Mem: Retrieval Failure AO1 Flashcards
What are the 2 considerations for whether a cue will help recollection, according to Tulving’s Encoding Specificity Principle?
-cues are most effective when it is present at time of encoding + time of retrieval
What is the impact of cues differing at encoding/retrieval?
-if cues at encoding/retrieval differ/are absent at a stage, there will be some forgetting
What is a meaningful cue?
-info encoded at the time of learning + is stored in a meaningful way
-e.g. a mnemonic to remember a large amount of info
What is a non-meaningful cue?
-info available at time of learning, not directly related to encoded material
-e.g. weather
What are the 2 types of forgetting that can result from failure to encode non-meaningful cues?
-context-depending forgetting: recall is influenced by an external cue-
-e.g. weather or a place
-when retrieval failure occurs as external environment cues present at encoding are not present at recall
What is another type of forgetting that can result from a failure to encode non-meaningful cues?
-state-dependent forgetting: recall influenced by an internal cue
-e.g. feeling upset or being drunk
-when retrieval failure happens as the external emotional cues present at encoding are not present at recall.
Describe Godden & Baddeley’s experiment.
-studied deep-sea divers working underwater.
-procedure: divers learned a list of words underwater or on land, then had to recall the words underwater or on land.
-this created four conditions: learn on land- recall on land, learn underwater- recall on land, learn on land- recall underwater, learn underwater- recall underwater.
Which type of forgetting did Godden & Baddeley’s demonstrate?
-in two conditions, the environmental contexts of learning and recall matched, and didn’t in the other two
-accurate recall was 40% lower in non-matching conditions
-the different recall + encoding conditions led to retrieval failure.
Describe Carter & Cassaday’s (1998) experiment
-gave anti-histamine drugs (treat hay fever) to ppts
-the drugs had a mild sedative effect, making the ppts drowsy, creating an internal physiological state different from the ‘normal’ of being awake + alert
-the ppts had to learn lists of words + passages of prose + recall the info
-there were four conditions: learn on drug- recall on it, learn on drug- recall when not on it, learn not on drug- recall on it, learn not on- recall when not on it
Which type of forgetting did Carter & Cassaday’s (1998) demonstrate?
-where there was a mismatch between internal state at learning + recall, performance was worse on memory test
-when cues are absent (e.g. drowsy when recalling info but alert when learning it), there is more forgetting.
Describe Overton’s (1972) findings on state-dependent forgetting
-asked ppts to learn material drunk or sober
-tested them on info when drunk or sober.
-recall was worse if in different internal state and best if internal state- e.g. info was learnt drunk it was recalled best drunk.
-suggests being in the same state for learning and recall aids recall by providing state depending cues
