval failure?
The study supports the validity of the retrieval failure explanation, suggesting it occurs in both real-life situations and highly controlled lab studies.
What is a weakness of context-dependent forgetting as an explanation?
Context effects are not very strong in real life; different contexts have to be very different before an effect is seen.
Why might context-dependent forgetting not explain much forgetting in everyday life?
Learning something in one room and recalling it in another is unlikely to result in much forgetting because the environments are generally not different enough.
What does the weakness of context-dependent forgetting suggest about retrieval failure?
Retrieval failure due to the absence of contextual cues may not really explain much forgetting in everyday life.
