Week 17

Reliability of memory and Technology

27 January 2016

17.01 The Reliability of Cognitive Processes

Loftus and Palmer (1974)
effect of leading questions on the accuracy of speed estimates of cars involved in a motor
accident.
You should also be able to explain the use of technology in investigating cognitive processes.

Read pp. 81-87 of your Crane and Hannibal textbook, Section 3.1:
Cognitive level of analysis: cognitive processes.
Read pp. 23-26 of the Pamoja Supplementary eText, The Cognitive
Level of Analysis: Section 2. Cognitive Processes, E. The reliability
of memory and F. The use of technology to investigate memory.

81-87
Reliability of one cognitive process: memory
eyewitnesses can be wrong
reconstructive nature of memory
o brains active processing of information to make sense of the world
Sigmund Freud (18751935)
o forgetting was caused by repression
intense emotional and anxiety-provoking events results in defence
mechanism to protect conscious self
deny dangerous memories never happened
o recovered and false memories
Loftus: possible to manipulate peoples memories
o a false memory had been created by the post-event information
Empirical testing of reliability of memory
Remembering (1932), Frederic Bartlett
o memory is reconstructive and that schemas influence recall.
o method of serial reproduction
o Native American legend
o participants to read through the story twice
o None of the participants knew the purpose or the aim of the experiment
o After 15 minutes, Bartlett asked the participants to reproduce the story
from memory
o reproduce a couple more times when in laboratory
o The War of the Ghosts was difficult for people from western cultures to
reproduce because of its unfamiliar style and content
o story became shorter
o coherent story no matter how distorted
o more conventionalthat is, it retained only those details that could be
assimilated to the shared past experience and cultural background of the
participants.

o
o
o
o

people reconstruct the past by trying to fit it into existing schemas

peoples efforts after meaningthat is, people try to find a familiar pattern
in experiences
memory is an imaginative reconstruction of experience

o study or investigation, not an experiment

Loftuss research on reliability of eyewitness testimony
o supports Bartletts idea of memory as reconstructive
o leading questions (questions that are suggestive in some way) and postevent information facilitate schema processing which may influence
accuracy of recall
o experimental procedure in which she manipulated questions after
showing participants a film
o Loftus and Palmer (1974) investigated the role of leading questions in
recall
aim of the experiment was to see if changing one word in certain
critical questions would influence speed estimates
45 students, who first saw films of traffic accidents and then had to
estimate the speed of the car in the film

critical question (independent variable) in the experiment was:

About how fast were the cars going when they hit each other?
Hit was replaced by smashed, collided, bumped, and
contacted in separate trials
dependent variable in this experiment was the estimation of speed
(in miles/hour)
mean speed estimate was in fact affected by the words, so that
smashed and collided increased the estimated speed.

use of different verbs activates different schemas in memory

150 students as participants. 3 groups
they all saw a film of a car accident. Then they were asked
questions about the accident, including the question on estimation
of speed, but this time only including hit or smashed in two of
the groups. The last groupthe control groupdid not have
questions on speed estimates
tested again a week later
critical question was whether or not they had seen broken
glass
yes or no
no broken glass
32 per cent of the smashed group said they had
seen broken glass, compared to 14 per cent of the
hit group. In the control group, only 6 per cent
said they had seen broken glass

concluded that the different words had an effect on

the estimation of speed as well as the perception of
consequences.
smashed provides the participants with verbal information that
activates schemas for a severe accident. Broken glass is in line
with this,
o possible to create a false memory using post-event
information.
o influences on results
controlled laboratory experiment, so you may ask whether there
are problems with ecological validity.
US students, which means that the sample is culturally biased
how well people are able to estimate speed
Yuille and Cutshall (1986)
o criticized Loftuss research for lack of ecological
validity
o used Loftuss technique in interviewing people who
had witnessed a real robbery and found that
misleading questions did not seem to distort
peoples memory
o wording of the question had no effect on recall, and
those who were most distressed by the situation
had the most accurate memories
Use of modern technology to investigate the relationship between cognitive factors and
behaviour
Neuro-imaging techniques allow researchers to obtain images of brain
functioning and structures
understand the relationship between cognitive processes and behaviour
PET
o positron emission tomography
o scanning method that can measure important functions in the brain
o can identify cellular-level metabolic changes in an organ or tissue
o Using PET scans and the computer program, the researchers showed
that in the early stages of Alzheimers disease, there is a reduction in
brain metabolism in the hippocampus.
o Lisa Mosconi (2005)
could be a useful tool in screening for Alzheimers in people who
do not yet show any symptoms of the disease.
MRI
o magnetic resonance imaging
o three-dimensional picture of brain structures
o detecting changes in the use of oxygen in the blood - more active
o what areas are active when people perform cognitive tasks
neuromarketing
o Clinton Kilts 2003
Atlantas Emory University in the US
o
series of experiments using MRI scanners to investigate the role
of the brain in product preferences
o

self-selected sample of volunteers

asked to rate a number of consumer goods in terms of preference,
giving them points according to level of attractiveness
put into the MRI scanner, where they were shown pictures of the
items and again asked to rate them, while the scanner registered
brain activity
rated a product as particularly attractive,

activity in a small area in the

medial prefrontal

cortex. This is an area that is known to be related to

our sense of self and our personality
if we are attracted to a product, we somehow identify with it
to understand what happens in consumers heads when they
make decisions about consumer brands
Read Montague
Houstons Baylor College of Medicine in the US
70 participants to a blind taste-test of Pepsi and Coca-Cola
pepsi was preferred
activity in a brain area called the ventral putamen, which is part of
the pleasure centre in the brain
so if they can get a consumer to identify with a brand, it becomes part of
his or her self-image
observe brain damage as in the case of HM (see page 79)
relate this to cognitive functioning
useful to detect early signs of Alzheimer's disease
cannot necessarily establish cause-effect relationships
between specific brain structures and preference for
brands

Extended essay question

Consider an extended essay on memory, based on neurological evidence and the use of
the case study.
To what extent can case studies of patients with brain damage provide insight into
memory processes?
You should include more than one case study. Look in textbooks and online databases
to find these.
Discuss how you could structure an argument that addresses this question based on the
evidence. Here are some sites to get you started:
http://scienceblogs.com/ neurophilosophy/2007/07/ remembering_henry_m.php
http://homepage.mac.com/ sanagnos/corkin2002.pdf

CLOA (23-26)
F. The use of technology to investigate memory
from the brain activity and the subjects self-reporting, psychologists infer mental
processes
The use of technology to investigate memory

how biological factors affect memory, we looked at PET scans and fMRI
scans to investigate the presence and progress of Alzheimers disease
o MRI and CT scans look at the brains structure
o functional imaging with PET or fMRI scans reveals how well cells in
various brain regions are working by showing how actively the cells use
sugar or oxygen
detect possible Alzheimers disease before the damage to the
brains structure is visible
o ethical issue
if a PET scan shows reduced use of glucose in a persons
hippocampus or medial temporal lobe, should the clinician then
mention the possibility of Alzheimers
scanning the patients brain activity is more to satisfy the research
goals of the psychologist than to effect any alleviation of
symptoms for the patient
consent from relatives
o (MIT, 2003)
episodic vs. semantic memory (memory for events as distinct from
memory of general knowledge)
using the participants journals and diaries to create stimuli that
will elicit memory of specific events when they see them inside the
fMRI scanner
o Maguire
significant difference in the size of various parts of the
hippocampus of taxi drivers: the posterior hippocampus was larger
in taxi drivers, whereas the anterior hippocampus was larger in
control subject
volume of the hippocampus also correlated with how long the
subject had been a taxi driver
theory that the posterior hippocampus in each side of the brain
stores a spatial representation of the environment
This study is not only an example of how technology is use in
memory research, but also an example of brain plasticity
o Grn et al. (2003)
investigated episodic memory performance in healthy older people
(n=24; mean age: 64.46.7 years).
repetitive learning and recall of abstract geometric patterns during
an fMRI scan
hippocampal activation
The use of technology to investigate decision-making
o Bechara and Damasio et al. (1998) identified the pre-frontal cortex as
involved in decisionmaking
o identified by activity of single neurons in a variety of sensory and motor
areas
o Platt (2002) reviewed studies of decision-making in primates
activation of areas in the pre-frontal and parietal cortex increases
during decision-making
o only a small part of the brain can be looked at with single scanning
techniques
o

Heekeren et al. (2004) used simultaneous EEG and fMRI scans

Tanabe et al. (2007) used PET scans to investigate decision-making in
gamblers and substance addicts.
substancedependent individuals experienced altered prefrontal
activity on the task
fMRI scanning
18 controls, 14 substance-dependent individuals (SD), and 16 SD
with gambling problems (SDPG)
fMRI scan while performing a modified version of the Iowa
Gambling Task
pre-frontal cortex areas
Controls showed the greatest activity, followed by SDPG, followed
by SD
defects in pre-frontal processing lead to impaired decisions that
involve risk

o
o

17.02 The Memory Wars

Choose either:
1. Option 1: Mind Changers: Elizabeth Loftus (Links to an external site.)
2. Option 2: Innocence Project (Links to an external site.)
Eyewitness Misidentification
Jennifer Thompson
leading contributing factor of wrongful conviction (75% of 250)
researcher shows that memory is highly malleable and that an eyewitness who is
uncertain, can become much more certain over time
its possible that they unconsciously provided information
confirming feedback sky rockets confidence
repeating only one individual in multiple procedures increases witness confidence, even
when that witness is wrong.
Ronald Cottons conviction was based primarily on the eyewitness identification
evidence of Jennifer Thompson.
o but he was innocent
o he was exonerated based on DNA evidence in June 1995
Bobby Poole
maybe everything that I thought was true is not true
he lost 11 years of his life
eyewitness identification reform
o the most crucial change to procedures is the double blind administration of line
ups
officer is not aware who suspect is and the witness in the case is told
that the officer doesnt know the identity of the suspect
o proper line up composition
o instructions to the witness
o confidence statements
o recording the procedure
o sequential presentation
years of strong social science research has proven that eyewitness identification is often
unreliable.

Witnesses substantially changed their description of a perpetrator (including key

information such as height, weight and presence of facial hair) after they learned more
about a particular suspect.

I also looked at the Innocence Project and found it so interesting how our minds can
be tricked into being confident about a decision based on memory. It is so sad that
theses new reforms are not implement worldwide because so many suspects have
been declared guilty because of the eyewitness identification. In the case of Ronald
Cotton, he lost 11 years of his life and I'm assuming a lot of respect from the citizens
of the state of North Carolina just for looking like Bobby Poole. While watching the
video I was able to connect the unreliability of my own memory to a much more
small-scale example. Many times when I have been to a new city, I have gone
exploring, but the next time I returned, I try to lead a group of friends where I had
gone and usually end up getting lost or finding a new place, even though I was so
confident I knew where I was going.

17.03 Reliability of Memory

http://www.simplypsychology.org/loftus-palmer.html
Loftus and Palmer 1974
(mis)leading information in terms of both visual imagery and wording of
questions in relation to eyewitness testimony
memory for an event that has been witnessed is highly flexible
original memory can be modified, changed or supplemented
experiment one
o The study aimed to investigation how information provided after an
event had occurred influenced the memory of a witness for that
event. In this case, the information was a change in wording of a
question.
o sampling method: a random sample
the sample: 45 students from an American College.
o

sampling method: an opportunity sample

the sample: 115 students from the Police Academy of
France
results: When the critical question had the word smashed or

collided speed estimates were higher than that for the other
words. For smashed it was 40.8, for collided 39.3, while for
contacted the estimate was 31.8 miles per hour.

o procedure:
Forty-five American students
laboratory experiment
independent variable: wording of question
dependent: speed reported by the participants
7 films of traffic accidents, ranging in duration from 5 to 30
seconds, were presented in a random order to each group
About how fast were the cars going when they (smashed /
collided / bumped / hit / contacted) each other?

o findings:
verb implied information about the speed, which systematically
affected the participants memory
participants in the smashed condition reported the highest
speed estimate (40.8 mph), followed by collided (39.3 mph),
bumped (38.1 mph), hit (34 mph), and contacted (31.8
mph) in descending order
o conclusion:
eyewitness testimony might be biased by the way questions are
asked
response-bias factors
misleading information provided may have simply
influenced
the memory representation is altered
lead someone to have a perception of the
accident being more serious
expect participants to remember other details
that are not true
experiment two
o procedure:
150 students were shown a one minute film which featured a
car driving through the countryside followed by four seconds of
a multiple traffic accident
IV: type of question asked
asking 50 students 'how fast were the car going when they hit
each other?'
another 50 'how fast were the car going when they smashed
each other?'
remaining 50 participants were not asked a question at all (i.e.
the control group).
DV: one week later list of questions with one critical
critical question: Did you see any broken glass? Yes or
no?"
o findings:

o conclusion:

memory is easily distorted by questioning technique and

information acquired after the event
causing inaccurate recall or reconstructive memory
confabulation: addition of false details to a memory of an event
critical evaluation:
o lacked ecological validity
o viewed video clips rather than being present at a
real life accident
o less emotional impact, less likely to pay attention
and less motivated to be accurate in their
judgements
o The conclusions are reductionist since

o
o
o

o
o

memory is influenced by multiple factors,

not just the choice of words used in the
questions.
The participants might have also responded
to demand characteristics.
Ecological validity may be low.
People are likely to react differently when
witnessing a real life scenario similar to the
one shown in the video, because of their
actual presence and likely personal
involvement.
No information is available about the
driving skills of the participants. This ability
(or lack of it) could have influenced their
estimate of speed.
The sampling method may mean that the
participants are unlikely to have been
representative of the general population.
The experimental design did not allow for
any control of variables.

o Yuille and Cutshall (1986) conflicts the findings of

this study
misleading information did not alter the memory of people who
had witnessed a real armed robbery
misleading information may have a greater influence in the lab
o Students are not representative of the general
population
less experienced drivers and therefore less confident in their
ability to estimate speeds
o standardized procedure: easy to replicate
o Quantitative data allows for subsequent
statistical analysis.
The experimental design allowed for control
of variables.
Brown and Kulik (1977)
o Flash bulb memories
o emotional information: more vivid, long-lasting
and accurate
o

Name: Natalie Cassello

2 February 2016
Teacher: Helen Loughran
IB Psychology
Learning Outcome
Evaluate the extent to which a cognitive process is reliable.
Bartlett (1932) and Loftus and Palmer (1974) are the empirical
studies relevant to this learning outcome. You have already
practiced writing descriptions and evaluations on Bartlett so your
focus should be Loftus and Palmer. While you will probably be
arguing that memory is to some extent unreliable you also need
to acknowledge the study by Yuille and Cutshall (1986) from p.
85 of the Course Companion eText. You could also refer to the
study on flashbulb memories by Brown and Kulik (1977) from p.
91 of Course Companion eText. (and 29 of CLOA)
Level of Analysis

Investigator/s

Date

CLOA

Loftus and Palmer

1974

Description (Aim, Type of study, Participants, Procedures, Findings and Conclusions):

This laboratory experiment consisted of two different procedures in order to best investigate the aim of
investigated the effect of misleading information in terms of visual imagery and wording of questions in
relation to eyewitness testimony. For experiment one, 45 American students were shown 7 films of traffic
accidents, ranging from 5-30 seconds in a random order. They were then asked the question, About how
fast were the cars going when they (smashed / collided / bumped / hit / contacted) each other? Findings
showed that the independent variable, the verb in this case, implied information about the speed, which
affected the participants memory. The highest speed was reported by the smashed condition
participants (40.8 mph), followed by collided (39.3 mph), bumped (38.1 mph), hit (34 mph), and
contact (31.8 mph). It was concluded that response-bias factors and the alteration of memory
representation were influencers of the seriousness of the accident. The procedure of experiment two
included 150 students a one-minute video of a car driving in the countryside and four seconds of multiple
car accidents. 50 students made up the control group and were not asked a question, 50 students were
asked, how fast were the cars going when they hit each other? and the third group of 50 students were
asked, how fast were the cars going when they smashed each other? A week later they were asked 10
question with the critical question being, Did you see broken glass? Yes or no? Out of the control group,
6 said they did and 44 didnt, 16 of the smashed group did, while 34 didnt, and 7 of the hit said yes, which
means 43 did not remember seeing the non-existent glass. This research allow Loftus and Palmer to
conclude that memory is easily distorted by questioning technique and information acquired after the
event, as the results showed confabulation, or addition of false details to a memory of an event.

Evaluation
Methodology Considerations

Ethical Considerations

Gender/Cultural
Considerations

Lack of ecological
validity because
videos were
watched instead of a
real-life scenario.
The standardized
procedure makes it
easy to replicate and
allow for control.

Deception of
withholding the aim
may have been used,
however it did not
physically or mentally
harm the participants,
and was explained in
the end. Participants
gave their informed
consent, could
withdrawal, were
debriefed, and
identities were kept
confidential.

Because the
participants were
all American
students, their
knowledge of
driving was
limited and could
have affected
their estimate of
speed.

Studies that challenge the evaluation that memory is unreliable

Researchers
Yuille and
Cutshall
(1986)

What criticisms did they make about Loftus and

Palmers research?
These researchers focused on the point that
Loftus and Palmers laboratory experiment
lacked ecological validity. In their experiment,
they found that misleading information did not
alter the memory of people who had witnessed
a real armed robbery. It seems that the
misleading of information had more of an
influence in the lab, rather than real-life.

Brown and
Kulik (1977)

What evidence did they use to suggest that

memory is more reliable than Loftus and

Palmer state? (Include any criticisms they

made of L & P's research).
They also believed that the ecological validity
of Loftus and Palmers study was low because
their study showed that emotional memories
were proven to be remembered more
accurately. So, if the experiment were not in
the lab and it were a real life scenario, it would
have been more emotional and recall would be
more vivid because of their actual presence
and personal involvement.
17.04 General Learning Outcomes of the CLOA
Write for 20 minutes under self-administered exam conditions (no notes, no draft, no text and
no other windows open on your computer) on any ONE of these SAQs:
1. Outline two principles that define the cognitive level of analysis.
2. Describe one ethical consideration related to one research study at the
cognitive level of analysis.
3. Explain how one principle that defines the cognitive level of analysis may
be demonstrated in one example of research (theory or study).
State the principles of the CLOA
1. There are three underlying principles that define the CLOA:
1. Human beings are information processors and that mental representations guide
behaviour
2. Mental processes can and should be studied scientifically by developing theories
and by using a variety of research methods
3. Social and cultural factors affect cognitive processes
Purpose of the principles
o These principles are the main ideas that have driven focused research on specific
areas of behaviour and cognition.
o They also allow us to understand how behaviour can be influenced by cognitive
processes

Explain how one principle that defines the cognitive level of analysis may be demonstrated
in one example of research (theory or study).
principle: Social and cultural factors affect cognitive processes
http://www.thinkib.net/psychology/page/1458/schema-theory
http://ibpsychologynotes.blogspot.ba/2012/05/cognitive-level-of-analysis-notes.html

1. The mind can be studied scientifically

Case Studies: Clive Wearing / HM
1. Aim: Looking at the brain through MRI scans to see how their
particular disease / problem has in relation to the brain's activity
2. Method: MRI scans

3. Results: Clive wearing showed damage to hippocampus, and

some of the frontal regions, and HM showed damage in the
hippocampus, amygdala, and places close to the hippocampus
4. Conclusion: the mind can be looked at in detail, therefore more
research studies may be performed based on the clear insight
images that scientists will now have of the brain of these
patients
b. Cognitive processes are influenced by social and cultural factors
Research Study: Bartlett, The War of the Ghost 1932
o Aim: to investigate whether memory is reconstructive, and
whether schemas influence the participants recalling stories
o First Method: Serial reproduction: one person reproduces
the original story "The war of the ghosts (based on a Native
American legend)" then the second person reproduces the first
reproduction, and so on... And so on until there are 6 or 7
reproductions of the same story. (like the process of gossips and
rumors)
o Another Method: without telling the participants the aim of the
story, they were told to read the story twice. Then after 15
minutes, the participants had to reproduce the story from
memory. Then whenever they had the opportunity to, they were
to go into Bartlett's memory to recall the story
o Results:
Story became shorter (after 6/7 reproductions, it went
from 329 words to 180)
Story had orderly content, because people interpret the
story as a whole when listening and retelling
Story contained details which share past experiences and
cultural background to participants
o Conclusion: it was difficult for western cultures to reproduce
due to unfamiliar style and content.
People reconstruct past by trying to fit into existing
schemas, as people try to find a familiar pattern in their
own experiences
Story more complicated = more distortions and mistakes
Memory is an imaginative reconstructive of experience
according to Bartlett
Bartlett (1932)
o Aim: to investigate how schema, specifically cultural schema,
can influence memory
o Method: Approached random participants, and brought them to
a lab. Then they were told a complex and unusual story called
The War of the Ghosts'. He asked them to recall it six or seven
times over various retention intervals.
o Results: Recalled stories were distorted and altered in various
ways making it more conventional and acceptable to their own
cultural perspective.
Canoe was often substituted by boat
Story became shorter

Story remained coherent (people interpreting as a whole)

memory model

Loftus and Palmer

o Aim: Changing the verb in the question to see effects on speed
estimate
o Method: the participants were shown a clip of a car crash, then
they were to guess the speed estimate when the cars
"smashed / collided / bumped / hit / contacted "
o Result: speed estimates varied, gentle words had slower speed
estimates
o Conclusion: interpretation of the results : different use of verbs
activates different schemas in memory, and that hearing the
word "smash" may allow the participant to think of the event as
more severe compared to "contacted"
Investigations on EWT, flashbulb memory must be dealt with sensitively
Brown and Kulik
o Aim: supporting the flashbulb memory, that people have
detailed memories of highly emotional events
o Method: asking people to recall events
With reference to one relevant research study, explain how cognitive and
biological factors interact in emotion.

Paragraph 1 this should be first para bio defines emotional

response
James Lange
o We experience things, and then our body nervous systems
creates physological events like muscle tension, heart rate
increase, dryness of the mouth etc
o Emotions happen as a result of physiological actions rather than
the cause
o Event --> Arousal --> interpretation --> emotion
o Bodily sense prepares us for action
o Emotion gets our attention to particular event s that happen
o Biology defines emotional responses
o For example, we see a bear- our muscles would tense - our heart
beats will increase - therefore I am afraid
Ekman 1957
o Aim: investigate relationship between physiology and emotion
o Method: asking participants to hold facial expressions for 10
seconds and take different physical measures such as heart rate
and temperature of the person
o Results: different measures of different facial expressions
Anger is hotter than fear, and the heart beats faster
o Conclusion: suggests that biology may define emotional
response as bio and cog interact

Evaluation: implications that lead to people believing that facial

expressions ead to emotion has no evidence to back up, its not
just about mirror neruons

Evaluation
o False interpretations, e.g. dutton and aron's study shows that
people may mistaken arousal and sexual attraction
o Now we can watch people's physiological signals to deduce what
emotions result
o Unsure whether emotion comes first, or the physiology comes
first Good
Speisman
o Aim: whether people's emotional reaction to unpleasant films
can be manipulated
o Method: showing participants about an initiation ceremony
involving unpleasant genital surgery
Showing the film with 3 soundtracks, and 3 conditions of
people to be in
Trauma condition, soundtrack emphasizing pain
Denial condition, willing and happy
Intellectualizing, anthropological interpretation of
ceremony
o Results: participants respond more emotionally to the first
condition
Supports Lazarus's theory
Not the event itself leading to emotional stress, instead
its the individuals interpretation or appraisal of those
events
o Evaluation of the theory
Ecological validity, as it was an artificial video
The participants were under deception

models of theories of one cognitive process: http://ibpsychnotes.com/cloa-lo/lo6/

command terms : https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fE9yMjk0pluTLLVVDyZIVJrzMvMbwUniZLQ1vfJgpQ/edit

Schema theory has been used to explain memory processes. Cognitive psychologists
divide memory processes into three main stages:
encoding: transforming sensory information into a meaningful memory
storage: creating a biological trace of the encoded information in memory, which is
either consolidated or lost
retrieval: using the stored information
schema is the system of understanding knowledge

Explain how one principle that defines the cognitive level of analysis may be demonstrated
in one example of research (theory or study).
principle: Social and cultural factors affect cognitive processes
explain: Give a detailed account including reasons or causes.

Principle of the CLOA says that cognitive processes are influenced by

social and cultural factors. This study investigates cultural schemas and
how they are a mental representation of knowledge.
Schema theory has been used to explain cognitive process of memory.
Bartlett studied how cultural schemas affect cognitive processing.
Bartlett studied the influence of cultural schemas on the memory.
Bartlett also investigates the effects of cultural schemas on memory
using The War of the Ghost.
The participants in the study were British; for them the story was filled with unknown names and
concepts, and the manner in which the story was developed was also foreign to them.

One of the principles that defines the cognitive level of analysis is,
social and cultural factors affect cognitive processes. One study
which demonstrates this principle with the schema theory is
Bartletts 1932 investigation of The War of the Ghost.
Bartlett 1932 - The War of the Ghost
aim: to investigate whether memory is reconstructive, as well
as the influence of schemas on recalling
procedure:
o first method - serial reproduction
the first participants recalls the Native-American
story, then the next reproduces it, and so on,
until there have been 6 or 7 recalls of the
narrative. This procedure is similar to the process
of gossip and rumors, or the game, Telephone.
o second method
participants were not told the aim and were
asked to read the story twice. 15 minutes later
they recalled the story from memory. The
investigation was ongoing as students would
recall to Bartlett when they had the opportunity
over a period of days, weeks, months, and years
results:
o story became shorter
329 to 180 words after 6-7 reproductions
o orderly content, interpreted as a whole
o shared past experiences and cultural background
conclusion:

o
o
o
o

difficult for western cultures to reproduce with an

unfamiliar style and content
reconstructed memory with existing schemas to make
it more familiar
distortion and mistakes to make up for the complicated
story
according to Bartlett, memory is an imaginative
reconstruction of experience

The schema theory explains the cognitive process of memory,

divided into three stages, encoding (sensory info into meaningful),
storage (consolidated or lost), and retrieval.
Bartlett studied the effect of cultural schema on memory.
This study investigates cultural schemas and how they are a
mental representation of knowledge.
One principle that defines the cognitive level of analysis is, "social and cultural
factors affect cognitive processes." This may be demonstrated by the schema theory,
investigated by Bartlett's 1932 study of The War of the Ghost.
The aim of this investigation was to tell whether cultural schemas affect the cognitive
process of memory through recall. The participants include a range of British
students. There were two methods used in this study. The first was a serial
reproduction in which the first participant recalled the Native-American story, then
the next reproduced it until there were six or seven reproductions of the narrative.
This process is similar to that of gossip and rumors, or the game known as
'Telephone.' The second method asked participants to read through the 329-word
story, without knowing the aim of the research. After 15 minutes, they were asked to
recall the story. As this investigation was ongoing, participants recalled the story to
Bartlett over a period of days, weeks, months, or years, when they had the
opportunity to talk with Bartlett. The results showed that the stories were distorted to
better for the cultural schemas of the western participants to make the story more
familiar and easier to remember. Participants made the story shorter, to
approximately 180-words, and replaced many of the vocabulary to words that were
used more for them. For example, the word 'canoe' was replaced with 'boat.'
Bartlett concluded that cultural schemas do have an effect on the memory recall of
participants. He said that memory is a reconstruction of experience. The schema
theory, which explains the cognitive processing is divided into three stages,
encoding, storage, and retrieval. In this study, all stages were tested, especially the
retrieval of new information, which is distorted by past experiences. The principle
that says, 'social and cultural factors affect cognitive processes' is supported by the
findings of this research study which shows cultural schemas allow for distortion and
mistakes when recalling unfamiliar information because the memory of participants is
being tested based on the social and cultural factors.

17.05 Psych Terms Wiki: Reliability of Cognitive Processes