GRANT (1998) THE STUDY OF CONTEXT-DEPENDENT MEMORY
Background:
Context-dependent memory refers to improved recall of specific episodes or information when the context present at encoding and recalling information are the same. The environment around us acts as memory cues that help to trigger the information that was learned at a specific place (Tulving)
Research method:
This was a laboratory experiment using an independent measures design.The independent variables (IVs) were:
(i) whether the participant read the two page article under silent or noisy conditions
(ii) whether the participant was tested under matching or mismatching conditions. Therefore there were 4 conditions.The dependent variable (DV) was the participant’s performance on (a) a short-answer recall test and (b) a multiple-choice recall test.
Sample:
8 members of a psychology laboratory class served as experimenters. Each experimenter recruited five acquaintances to serve as participants.There were 39 participants ranging in age from 17 to 56 with a mixture of males and females.
Procedure:
Students were tested 1 at a time. The 4 conditions were:Learn in silence, recall in silence – matchinglearn in silence, recall in noise – non-matchinglearn in noise, recall in noise – matchinglearn in noise, recall in silence – non-matchingEach participant wore headphones. Those in noisy conditions listened to the background noise of a cafeteria which consisted of occasional distinct words/phrases and movement of chairs and dishes.The participants read a two-page, three-columned article on psychoimmunology, they were allowed to highlight or underline.The time they took to read the article was recorded and after 2 minutes of finishing they completed to tests.The 10 short-answer test was always administered first to ensure that recall of information from the article was being tested and not recall of information from the 16 multiple- choice test (with 4 possible choices). Instructions, describing the experiment as a class project and stating that participation was voluntary, were read aloud.The entire procedure lasted about 30 minutes.
Results:
There was no significant difference between matching and mismatching conditions on the performance of the two types of test (recall: 10 short answer questions and recognition: 16 multiple choice questions). Godden and Baddeley opposed this as they suggested that people use context dependent memory more in recall tests.Performance on both tests were better when participants learned and retrieved information in matching environmentsThere was no overall effect of noise on performance.Mean average score in the multiple choice test when the participants were in matching silent study and silent test = 14.3Mean average score in the multiple choice test when the participants were in mismatching noisy study and silent test= 12.7Mean average score in the short answer test when the participants were in matching silent study and silent test = 6.7Mean average score in the short answer test when the participants were in mismatchin noisy study and silent test = 4.6
Conclusions:
There are context-dependency effects for newly learned meaningful material regardless of whether a short-answer test or a multiple-choice test is used to assess learningStudying and testing in the same environment leads to enhanced performance.Students are likely to perform better in exams if they study for them with a minimum of background noise because, although there was no overall effect of noise on performance, the fact that there was evidence for context-dependency suggests they are better off studying without background noise as it will not be present during actual testingEVALUATION OF GRANT:
Strengths:
The collection of quantitative scores on the 16 multiple choice test and the 10 short answer test allowed the researchers to analyse and compare data between the conditions so that they could easily see that matching conditions achieved the most accurate memory recall.High reliability as Grant had standardised procedure i.e. the same article, the same environment, all heard material through headphones etc. This allows the study to be easily replicated to assess consistentcy of results.Useful applications are apparent. The study found that matching environments improve memory recall. Therefore, as students will be completing their exams in silence, they should match this with silent revision in order to enhance their chances of better memory recall, and help to increase academic grades.The students were given material that was very similar to course material they would receive at university. They were also told to ‘treat this as a class assignment. Therefore the study has increased ecological validity. This is a strength as it can be better generalised to students educational settings.Highly ethical study, informed consent was given by the 8 psychology students gathering their friends to participate. Students had as much time to read over the pscyhoimmunology material, therefore limited amount of stress caused.
