Interference Theory
PSY 400, Human Memory
April 5, 2004
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Interference Theory in Human Memory: Retroactive & Proactive Interference - Prof. Marc How, Study notes of Psychology
The concept of interference theory in human memory, focusing on retroactive and proactive interference, unlearning, and spontaneous recovery. Results from various experiments, such as the classic melton & irwin study, and explanations of concepts like modified free recall and modified modified free recall. It also touches upon the debate over decay versus interference as causes of forgetting.
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Interference Theory
PSY 400, Human Memory
April 5, 2004
Housekeeping
- Get back your exam
- Implicit memory due Wednesday
- Chapter 6 is closest to the material we’ll talk about today
Let’s go over it
Important things from last time
- Distinction between explicit/implicit, direct/indirect
- Logic, results of serial reaction time task experiment.
- Memory systems and double dissociations
The implicit learning experiment
results
(45 Ss including last semester)
(^1 2 3 4 5 6) Block 7 8 9 10 11 12
400
440
480
520
560
Reaction Time (ms)
Did you notice what happened at
block 10?
Implicit learning experiment report
- Empirical results: logic of random vs blocked?
- Methodological issues?
- Theoretical discussion: Do you think there’s a “subconscious” memory system driving this result?
Overview of today’s material
- Some loose ends from implicit memory/memory systems
- Interference theory.
- Retroactive and Proactive interference
- Findings from MFR and MMFR.
- Spontaneous recovery
- Is there unlearning?
Procedural
- Simple (Pavlovian) conditioning.
- Motor skills (riding a bike).
- Some sequence learning problems.
Perceptual representation system
- Argued to be responsible for repetition priming
- Priming of possible, but not impossible objects (Fig 7.6).
- The possible objects must have their own special region.
- Ratcliff and McKoon (1995) argued this is due to recollection (Table 7.5)
What causes forgetting over time?
Decay vs Interference
- We forget over time.
- Is this a consequence of time per se?
- Think of rust...
Melton & Irwin (1940): the classic
retroactive interference study
- Ss learned serial lists by the method of anticipation.
- They learned list 1, then list 2 for some number of trials (control group zero trials list 2).
- At the end, tested on list 1.
- RI is difference between the control group and the experimental groups’ recall.
Melton and Irwin’s “Factor X”
- RI goes up with second list learning.
- Intrusions from second list go up, then down.
- What accounts for the difference?