An Experiment to Determine Whether People Are Influenced by Leading Questions Abstract The purpose of the experiment was to determine whether people are influenced by leading questions. This experiment is a replication of an experiment conducted by Loftus and Palmer in 1974. In the experiment the independent variable was the verb used (contact, smash). The dependant variable was the speed estimated by the participants when recalling the picture of the crash from their memory. The results gave evidence that specific words could influence the retrieval of a memory. This is caused because of a schema associated with the verb. Contact is a less dramatic verb than smash, leading to different estimated speeds. This same concept results in creating false memories depending on how a question is asked. Similarly, the Loftus and Palmer experiment showed a correlation between the wording of a question and what the participant recalled. In conclusion, the verbs used in a question prime the participant for a schema to the verb used, influencing the answer given. Introduction Memory can be stated as: the processes by which people and other organisms encode, store, and retrieve information. Our memory can make errors, which can lead to creating false memories. Many early studies of memory in psychology (e.g. Bartlett, 1932) provide evidence that memories are not accurate records of experiences. Remembering is rather a process of trying to make sense of incoming information by connecting it with prior information already stored in the brain. According to Bartlett, memory is stored as schemas, simplified mental representations of knowledge. Schemas influence the memory storage and retrieval. Bartlett conducted an experiment in w... ... middle of paper ... ...n 2 Answer Speed Estimation 1 white and white 6000 55 2 white and white 11 40 3 white and silver 12 55 4 silver and white 12 50 5 yellow and silver 12 120 6 white and silver 12 65 7 white and tan 10 60 8 white and tan 10 50 9 white and tan 10 50 10 gray and yellow 13 80 11 white and tan 10 35 Appendix 9 Mean: µ = ∑x / n Experimental condition 2 (“smash”): ∑x = 437 km/hrs, n = 11 participants Mean = 437/11 km/hrs = 39.7 km/hrs Experimental condition 1 (“contact”): ∑x = 660 km/hrs, n = 11 participants Mean = 660/11 km/hrs = 60 km/hrs Mean percentage difference between condition 1 and 2: 60-39.7 • 100 = 50% Appendix 10 Standard deviation: σ = ∑x • f - ¯x Standard deviation in experimental condition 1 (“contact”): 27.59 Standard deviation in experimental condition 2 (“smash”): 23.23
The first study I reviewed was “Creating False Memories: Remembering Words Not Presented in Lists” by Roediger III and Kathleen B. McDermott. The study was published in 1995, in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory & Cognition. Roediger and McDermott conducted two separate experiments in their study. The experiments were modeled after Deese’s 1959 study “On the Prediction of Occurrences of Particular Verbal Intrusions in Immediate Recall.” The results of Deese’s study concluded that participants falsely recalled a nonpresented critical lure 44% of the time. 36 students from Rice University participated in Roediger and McDermott’s first experiment. The students participated as part of a course project. The participants were presented with six lists that were developed from Deese’s study and Russell and Jenkins 1954 study “The complete Minnesota norms for responses to 100 words from the Kent-Rosanoff word association Test.” The six lists that were chosen for the Roediger and McDermott study were shown to elicit high rates of false recall in Deese’s study. The list contained 12 associated words that related to one nonpresented word. An example nonpresented word is chair, the 12 associated w...
The experiment began with Milgram placing an advertisement in the local newspaper to recruit volunteers for his experiment. The experiment began with the introduction of the other participant, the other participant being an ally of Milgram’s. Afterwards, each participant would draw straws to decide which role they would take up, the “teacher” or the “learner.” However, the decision was always fixed so that the participant would always end up being the teacher. The learner would then be strapped to an electric chair by the teacher and would have a list of words read to him to be
Another confound that may impact the results of this study could be the testing effect. Repeated testing may lead to better or worse performance. Changes in performance on the test may be due to prior experience with the test and not to the independent variable. In addition, repeated testing fatigues the subjects, and their performance declines as a result (Jackson, 2012). Because the professor is interested in determining if the implementation of weekly quizzes would improve test scores, an experimenter and/or an instrumentation effect may also affect results.
The second stage of memory processing is storage. Aronson et al. (2013) defines storage as the process by which people store the information they just acquired. Unfortunately, memories are affected by incoming information through alteration or reconstruction. This phenomenon is referred to as recon...
Ebbinghaus’ work on memory performance contributed astonishing knowledge to the field of scientific psychology and enthralled several succeeding researchers and psychologists (Fuchs, 1997; Slamecka, 1985; Young, 1985). Ebbinghaus was precisely known for conducting memory experiments by using nonsense syllables, and from the results of those experiments, he postulated a unitary view of learning and memory. However, Endel Tulving, provided evidence from Ebbinghaus’ original research that there existed discernible kinds of learning and memory. Prior to his experiment, Tulving received some scathing criticism on his stance regarding Ebbinghaus’ research, but he averred that there was no intention to derogate its concept (Slamecka, 1985; Tulving, 1985). Rather, Tulving’s experiment emanated from Ebbinghaus’ original research to address implications that would supplement knowledge about the psychological science of memory.
Research has shown that even though information may be committed to memory, what is retrieved can be altered during the encoding process. It has been said that, “the recollection of memory can be manipulated and or large aspects of the event can be confabulated.” (Cain,1997). Moreover, the recollection of past experiences can negatively affect future decisions, opinions, and more significant outcomes such as an eyewitness. This type of impact is due to something called, “false memories.” False memories can be defined as “an recollection of an event that never actually occurred.” False memories are said to be normal occurrences and have little impact on lives. However, Loftus and Palmer argue something different. In 1974, Loftus and Palmer conducted an experiment to test out the theory behind “false memories.” Their aim was to show that language used in eyewitness testimony can alter memory. People in this experiment were asked to estimate the speed of motor vehicles using different ways of questioning. Loftus and Palmer asked questions in regards to vehicle speed because typically that is something that most people are bad at estimating. Therefore these people would be more vulnerable and open to suggestions. The procedure of this experiment involved participants watching a video of cars. Participants were asked what they had seen in regards to how that car came in contact with the other car. Loftus and Palmer used words like “crashed, collided, hit, and smashed.” Their findings concluded that the estimated speed was affected by the verb used to describe the cars’ contact with one another. It seem as if participants saw that the verbs as clues of the speed the cars were going. Loftus and Palmer also came to the conclusion that there could only be two reasons for their findings. Those reasons were Response- bias factors or the fact that the memory representation is alter.
...Baddeley (1966) study of encoding in the short term memory and long term memory supports the MSM model on the mode of processing such that words are processed on recall and both models share the same opinion that processing does influence recall. Finally, the MSM model of memory states that all information is stored in the long term memory, however, this interpretation contrasts with that of Baddeley (1974) who argue that we store different types of memories and it is unlikely that they occur only in the LTM store. Additionally, other theories have recognised different types of memories that we experience, therefore it is debatable that all these different memories occur only in the long-term memory as presumed by the multi-store model which states the long term memory store as with unlimited capacity, in addition it also fails to explain how we recall information.
Human memory is flexible and prone to suggestion. “Human memory, while remarkable in many ways, does not operate like a video camera” (Walker, 2013). In fact, human memory is quite the opposite of a video camera; it can be greatly influenced and even often distorted by interactions with its surroundings (Walker, 2013). Memory is separated into three different phases. The first phase is acquisition, which is when information is first entered into memory or the perception of an event (Samaha, 2011). The next phase is retention. Retention is the process of storing information during the period of time between the event and the recollection of a piece of information from that event (Samaha, 2011). The last stage is retrieval. Retrieval is recalling stored information about an event with the purpose of making an identification of a person in that event (Samaha, 2011).
Similar studies were done to a different set of college students and they tended to have the same results. After giving as much detail about each memory, the students were interviewed about what they may have written done about what they had remembered. During the last part of the experiment, each of the students were debriefed and asked to guess which memory they believed was false.
Farrants, J. (1998, September). The 'false' memory debate. Counseling Psychology Quarterly. Retrieved September 14, 2000 from ProQuest database (Bell & Howell Information and Learning-ProQuest) on the World Wide Web: http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb
Atkinson, R.C. & Shiffrin, R.M. (1968). Human memory: A proposed system and its control process.
According to Sternberg (1999), memory is the extraction of past experiences for information to be used in the present. The retrieval of memory is essential in every aspect of daily life, whether it is for academics, work or social purposes. However, many often take memory for granted and assume that it can be relied on because of how realistic it appears in the mind. This form of memory is also known as flashbulb memory. (Brown and Kulik, 1977). The question of whether our memory is reliably accurate has been shown to have implications in providing precise details of past events. (The British Psychological Association, 2011). In this essay, I would put forth arguments that human memory, in fact, is not completely reliable in providing accurate depictions of our past experiences. Evidence can be seen in the following two studies that support these arguments by examining episodic memory in humans. The first study is by Loftus and Pickrell (1995) who found that memory can be modified by suggestions. The second study is by Naveh-Benjamin and Craik (1995) who found that there is a predisposition for memory to decline with increasing age.
Memory is the tool we use to learn and think. We all use memory in our everyday lives. Memory is the mental faculty of retaining and recalling past experiences. We all reassure ourselves that our memories are accurate and precise. Many people believe that they would be able to remember anything from the event and the different features of the situation. Yet, people don’t realize the fact that the more you think about a situation the more likely the story will change. Our memories are not a camcorder or a camera. Our memory tends to be very selective and reconstructive.
Stroop, J. R. (1935). Studies of interference in serial verbal reactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology,18:643-662.
Learning to tie shoes and ride a bike requires the encoding, storing, and retrieving of past observations of the procedure. With a lot of practice, children master these skills so well that they are able to remember them the rest of their lives. Memory is the storing of information over time. It is one of the most important concepts in learning; if things are not remembered, no learning can take place. As a process, memory refers to the "dynamic mechanism associated with the retention and retrieval of information about past experiences" (Sternberg 260). We use our memory about the past to help us understand the present. The study or memory in psychology is used in different ways, as well as there are many different ways to study how memory works in humans. In psychology there are many tasks used to measure memory, and different types of memory storages that human's use, such as sensory storing, or short term storing. There are also a lot of techniques that humans use to improve their memory, which they can use to learn, such as mnemonic devices. All these things can be classified as important issues in the study of human memory and ways of learning.