Memory research

Much of the traditional laboratory research on memory conducted in the past century has followed Ebbinghaus (1895) in using tightly controlled experiments that facilitate the quantification of memory (see Baddeley, 1990; Schacter, 1989). This tradition has been strongly criticized in the past two decades, however, most notably by Neisser (1978), who provocatively dismissed the laboratory research of the past 100 years as largely worthless for answering "the important questions about memory," and called for a shift to the "realistic" study of memory. Since Neisser's call, there has been a growing number of studies on such varied topics as autobiographical memory, eyewitness testimony, prospective memory, "flashbulb" memory, memory for action, memory for faces, memory for places, etc. (see, e.g., Cohen, 1989; This new wave of everyday memory research has resulted in a proliferation of research methods that are quite removed from those traditionally employed in the laboratory. The rift between proponents of naturalistic and laboratory memory research, as well as efforts at reconciliation, may be seen in the lively debate) sparked by Banaji and Crowder's (1989) paper. It is apparent from the commentaries that "everyday memory" is an ill-defined category (Klatzky, 1991), and that the dimensions of the controversy are not simple to specify. In general, the battles appear to be

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  • Subject: Psychology
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Research Into Flashbulb Memory.

Research Into Flashbulb Memory Contents Page 5. Abstract 6. Introduction 8. Method 0. Results 2. Statistical Treatment of Results 3. Discussion 5. References 6. Appendices - 17-18 Pilot Study 19 Sample questionnaire, with standardised instructions 20-21 Analysis and Raw data with calculations The Abstract Previous research has shown the existence of flashbulb memory. Brown and Kulik established six categories that contribute to a flashbulb memory. These were where they were, what they were doing, the person that gave them the news, what they felt about it, what others felt about it and what happened in the immediate aftermath. The present study aimed to compare the deaths of Princess Diana and the Queen Mother, to find evidence of flashbulb memory by using these 6 questions and also a scale to measure emotions felt over each death. A field experiment using a repeated measures design was used, with 20 participants chosen by opportunity sampling. There were two conditions; one being the questions surrounding the death of Princess Diana and the second being the questions surrounding the death of the Queen Mother. Participants were asked to complete the questionnaires as truthfully as possible on personal questions which were; where they were, who they were with, how they found out, what their first thoughts were and what they were doing, using the

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Biological Sciences
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Psychology research into memory

Memory is involved in all aspects of our lives and can be thought of as, retain information. We have vast amounts of knowledge stored in our memory system, which we are able to access quickly and effortlessly, thus implying that stored knowledge must be highly organised to allow us to retrieve the appropriate information for a given situation. This organisation will be determined by the way that information is encoded into memory, and the way knowledge is organised will determine the type of process required to access that information on a future occasion. Loftus and palmer research into memory has extensively helped out understanding of eyewitness testimony. Loftus and Palmer investigated the accuracy of speed estimates and the perceived consequences of a car crash after subjects had been asked leading questions. They found that when the verb 'smashed' was used to describe the accident mean estimated speed was 40.8 miles per hour. When the word 'contacted' was used in the question the speed estimates were only 31.8 mph. This clearly showed that our memory of an event could be changed by the context that it is recalled in. This suggests that memories are not fixed but are or can be changed by external influences (such as questions). Loftus and palmer also found that by using the verb 'smashed' subjects were also more likely to recall seeing broken glass at the scene of an

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  • Subject: Psychology
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Tsunamis - research essays.

Tsunamis are large water waves, typically generated by seismic activity, that have historically caused significant damage to coastal communities throughout the world. A tsunami is a wave train, or series of waves, generated in a body of water by a spontaneous disturbance that vertically displaces the water column. Earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, explosions, and even the impact of cosmic bodies, such as meteorites, can generate tsunamis. Tsunamis can savagely attack coastlines, causing destructive property damage and loss of life. Tsunamis are unlike wind-generated waves. Tsunamis behave as shallow-water waves. A wave becomes a shallow-water wave when the ratio between the water depth and its wavelength gets very small. Tsunamis can be generated when the sea floor abruptly deforms and vertically displaces the overlying water. Tectonic earthquakes are a particular kind of earthquake that are connected with the earth's crustal deformation; when these earthquakes occur beneath the sea, the water above the deformed area is displaced from its stability position. Waves are formed as the displaced water mass, which acts under the pressure of gravity, attempts to regain its balance. When large areas of the sea floor elevate or collapse, a tsunami can be created. A tsunami can be generated by any disturbance that displaces a large water mass from its balanced position.

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Geography
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Controlled Laboratory studies are widely used in memory research. Evaluate the contribution made by two other approaches to memory research.

Controlled Laboratory studies are widely used in memory research. Evaluate the contribution made by two other approaches to memory research. Psychologists have conceptualized the memory as having three key component processes; encoding, storage and retrieval. Controlled laboratory studies are widely used to contribute to our understanding of these memory processes and to test the theories surrounding them. However, contributions from controlled laboratory experiments can be limited due to low ecological validity and its reliance upon the outsiders viewpoint. This paper aims to evaluate contributions to memory research made by two other approaches. The methods chosen for evaluation are Diary Studies and Neuropsychological case studies. These methods are chosen due to the different levels of ecological validity and their ability to use an insiders viewpoint. A brief description of each method will be provided using findings from illustrative examples in order to identify and evaluate the contribution made to our understanding of the memory processes. In memory research, the information processing approach identifies memory as information passing through sub-systems. The sub-systems have limited capacity, and occur in a fixed sequence from sensory to short-term to long-term memory (Brace and Roth, 2007, p115). However, controlled laboratory studies used by psychologists

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Biological Sciences
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Memory - Outline findings and/or conclusions of research into the duration for short term memory

PSYCHOLOGY ASSIGNMENT MEMORY . Outline findings and/or conclusions of research into the duration for short term memory. This experiment was demonstrated by Peterson and Peterson (1959). Participants of the experiment were shown a trigram (BGM or VRW). Then the participants were asked toto count backwards in threes to stop them thinking about the letters. After intervals of 3, 6, 9, 12 and 18 seconds, participants were asked to recall the trigram. They found that participants were able to recall 80 per cent of the trigrams after 3 second intervals. Further on, fewer trigrams were recalled as the time interval lengthened. After 18 seconds, fewer than 10 per cent of the trigrams were recalled correctly. Peterson and Peterson concluded that items disappear from Short term memory (STM) only when rehearsal is prevented. Therefore Decay is the mechanism for forgetting in Short Term Memory. 2. Outline one explanation of Forgetting In LTM and give one criticism of this explanation. Forgetting might be caused by the Interference Theory. It was assumed that one set of learning interferes with another and wipes out the memory. Interference Theory has been tested by means of Paired-associate learning. The participants are initially presented with several pairs of words (e.g. cat-tree). The first word in each pair (cat) is known as the stimulus term, and the second word is known as

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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Unit 1 psychology revsion notes (memory, attachment, research methods)

Transfer-Encoding: chunked Memory Multi-store model Atkinson and Shiffrin * 3 separate unitary stores * Information processing system * Sensory, short-term, long-term * Sensory - Decays rapidly unless paid attention – STM – linear way * capacity of STM is just 7 +/- 2 - Information at this stage is typically encoded acoustically * rehearsal within STM – passed to LTM – unlimited capacity * Support from neurophysiological case studies –Clive Wearing – STM can function normally while transfer to and retrieval of LTM is impossible – KF had normal LTM but impaired STM * Laboratory experiments have provided support for the existence of two separate stores, STM and LTM – Glanzer and Cuntiz * Overemphasises the role of rehearsal in forming LTM – not the only way – craik and lockhart Sperling – Capacity * Chart, P’s asked to recall letters * P’S recall single rows when tones where heard * P’s could recall 4/5 in first stage * P’s could recall 3 in second stage * Image of each item fades during the time it takes to recall back * High levels of control – lab experiment * Lack of ecological validity, external validity Peterson and Peterson – Duration * Showed consonant trigram * Count backwards – prevents rehearsal * Recall 80% with 3 second intervals * Got worse as intervals lengthened * Information decays

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Critically review the research and theories in one area of everyday memory

Critically review the research and theories in one area of everyday memory The study of flashbulb memories is a prime example of the problems faced in everyday memory investigations. These memories are not experienced everyday of our lives, but are without doubt a phenomenon that each of has experienced in our lifetime. As shall be discussed later, problems arise due to the fact that flashbulb memories are characterised by extreme emotional, personal and surprise situations (Brown & Kulik,1977). By their nature these memories refer to specific contextual conditions that would be hard to replicate in a laboratory. Therefore flashbulb memory researchers have had to find techniques beyond the laboratory, due to the desire not to sacrifice essential "ecological validity" (Neisser, 1978) to gain more empirical control. One of the main questions concerning flashbulb memories is their relationship to other types of memory. There are many proposed divisions and sub-divisions of human memory, such as working memory, procedural memory, semantic memory or episodic memory. Each of these systems are functionally related to the maintenance of what is essentially human life. One of the many functions is what Tulving (1983) called "Mental time travel", the ability to experience past events. Such autobiographical memories are thought to be structured at different levels of temporal and

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Biological Sciences
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Compare and contrast the methods used for research in Memory and Language Processes

Compare and contrast the methods used for research in Memory and Language Processes Cognitive psychologists support the idea that behaviour cannot be understood until the discovery and comprehension of the basic mental processes that underlie it (Bernstein et al. 1988). To find out and understand how cognitive areas work, such as attention, language, learning, memory, problem solving and so on, psychologists conduct scientific research using many kinds of method. Cognitive psychologists established their subject specific methodology wherein they adopt methods of investigations which are used by more traditional sciences, such as physics laboratories or experiments conducted in biology or chemistry. Researchers choose research methods in order to investigate their hypotheses and to deepen and broaden their understanding of their chosen topics. Whichever method is used, must be efficient enough to produce appropriate data, from which the cognitive psychologists are able to make a statement on the research hypotheses and to draw their conclusions. It can be seen that the key aspect in opting for a type of method for an investigation is its ability to serve the goal of the research efficiently. This essay is an attempt to compare and distinguish between the two applied research methods used in language and memory; one of them is a naturalistic observation study on the vervet

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Biological Sciences
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Consider psychological research into explanations of forgetting in Short-term memory

Consider psychological research into explanations of forgetting in Short-term memory The term forgetting is used when learnt information can't be retrieved from both the short term memory and the long term memory. There have been many suggestions made to explain the reason that we forget information. The most common explanation came from Freud who devised the theory of repression. In his theory he believed that forgetting occurs because memories can be emotionally painful, mainly as they are the remnants of a trauma or an unpleasant event. Repression occurs when the mind represses these memories. Although this is a valid explanation for the forgetting of tragic memories it fails to explain the vast amount of forgetting of more daily occurring mundane events. To justify forgetting within STM psychologists suggests that information stored in the STM simply disappears with time, or it is pushed out by new information. Considering that the STM only has memory duration of 18-30 seconds it is understandable that we forget information. This school of thought was studied by Peterson and Peterson (1959) who investigated the duration of the STM using the Brown-Peterson technique from which they found that memories have a physical basis or trace. These traces decay over time unless the information is passed to LTM through rehearsal. In their experiment participants were shown

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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