reconstructive memory

who proposed the idea of reconstructive memory?

Bartlett 1932

what are schemas?

parcels of stored knowledge or mental representations of information about a specific object or event

what is confabulation?

when information is added to fill gaps in knowledge or stories so it makes sense

what did Bartlett believe about memory?

it is not like a tape recorder, and so a memory that is retrieved is unlikely to be exactly the same as the original

what is interpretation?

explaining the meaning of something

what is schemata?

ideas and scripts about the world which provide people with expectations and rules about what to do

what did Bartlett mean by reconstruction is an active process?

we unconsciously fill memory gaps we do not realise are there using stereotypes and expectations from our mental schemas, producing distorted memories we believe are real

what does the memory of an event involve?

information from specific traces encoded at the time of the event, including the ideas the person has from knowledge, expectations and beliefs

what does remembering involve?

retrieving knowledge that has been altered to fit the knowledge the person already has

why did Bartlett move away from using artificial lab experiments?

he thought research into memory should not just capture reactions but human beings

what was the folk tale Bartlett asked participants to read and recall in his most famous study?

the war of the ghosts

why did Bartlett choose the war of the ghosts story?

it was culturally unfamiliar and lacked any rational story order, encouraging visual imaging and ending with a supernatural conclusion

what happened in Bartlett's war of the ghosts experiment?

each participant read the story twice and repeat reproduction was used to test the effect of time lapse on recall

what was Bartlett's war of the ghosts experiment interested in?

the form the reproduced story would take, particularly after repeat reproductions

how many participants would recall the story after minutes, weeks, months and years?

20

what was the longest time lapse of Bartlett's experiment?

6.5 years

what happened to participants recall of the war of the ghosts story overtime?

it was shortened due to omissions, but became more coherent and used phrases reflecting modern concepts

what is meant by omissions?

missing out details

what were the reported transformations participants had made to the story?

objects were made more familiar, such as canoe being changed to boat, and many participants omitted to mentioning the ghosts or rationalised their presence

what was concluded by Bartlett's experiment?

memory is reconstructive and rarely accurate as it is prone to rationalisation and confabulation, with initial errors tending to be repeated

what is rationalisation?

shortening a story so it makes sense

what concept did Bartlett draw on to explain his view of memory?

schema theory

what did Bartlett argue about schema theory?

we draw on our existing schema when recalling an event to fill the gaps, making recall an active reconstruction influenced by previous knowledge and experiences

how is the way we perceive an object or event based on individual differences?

perception is an individual characteristic unique to everyone, with interpretation influenced by past experiences, knowledge and beliefs

how is the nature nurture debate shown in the schema theory?

nurture is central to understanding how memory works through the role of experiences in forming schemas, with theories of brain functioning providing a balance for nature-linked theories

how did Loftus and Palmer 1975 provide supporting evidence for reconstructive memory?

they found that by changing verbs it can manipulate memories of the same event, by reconstructing it in the light of the verbs used

how did Loftus and Palmer 1975 gather their supporting evidence for reconstructive memory?

participants were shown a video and asked about two cars smashing into each other (41mph), meaning they remember the cars going at a faster speed than if asked about two cars hitting each other (34mph)

how did Allport and Postman 1947 provide supporting evidence for reconstructive memory?

by showing the effect of schemas distorting memory, especially prejudices as we remember things the way we think they should be

how did Allport and Postman 1947 gather their supporting evidence for reconstructive memory?

participants were asked to describe a drawing of an argument on a subway train, with the black character better dressed than the white character, though through reproductions participants reversed the appearances and some described the black character as holding a knife