WORKSHEET PSYCHOLOGY

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

1. Write 7 highlights about following memory models. Do include the name of

researcher and year. MSM, WMM, LOP (bullet points are allowed)

Attkinson and Shiffrin (1968): the multi-store memory model:

• Sensory memory, short-term memory, long term memory.

• The conditions: duration, capacity, and transfer.

Baddeley and Hitch (1974): the working memory model:

• The dual task technique

• This model focuses on short term memory.

• The central executive, the visuospatial sketchpad and the phonological loop

Craik and Lockhart (1972): levels of processing

• Model recall is a function of depth of processing

• Series of levels of processing, shallow, and deep and the deeper information
is processed

2. Write 2 strength and 2 limitations of above memory models

The multi-store memory model:

Strengths:

1. It has been one of the most influential models of memory that proved capable
of explaining multiple observed phenomena

2. The model is parsimonious—it can explain a lot of observed data with only a
few components. The model is also highly heuristic—it inspired numerous
research studies.
Limitation:
1. The model emphasises structure over process. It does not pay enough
attention to how information flows between the three components.

2. The model only explains the flow of information in one direction, from sensory
memory to LTM. Arguably, though, information can also flow in the opposite
direction.

The working memory model:

Strengths:
1. The strength of the working memory model is its explanatory power

2. It allows us to explain a range of observed memory phenomena that cannot be

explained by the multi-store model, for example, the phonological similarity
effect, the word length effect and the disappearance of both under articulatory
suppression.

Limitation:
1. The major limitation of the model is its complexity as this makes it more difficult
to test the model empirically in its entirety.

2. The model only involves STM and does not include other memory structures
such as sensory memory or LTM.

The levels of processing:

Strengths:
1. It showed that encoding was not a simple, straightforward process. This
widened the focus from seeing long-term memory as a simple storage unit to
seeing it as a complex processing system.

2. Craik and Lockhart's ideas led to hundreds of experiments, most of which

confirmed the superiority of 'deep' semantic processing for remembering
information. It explains why we remember some things much better and for
much longer than others.

Limitation:
1. It does not explain how the deeper processing results in better memories.

2. Deeper processing takes more effort than shallow processing and it could be
this, rather than the depth of processing that makes it more likely people will
remember something.

3. Write 5 highlights of schema theory

1. Cognitive schemas (or schemata) are mental representations that organise our
knowledge, beliefs and expectations.

2. Schemas can influence memory at all its stages, both encoding and retrieval.

3. That schemas can also influence retrieval of information from memory.

4. Schemas are distinguished based on what aspect of reality they represent.

5. A “mental representation” is a very broad concept that can be applied to

practically everything in the mind, but only the most stable and deeply rooted
mental representations can influence our knowledge, beliefs and expectations.

4. Write the types of schemas and one-line description of the same

• Social schemas (mental representations about groups of people) create the

foundation for stereotypes.

• Scripts (mental representations about sequences of events) enable us to make

sense of sequential data.

• Self-schemas (mental representations about ourselves) are generalised

representations of ourselves.

5. Write two advantages and two limitations of schemas:

Advantages:
1. Provides an explanation for how knowledge is stored in the mind something
that is unobservable and remains unknown in psychology.

2. There is much research that supports schema theory .

Limitations:
1. It is unclear exactly how schemas are acquired and how people choose
between schemas.

2. It does not account for new information without a link to existing schemas 

6. According to you what are the applications of schemas in real life:

Whenever we are about to start the new topic, teachers often assess our previous
knowledge about that topic, or they activate the prior knowledge of the student
about that topic. For instance, our school has planned an educational visit to a
water treatment plant. The students are provided with prior knowledge about the
water treatment plant so that they could easily understand the phenomenon while
visiting the plant.

7. In this unit what are two applications of schemas we are learning and write two
research studies for the same.

Supporting Study 1: Bartlett (1932) – “War of the Ghost”

Introduce Study/Signpost: 
• A significant researcher into schemas, Bartlett (1932) introduced the idea of
schemas in his study entitled “The War of the Ghost.” 

Aim: 
• Bartlett aimed to determine how social and cultural factors influence
schemas and hence can lead to memory distortions. 

Method:
• Participants used were of an English background. 

• Were asked to read “The War of the Ghosts” – a Native American folk tale. 

• Tested their memory of the story using serial reproduction and repeated
reproduction, where they were asked to recall it six or seven times over
various retention intervals. 

◦ Serial reproduction: the first participant reading the story reproduces it

on paper, which is then read by a second participant who reproduces
the first participant’s reproduction, and so on until it is reproduced by
six or seven different participants.

◦ Repeated reproduction: the same participant reproduces the story six

or seven times from their own previous reproductions. Their
 reproductions occur between time intervals from 15 minutes to as long
as several years. 

Results: 
• Both methods lead to similar results. 

• As the number of reproductions increased, the story became shorter and

there were more changes to the story. 

◦ For example, ‘hunting seals’ changed into ‘fishing’ and ‘canoes’

became ‘boats’. 

• These changes show the alteration of culturally unfamiliar things into what
the English participants were culturally familiar with, 

• This makes the story more understandable according to the participants’

experiences and cultural background (schemas). 

• He found that recalled stories were distorted and altered in various ways
making it more conventional and acceptable to their own cultural
perspective (rationalization). 

Conclusion: 
• Memory is very inaccurate 

◦ It is always subject to reconstruction based on pre-existing schemas 

• Bartlett’s study helped to explain through the understanding of schemas

when people remember stories, they typically omit (”leave out”) some
details, and introduce rationalisations and distortions, because they
reconstruct the story so as to make more sense in terms of their knowledge,
the culture in which they were brought up in and experiences in the form of
schemas. 

Evaluation:
• Limitations: 

◦ Bartlett did not explicitly ask participants to be as accurate as

possible in their reproduction 

◦ Experiment was not very controlled 

▪ instructions were not standardised (specific) 

▪ disregard for environmental setting of experiment 

Connection of study to question 

• Bartlett's study shows how schema theory is useful for understand how
people categorise information, interpret stories, and make inferences. 

• It also contributes to understanding of cognitive distortions in memory. 

Supporting Study 2: Anderson and Pichert (1978) Introduce Study/Signpost: 

Aim: 
• To investigate if schema processing influences encoding and retrieval. 

Method: 
• Half the participants were given the schema of a burglar and the other half
was given the schema of a potential house-buyer. 

• Participants then heard a story which was based on 72 points, previously

rated by a group of people based on their importance to a potential house-
buyer (leaky roof, damp basement) or a burglar (10speed bike, colour TV). 

• Participants performed a distraction task for 12 minutes, before recall was

tested. 

• After another 5 minute delay, half of the participants were given the switched
schema. Participants with burglar schema were given house-buyer schema
and vice versa. 

• The other half of the participants kept the same schema. 

• All participants’ recalls were tested again. 

• Shorter Method: 

◦ Participants read a story from the perspective of either a burglar or

potential home buyer. After they had recalled as much as they could of
the story from the perspective they had been given, they were shifted
to the alternative perspective (schema) and were asked to recall the
story again. 

Results: 
• Participants who changed schema recalled 7% more points on the second
recall test than the first. 

• There was also a 10% increase in the recall of points directly linked to the
new schema. 

• The group who kept the same schema did not recall as many ideas in the
second testing. 

• Research also showed that people encoded different information which was
irrelevant to their prevailing schema (those who had buyer schema at
encoding were able to recall burglar information when the schema was
changed, and vice versa). 

◦ This shows that our schemas of “knowledge,” etc. are not always
correct, because of external influences. 

• Summary: On the second recall, participants recalled more information that

was important only to the second perspective or schema than they had
done on the first recall. 

Conclusion:
• Schema processing has an influence at the encoding and retrieval stage, as
new schema influenced recall at the retrieval stage. 

Evaluation: 
• Strengths 

◦ Controlled laboratory experiment allowed researchers to determine a

cause-effect relationship on how schemas affect different memory
processes. 

• Limitations 

◦ Lacks ecological validity 

▪ Laboratory setting 

▪ Unrealistic task, which does not reflect something that the

general population would do 

Connection of study to question 

• This study provides evidence to support schema theory affecting the

cognitive process of memory. 

◦ Strength of schema theory there is research evidence to support it. 

8. Name the two types of processing and give examples for each

• Bottom-up processing: flash a random picture on the screen, your eyes detect
the features, your brain pieces it together, and you perceive a picture of an eagle.
What you see is based only on the sensory information coming in.

• Top-down: Rat man of Bugelski and Alampay (1961)

9. Write in 5 lines your understanding of FBM

Flashbulb Memories is a special kind of emotional memory, which refers to vivid

and detailed (photographic-like) memories of highly emotional events that appear to
be recorded in the brain as though with the help of a ‘camera’s flash.’ FBM was
firstly demonstrated by Brown and Kulik in their main study occurring in 1977. 

10. Mention two research studies to support FBM

Supporting Study 1: Conway et al (1994) “UK and non-UK on Flashbulb Memory” 

Aim:
• To test the theory of Flashbulb Memory
Methods:
• Participants were either UK or non-UK undergraduates 
• Was based on the resignation of Margaret Thatcher (British Prime Minister,1990) 
• Participants were asked and interviewed about the event a few days after the event 
• They were asked again 11 months after the event 
Results: 
 • They found that 86% of UK participants still had FBM of the resignation of Margaret
Thatcher 
• While there were fewer non-UK participants (29%) had flashbulb memories of the
event 
Conclusions:
• Thus, Conway claimed that this event met the criteria for FBM for British people as
it was an unexpected and highly significant event pertaining to their culture,
therefore arousing deep emotions, influencing the special neural mechanisms and
therefore creating FBM of the event.
Evaluation:
• Strengths :
◦ Ecologically Valid: real event 
◦ Interview: in depth qualitative data
▪ Not focussed (don't have specific questions Questionnaire) o
• Limitations
◦ Distress in having to remember a tragic event 
◦ Some methodology was not controlled
Connection of study to question
• Suggests that flashbulb memories exist and are different from normal memories 
• However, they may only exist for events with personal significance 

Supporting study 2: Brown and Kulik (1977) 

Aims:
• To investigate FBM and how it works (to support their theory). 
Methods:
• Interviewed 80 Americans 
◦ 40 African Americans 
◦ 40 Caucasian Americans 
• Had to answer questions about 10 events 
◦ 9 of these events were mostly on assassinations or attempted
assassinations of well-known American personalities
◦ The last event was self-selected of personal events that included self-shock 
• They were asked how much they rehearsed these events (overtly or covertly) 
◦ Overly: rehearsal by discussing with other people 
◦ Covertly: private rehearsing or ruminating 
Results:
• They found that J.F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963 led to the most flashbulb
memories of all participants (90% of participants recalled this in context and with
vivid detail) 
• African Americans recalled more FBM's of civil right leaders; e.g. the assassination
of Martin Luther King more than the Caucasians recalled it (as a FBM) 
• For the tenth event (which was self-selected) most participants recalled shocking
events like the death of a parent 
Conclusions
• This study carried out by Brown and Kulik (1977) supported the theories of
flashbulb memories whereby they were: 
◦ Form in situations where we encounter surprising and highly emotional
information 
◦ Are maintained by means of overt rehearsal (discussion with others) and
covert rehearsal 
◦ (private) 
◦ Differ from other memories in that they are more vivid, last longer and are
more consistent and accurate 
◦ Require for their creation the involvement of a specialized neural mechanism
which stores information permanently in a unique memory system