For this assignment, you will need to complete the False Memory CogLab and answer the questions at the bottom of this page.
· The experiment will take about 15–20 minutes to complete.
· If you start the experiment and cannot complete it in one session, do not save the data. Try again when you have 15–20 minutes to complete it.
· The experiment involves several trials.
· On each trial, a list of words will be presented one at a time on the left of the screen.
· After the word list has been presented, a matrix of words will appear on the right of the screen.
· You will click on each of the words that you think appeared in the original word list.
· After you have recalled all of the words that you think were on the list, click
Next Trial to start the presentation of the next word list.
False Memory
Minimum time to complete this experiment: 15 minutes
Background:
An important issue for theories of cognition is how well we remember things. It is important because nearly every aspect of cognition depends on memory to some degree. To understand problem solving, decision making, attention, and
perception, you need to know the abilities and limits of memory. The quality of
memory is important for practical reasons as well. Many significant events
depend on reports from human observers. From eyewitness testimony in murder trials to arguments with a spouse about who said what, memory and memory accuracy is critical. A surprising finding is that there is no way to assess memory accuracy without objective evidence (such as a tape recording or a photograph). The vividness or confidence of the person recalling the memory is not an accurate indication of the truth of the memory. This is not to say that most memories are inaccurate. We must be pretty accurate much of the time or else living would be quite difficult. However, for those situations in which accuracy of detail is important, memories cannot be trusted, no matter how adamant the recaller is about the vividness of the memory. This experiment demonstrates one methodology that biases people to recall things that did not occur. The memories associated with experiments of this type are often called false memories. The method was first used by Deese (1959) and has been extended more recently by Roediger and McDermott (1995). The task is like many other memory experiments. A sequence of words is presented (verbally or visually) and the observer must subsequently classify a set of words as either in the sequence (old) or not in the sequence (new). What differentiates this experiment from other memory experiments is that the sequences are specially designed to bias observers to report a particular word that was not included in the list. When people report that one of these words was in the sequence but it really was not, they are having a false memory. In some cases, people will report that they vividly recall seeing (or hearing) the word, so their memories are very strong, despite their inaccuracy.
Basic Questions
1. In regard to false-memory experiments, what are special distractors?
2. Did you report seeing words that were not on the original list? If so, were
these inaccurately remembered words mostly normal distractors or special
distractors?
3. How can one access the accuracy of someone’s memory?
Advanced Questions
1. Come up with a list of 10 words that you think could create a false
memory. Using this list, what particular word/ words do you think could be
falsely remembered?
2. You are driving your brother and sister to your aunt’s house for dinner.
You haven’t been to her house in a while, so you ask your siblings if either
of them knows the way. Your sister says she believes she knows the way.
Your brother is much more confident that he knows the way and says he
can visualize the last time he went to your aunt’s house. The problem is
they disagree on how to get there. Whom should you believe?
3. Last time you went to see your doctor, you remembered him/her wearing a
stethoscope, but later found out that, because of his/her hearing
impairment, your doctor does not use a stethoscope. Why might you have
been mistaken?
Discussion Question:
1. What kind of implications do experiments on false memory have for
evaluating the validity of eyewitness accounts?
a. How difficult did you find this experiment to be? Please explain.
b. Did you find the word lists difficult or easy to recall? Please explain your answer.
c. Did your data confirm the prediction that you would be more likely to recall special (related) distractors versus normal (unrelated) distractors?
d. What do false memories tell us about our long-term memory?
e. Give an example of how this type of experiment can be used to explain the false memories sometimes seen in the testimony of eyewitnesses.
