2.1.2 Schema Theory : Bransford and Johnson (1972)

self schema

Aim

To Investigate effect of context on comprehension and memory of text

Participants

N\=50 male and female

Methodology

Independent Measures - Each group listened to a passage

Independent Variable + Conditions

No context (1): participants only heard the passage.

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No context (2): participants heard the passage twice.

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Context before: prior to hearing the passage, participants were provided with a context picture and given 30s. to study it.

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Context after: after hearing the passage, participants were provided with a context picture.

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Partial context: a context picture was provided before the passage which contained all the objects, but rearranged

Dependent Variable

Ability to recall up to 14 idea units in context of the given passage.

Results

Out of 14 idea units

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No context 1: 3.6. ideas

No context 2: 3.8 ideas

Context before: 8 ideas

Context after: 3.6 ideas

Partial Context: 4 ideas

Conclusions

Prior knowledge helps us relate info - full context creates mental representation which influences the way info is encoded

Strengths

There were several test groups and because of the independent groups design, the learning effect was limited.

Limitations

individual schemas impact individual perception - participant variability.

Ethical Considerations

Being asked to remember details that you were not expected to remember can impact self-esteem and possibly increase stress.

MTS

this study demonstrates the effect of context on memory