Overview
This lecture explains "retrieval failure" as a key reason for forgetting, especially in students, and discusses how cues at encoding and recall affect memory.
Retrieval Failure Explanation
- Retrieval failure is forgetting caused by lack of access to memories, not because the memories are erased.
- Cues are triggers that help us access stored memories.
- Marcel Proust described a memory triggered by the taste of a biscuit—a cue from the past.
Encoding Specificity Principle
- This principle states that recall cues must match those present at memory encoding for retrieval to be successful.
- Memories are more easily recalled when similar cues are present during encoding and recall.
Types of Retrieval Failure
- Context-Dependent Forgetting: External cues (like location or environment) present at encoding must be present at recall for successful memory retrieval.
- Example: Forgetting why you went to the kitchen, but remembering when you return to your bedroom.
- State-Dependent Forgetting: Internal cues (like mood, emotions, or physical state) at encoding must match those during recall.
- Example: Studying when calm but recalling info in an anxious state decreases retrieval success.
Research Evidence
- Godden & Baddeley (1975): Divers remembered words better when learning and recall contexts (underwater/land) matched.
- Grant et al. (1998): Better recall when environmental conditions (silence/noise) matched at study and test.
- Carter & Cassaday (1998): Antihistamines changed physical state; recall was best when internal state at learning and recall was the same.
- Lowe (1983): Participants recalled more map information when intoxication state at learning and recall matched.
Evaluation of Retrieval Failure
- Criticism: Context or state must be very different for significant forgetting; theory doesn’t explain everyday forgetfulness with minor changes.
- Strength: Application to revision strategies and eyewitness testimony, such as using matching cues in cognitive interviews to improve memory accuracy.
Practical Applications
- Using strong, memorable cues in revision materials helps retrieval (e.g., mnemonics, headings).
- Police use cognitive interviews to reinstate context and improve eyewitness recall.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Retrieval Failure — Inability to access a memory despite it being stored, usually due to missing cues.
- Encoding Specificity Principle — Recall is best when the context and cues at recall match those at encoding.
- Context-Dependent Forgetting — Forgetting due to lack of matching external cues at recall.
- State-Dependent Forgetting — Forgetting due to different internal states between encoding and recall.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Practice using memorable cues (headings, mnemonics) in note-taking and revision.
- Experiment with studying and recalling information in similar physical and emotional states.
- (Optional) Read further about cognitive interviews and their role in eyewitness testimony.