Reconstructive Memory

Reconstructive Memory

1. Bartlett (1932)

   • Bartlett thought that memory was not just a stored copy of facts. He thought we change our memories to fit in with what we already know, even though we think we are remembering exactly what happened. this is known as reconstructive memory.
   • His aim was to see if people, when given something unfamiliar to remember, would alter the information.
   • His method was to ask participants to read a story called 'The War Of The Ghosts', which is a native American legend. Later they were asked to retell the story as accurately as possible. This retelling was repeated several times over the next few weeks.
   • Bartlett discovered that participants found it difficult to remember bits of the story concerned with spirits and changed other bits of the story so it made more sense to them. Each time the story was retold it changed some more.
   • Bartlett concluded that our memory is influenced by our own beliefs.

2. Wynn and Logie (1998)

   • Their aim was to see if the recall of familiar stories changed in the same way that Bartlett found with unfamiliar stories.
   • They asked university students to recall details of their first week at university. They were asked to do this several times throughout the year.
   • Their results showed that the accuracy of their descriptions remained the same no matter how many times they were asked to recall the information. this is the opposite to Bartlett's study who's participants changed their stories every time.
   • Wynn and Logie concluded that memories of familiar events will not change over time.

3. Evaluation

   • The reconstructive explanation is important because it emphasises the influence of people's previous knowledge and background on the way they remember things.