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Reconstructive Psychology, : - Coggle Diagram
Reconstructive Psychology
What is reconstructive memory?
Based on the idea that memory that is not saved as complete and coherent wholes.
Retrieval of memory is influenced by our perception, our beliefs, past experience, cultural factors and the context in which we are recalling the information.
Schema influence what we encode and what we retrieve from memory.
Efforts after meaning.
Bartlett argued that we try to make sense of the past by adding our interpretations
of events and deducing what most likely happened.
Bartlett argued that we try to make sense of the past by adding our interpretations
of events and deducing what most likely happened.
Loftus and Pickrell (1995)
Participants:
The study involved 3 males and 21 females. Prior to the experiment, a parent or sibling of each participant was contacted and asked two questions: 1) Could you retell three childhood memories of the participant? 2) Do you remember a time when the participant was lost in a mall?
Aim
:
The objective of Lotus and Pickrell (1995) experiment was to investigate the potential creation of false memories of autobiographical events through the power of suggestion.
Procedure
Participants received a questionnaire by mail, containing instructions to write about four memories. Three memories were real, while the fourth was a fabricated memory of "getting lost in the mall."
Participants were instructed to mail back the completed questionnaire to the psychologists. If they did not recall the event, they were to write "I do not remember this."
Two interviews were conducted over a four-week period. During each interview, participants were asked to recall details about the four events and rate their confidence levels on a scale of 1 - 10.
After the second interview, participants were debriefed and asked if they could identify the false memory.
Results:
Approximately 25% of the participants "recalled" the false memory of getting lost in the mall. Notably, these participants expressed lower confidence in this memory compared to the other three. They also provided less detail about the false memory in their questionnaires.
Evaluation:
Strengths
: High ecological validity as participants discussed their childhood memories. Applicability in areas such as eyewitness testimony and therapy.
Limitations
Lack of explanation for why only 25% of participants developed false memories.
Difficulty distinguishing between a "true" false memory and a distortion of another memory.
Ethical concerns related to deception, potential contamination, and demand characteristics.
This study offers compelling evidence for the power of suggestion in creating false memories, but it also prompts considerations about susceptibility variations and ethical implications.
Loftus and Palmer
Aim
: Loftus and Palmer aimed to investigate the impact of leading questions on the estimation of speed in relation to traffic accidents.
Participants
: A total of 45 student participants took part in two experiments. They were divided into five groups, each consisting of nine students.
Procedure
Experiments
: Two experiments were conducted using student participants.
Stimulus
: Participants watched videos of traffic accidents, ranging from 5 to 30 seconds, taken from driver's education films.
Questioning
: After watching the videos, participants were asked questions about the accidents, including a critical question about estimating the speed of the cars.
For example, the critical question varied in wording: "About how fast were the cars going when they smashed into each other?" or with alternative words like 'collided,' 'bumped,' 'hit,' or 'contacted.'
Variable
: The independent variable was the wording of the critical question, and the dependent variable was the estimation of speed provided by participants.
Results
:
Estimation of speed (in mph):
Smashed: 40.8
Collided: 39.3
Bumped: 38.1
Hit: 34.0
Contracted: 31.8
Evaluation:
Ecological Validity:
The experiment's setting in a laboratory with student participants might raise concerns about low ecological validity. The films used were created for teaching purposes, potentially lacking the emotional impact of real accidents.
Confounding Variables
: The experimental method allowed for the control of confounding variables, ensuring that the measured effect was primarily due to the independent variable.
Population Representation
: The use of student participants, likely young and inexperienced drivers, may limit the generalizability of findings to the broader population. However, estimating car speed could be challenging for many individuals.
Loftus and Palmer's (1994) Experiment #2
Aim:
Loftus and Palmer's (1994) Experiment #2 aimed to investigate whether participants who initially provided high-speed estimates in the first part of the experiment would subsequently report seeing broken glass in a follow-up session.
Participants
:
A total of 150 students participated in the experiment. They were divided into different groups of varying sizes.
Procedure
Initial Session:
After viewing the film, participants answered a questionnaire. Half were asked, "About how fast were the cars going when they smashed into each other?" Another group was asked, "About how fast were the cars going when they hit each other?" The remaining participants were not asked to estimate speed.
Participants watched a 1-minute film portraying a multiple-car accident lasting approximately 4 seconds.
Results
:
The researchers found that participants who had initially provided high-speed estimates were more likely to report seeing broken glass in the follow-up session, despite the absence of broken glass in the original accident footage.
Evaluation:
Theoretical Interpretation
: The results align with Bartlett's theory of reconstructive memory, suggesting that participants may have altered details when recalling the event.
Ecological Validity Concerns:
The study has faced criticism for lacking ecological validity. Critics argue that the controlled conditions may not replicate the emotional and stressful elements of real-life eyewitness experiences.
Reliability and Replication:
The experiment has been replicated with consistent results, indicating a high degree of reliability.
Application in Eyewitness Testimonies and Therapy:
Loftus's research on reconstructive memory has been applied to improve data gathering from eyewitnesses and to understand false memories in therapeutic contexts.
Ethical Concerns:
Critics raise ethical concerns, particularly regarding the manipulation of participants' memories. The use of deception, as seen in the Lost in the Mall study, is a notable ethical consideration.
Documentary: The Case of Ronald Cotton
Aim
: The aim of exploring the case of Ronald Cotton and its aftermath is to gain a better understanding of why the victim was convinced that he was her rapist, and to examine the resolutions and changes implemented in criminal investigations based on research findings related to reconstructive memory.
Procedure:
Case Examination:
Analyze the details and circumstances surrounding the case of Ronald Cotton, focusing on the victim's conviction and factors contributing to her belief in Cotton's guilt.
Research Informed Resolutions
Investigate the changes made in criminal investigations following the case.
Examine the impact of reconstructive memory research on shaping these resolutions.
Implementation of Changes:
Explore and understand the specific resolutions adopted as a result of the research.
Examine how these resolutions aim to address issues related to eyewitness identification and memory recall in criminal investigations.
Interview Style Changes:
Investigate the adoption of the Cognitive Interview, a narrative interview style, in gathering evidence from witnesses.
Understand the principles of the Cognitive Interview, including context reinstatement and strategies such as changing perspective and order.
Results
Eyewitness Identification Changes:
Witnesses are more likely to select individuals in line-ups based on clothing rather than physical characteristics.
Line-up participants should match the suspect description, and witnesses should be informed that the suspect may or may not be in the line-up.
Sequential Line-ups
Culter & Penrod advocate for sequential line-ups to improve identification accuracy.
Witnesses should make identifications after each person is presented, and feedback confirming their identification should be avoided.
Cognitive Interview Implementation:
Researchers use a narrative interview style called a Cognitive Interview for gathering evidence.
The Cognitive Interview begins with context reinstatement, aligning with the Encoding Specificity Hypothesis (Tulving & Thomson, 1973).
Cognitive Interview Strategies:
Change of perspective: Asking witnesses to think outside their schema.
Change of order: Breaking down the role of schema by recalling events forward and backward.
Conclusion
: The examination of the Ronald Cotton case and subsequent changes in criminal investigations sheds light on the complexities of eyewitness identification and memory recall. The implemented resolutions aim to enhance the accuracy of investigations while minimizing the impact of reconstructive memory on legal proceedings.
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