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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
Year 9 Psychology
Memory
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Teacher
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
Memory falls within the cognitive area of psychology, because it looks at
mental processes and the way in which information is processed within our
brain.
Memory consists of three key stages: encoding, storage and retrieval.
Input and
Encoding
Retrieval and
Output
Storage
Activity: Match up the definition to the process.
1. Encoding
The ability to hold memories in
the mind
The process of changing a
sensory experience into a code
that the brain can understand
2. Storage
The ability to access memories
from storage
3. Retrieval
You need to know two core theories that are used to explain memory: MultiStore Model and Reconstructive Memory
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
1. Multi-Store Model of memory (Atkinson & Shiffrin)
The multi-store model of memory was developed by two cognitive
psychologists who suggested that there are three main parts of memory.
Sensory Store
Information from our senses enters our brain and
is held in the sensory store ready for processing
Attention
Short-Term Memory
Information from our sensory store is
transferred to the short-term store.
Rehearsal
Information here will either be lost or
transferred to the long-term store if the
information is rehearsed.
Long-Term Memory
Information that is important and is
rehearsed is transferred into this store, the
long-term store.
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
The three stores differ in their capacity, duration and types of encoding.
Capacity = How much information can the store hold?
Duration = How long will the information stay in the store?
Capacity
Sensory Store
Duration
Encoding
Capacity
Short-Term Memory
Duration
Encoding
Capacity
Long-Term Memory
Duration
Encoding
Every theory in Psychology needs to be evaluated, which means we should
look at the available evidence to make a judgement on how good the
model is.
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
1. Evidence for the model
Research by Murdock shows that when remembering words from a list, the
words as the beginning of the list, and the words at the end of the list are
remembered best. This is known as the primacy and the recency effect.
It is thought that the words at the beginning of the list have been rehearsed
enough to be transferred to the long-term store, and the words at the end of
the list are still in the short-term store. This provides evidence to support the
multi-store model of memory.
Number of
words
remembered
Beginning of
list
End of list
2. Evidence against the model
The multi-store model of memory says that rehearsal of information is
essential for it to be transferred into the long-term memory store.
Rehearsal isn’t the only thing that could be important for transferring
information to the long-term store. What else may be important?
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
3. Evidence against the model
The multi-store model is reductionist
What does the term reductionist mean?
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
Research in Psychology
Everything we study in psychology is underpinned by research. For each
topic, you will have at least two studies to learn in depth. For each study you
need to know: the background, aim, methods, results, conclusions, criticisms
Core Study - – Wilson, Kopelman and Kapur (2008)
Prominent and persistent loss of past awareness in amnesia: delusion,
impaired consciousness or coping strategy (the Clive Wearing study)
Background
Aim
Sample
Experimental Design
Independent Variable
Dependent Variable
Method
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
Results
Conclusions
Criticisms
Strengths
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2016-2017
CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
2. Theory of Reconstructive Memory
We like to think we are good at remembering things, but the truth is,
sometimes our memory lets us down and our memories become flawed. This
is an issue because the ‘error’ becomes part of our memory, meaning we do
not really know that we’re wrong.
Schemas
From the time we are born, we are constantly learning new information
about the world. Information has to be stored in our mind, and the
reconstructive theory of memory suggests that our mind is full of ‘schemas’. A
schema is a bit like a filing cabinet for all the information we have on, just
about, everything. They are organised packages of information that stores
our knowledge about the world.
For example, we all have a schema based on gender. To access your
schema, or the file containing information about males and females, write a
list of all the words you associate with males and females:
Males
Females
You might notice that the information in your gender schemas are quite
stereotyped, this is often the way.
These schemas come into play when there are gaps in our memory. We fill in
these gaps using stereotypes and expectations based on the information
that we have stored in our schemas. These memories are distorted, but we
do not realise this.
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
CONFABULATION
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There are some situations that are more likely to result in distorted memories
than others. One of the key issues looked at in Psychology is that of ‘leading
questions’ in police questioning.
A leading question is a question that hints to the desired answer. Read the
following examples of leading questions and identify what makes the
question leading, and what the desired answer is likely to be.
"That's a good thing to do, isn't it?"
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"You are coming tonight, aren't you?"
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“You do love me, don’t you?”
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
When do leading questions and distorted memories become a problem?
During court cases, eyewitnesses are asked to give testimonies based on the
crime that they have witnessed. If lawyers ask leading questions, they could
influence the answer the eyewitness gives. This can lead to false information
being given, which can have a huge impact on the case.
When eyewitnesses have gaps in their memories, they may use prior
knowledge, or expectations, to fill in the parts that they can’t remember.
Once again, this can lead to false memories, and false information being
given during a court case.
Evidence for the theory of reconstructive memory
There is evidence from research to support the idea of reconstructive
memory. Research by Bartlett gives evidence that we are likely to change
information to make it consistent with our prior knowledge and schemas.
Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study
In his famous study 'War of the Ghosts', Bartlett (1932) showed that memory is not just a
factual recording of what has occurred, but that we try to fit what we remember with what
we really know and understand about the world based on our schemas. As a result, we
often change our memories so they become more sensible to us.
Bartlett’s participants heard a story and had to tell the story to another person and so on, like
a game of “Chinese Whispers”.
The story was a Native American legend called “The War of the Ghosts”. When asked to
recount the detail of the story, each person seemed to recall it in their own individual way.
With every time the participants retold it, the passages became shorter, confusing ideas
were rationalized or left out altogether and details changed to become more familiar or
conventional.
For example, the information about the ghosts was left out as it was difficult to explain. For
this research Bartlett concluded that memory is not exact and is distorted by existing
schema, or what we already know about the world. It seems, therefore, that each of us
‘reconstructs’ our memories to conform to our personal beliefs about the world.
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
Evidence against the model
Once again, we come to the issue of reductionism. If a theory is reductionist,
the explanation is too simple and does not take into account a number of
other factors.
The reconstructive model does not explain how information is encoded, how
information is stored and does not discuss how reconstruction and retrieval
actually occurs.
Core Study – Braun, Ellis and Loftus (2002)
How advertising can change our memories of the past
Background
Aim
Sample
Method (Including research methods)
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GCSE Psychology
Results
Conclusions
Criticisms
Strengths
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
Application of psychology – Techniques used for recall in advertisements.
Theories and ideas in psychology can be used in real-life situations to
influence human behaviour and thoughts. For the topic of memory, the
application of psychology looks at how we can use psychological
techniques to help individuals to remember advertisements in the media.
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
Application of psychology – Techniques used for recall in advertisements.
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CPS
GCSE Psychology
2016-2017
Glossary
Anterograde
Amnesia
Multi-Store
Model
Attention
Primacy Effect
Capacity
Recency Effect
Confabulation
Reconstructive
Memory
Duration
Reductionism
Encoding
Rehearsal
Leading
Question
Retrieval
Long-Term
Store
Retrograde
Amnesia
Multi-Store
Model
Schema
Primacy Effect
Sensory Store
Recency
Effect
Short-Term
Store
Reconstructive
Memory
Storage
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