Bahrick et al

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Bahrick et al 1975

Aim: To look at the duration of LTM

Method: 392 people asked he names of their ex classmates. (Free recall). They were then shown photos and asked to recall names of the people shown OR asked to match the name to the photo. (Photo recognition test).

Results:

After 15 years : 90% recall of names and faces, 60% accuracy of free recall.

After 30: free recall declined to 30%

After 48: Name recognition - 80% accurate, photo recognition

Conclusion: Recognition is better than recall. Not always easy to access info in our brains without a prompt

Evaluation:

Field experiment- high ecological validity.

Not all variables controlled

Could be meaningful

Could be rehearsed

Cannot be generalised

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