explanations for forgetting - retrieval failure

Question 1

what is a reason we forget?

Answer 1

due to insufficient cues.

Question 2

what is a cue?

Answer 2

when we encode a new memory, we also store information that occurred around it, such as how we felt or the place we were in.

Question 3

why are cues important for memory?

Answer 3

if cues are not present when we come to recall something then we find it difficult to retrieve the memory (its still available, just difficult to access)

Question 4

what are the two types of cues?

Answer 4

context cues - the environment we are in.
state cues - the emotional state we are in.

Question 5

what is Tulving’s principle?
Encoding Specificity Principle

Answer 5

‘the greater the similarity between the encoding event and the retrieval event, the greater the likelihood of recalling the original memory’

Question 6

what does Godden and Baddeley study show?

Answer 6

• they tested divers of recall when conditions between learning and recall were different or the same.
• they support Tulving’s principle.

Question 7

what does Goodwin’s ‘drunk man’ study show?

Answer 7

(looked at state dependent forgetting)
- asked male volunteers to remember a list of words when either drunk or sober.
- found that info learned when drunk is more available when in the same state later (or sober at first and recall in the same state, sober)

Question 8

evaluation

Answer 8

has real life applications - e.g when taking exams.
retrieval cues don’t always work - its not very effective and they don’t explain everything about forgetting.
there is lots of research support - e.g lab, field, and natural experiments.