IB Psychology
Mr. Detjen
CLoA Research Studies: Student Summaries
Taylor Alexander
IB Psychology
1-22-2013
Yuille and Cutshall: The Effectiveness of Testimonies Using Real Eye-witnesses
Aim:
The aim of the Yuille and Cutshall study of 1986 is to investigate the precision of eye-witness
testimonies from a real crime.
Procedure:
Yuille and Cutshall’s initial purpose for this research study was to criticize and challenge Loftus and
Palmer’s study of 1974. Twenty-one eye witnesses were interviewed by the police. The same methodology was
used as in the 1974 Loftus and Palmer study, an interview during the study. These participants were between the
ages of 15 and 32 and were interviewed four to five months after the incident.
Results/Findings:
Researchers found 1000 plus details total in comparison to the average of 650 by police. This was due to
the questions asked by researchers that were not as relevant to the crime to be asked by police officials. They
found that misleading questions and verb phrases did not alter memories when asked to recall them.
Conclusion/Evaluations:
Yuille and Cutshall concluded that the wording of a question does not have an effect on the distortion of
memory but the level of distress experienced during the incident mirrored the level of accuracy. However, the
study suggested that the memories of the incident were more comprehensive and detailed from those who were
closer to the incident.
Reference:
http://a2psychology101.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2-9-yuille-and-cutshall-1986.pdf
Emily Forsythe
IB Psychology
January 18, 2013
Miller, G.A. “The magical number seven, plus or minus two: Some limits on our capacity for processing
information”
Psychological Review, 63 (1956), 81-97
Aim: The aim was to determine how the brain’s short term memory could best hold information, such as
chunks of 7 plus or minus 2.
Procedure: The participants get familiar with 10 different tones that vary only in their pitch. For each of these
stimuli, they have a particular response they are to give acknowledging that they heard and recognize the
stimulus.
Results/Findings: Each participant was basically perfect in giving the correct response for each tone until the
5th or 6th tone in the set of 10. Each tone given after the 5th or 6th declines in the number of correct responses
given.
Conclusion/Evaluation: The short term memory can only handle five to nine chunks of information, hence the
magic number 7 plus or minus 2. Any more than that and the likelihood of remembering information through
short term memory is slim to none. The strengths of this experiment are that it used a solid number of stimuli to
help support the claim Miller was making. There were some limitations with this study though, such as
confusion with responses for each of the tones. Participants were not only remembering the tones but also which
responses had to go with each tone so in all actuality there were 20 items for the participants to attempt to
remember not just the 10 tones.
Reference: Christopher D. Green, Classics in the History of Psychology (York University, Toronto, Ontario)
Imani Taylor
IB Psychology
22 January 2013
Anderson and Pichert (1978)
AIM: The aim of this study was to see how a person's schema and perspective effects how the individual may
encode and later retrieve what they view to be important information.
PROCEDURE: Several participants were giving a story, randomly picked participants were told to read the
story from a burglar’s perspective and the other from the perspective of a home buyer. Each group was given
the same amount of details in their story. After the story the participants were given something to distract them
for twelve minutes and then asked to list off what they could recall, based on their given perspective, and list
some of the details and items from the story in order of importance. A second test was given where the
perspective switched and the people were to recall the units again from their perspective. Then seven days later
the groups of participants were asked to recall the items in order of importance, from their given perspective,
again.
RESULTS/FINDINGS: After the second test when the participants recalled items the ones who switched
perspectives were able to recall more items than before even though their perspective had switched, but after
seven days the number of items they were able to recall had diminished.
CONCLUSION/EVALUATION: Our perspective and overall schemas influence how we view the world
because they help us on what we see as significant or not significant. This in turn effects our encoding and
retrieval because if something does not fit to a certain schema then there would be no use in encoding and in
turn if something is not encode there is nothing to be retrieved.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Source_criticism
http://quizlet.com/7420509/ib-psychology-cognitive-level-of-analysis-flash-cards/
http://www.marydanielsbrown.com/weblog/2007/09/perspective-classic-study.html
Craik and Lockhart (1972)
AIM: The aim of this study was to show that long-term memory and short-term memory weren't too much
different and that things were retained based off of how deep and meaningful something is rehearsed not how
many times something is rehearsed.
PROCEDURE: In the study participants were given a list of 60 words and then asked one of three questions
for each word, each question based upon depth. The levels of depth were based on semantics, structure or
phonemics; each question correlating with how far in the memory the would be stored. After the 60 words and
60 questions the participants were given a list of 180 words and asked to identify the 60 words that they
remember.
RESULTS/FINDINGS: Participants remembered and "found" more words that had semantic questions
corresponding with them in the 60 words mixed in the 180 words.
CONCLUSION/EVALUATION: Craik and Lockhart concluded that because so many words that had
semantic questions asked about them were remembered then semantic rehearsal involves deeper processing and
therefore deeper storage in the memory.
http://www.lifecircles-inc.com/Learningtheories/IP/craiklockhart.html
http://www.simplypsychology.org/levelsofprocessing.html
Karl Wimmer
Detjen
IB Psychology
22 January 2013
Deffenbacher et al. “A Meta-Analytic Review of the Effects of High Stress on
Eyewitness Memory”
Law and Human Behavior 28 (2004) pp.687-706
Aim: The aim of the study was to examine the performance of eyewitness testimonies while under conditions of
heightened stress.
Procedure: Meta-analyses were conducted on 27 independent tests of the effects of heightened stress on
eyewitness identification of the perpetrator and separately on 36 tests of eyewitness recall of details associated.
Results: The findings showed considerable support for the hypothesis that high levels of stress negatively
impact both of the eyewitness memory types. The overall effect sizes were .31 for both the correct
identifications and the accuracy of eyewitness recall
Reference:
Deffenbacher, Kenneth A.; Bornstein, Brian H.; Penrod, Steven D.; and McGorty, E. Kiernan, "A MetaAnalytic Review of the Effects of High Stress on Eyewitness Memory" (2004). Faculty Publications,
Department of Psychology. Paper 182.
Princess Hollins
Mr. Detjen
IB Psychology
22, January 2013
Milner and Scoville (1957)
The Milner and Scoville study of 1957 was a case study about a man named
H. M., conducted by William Beecher Scoville and Brenda Milner. The
patient suffered damage to his temporal lobe. The aim was to study the
effects of brain damage on behavior.
The patient had epilepsy, which could not be treated with drugs.
Therefore, surgeons removed his hippocampus bilaterally. The results
showed that both H. M.'s personality and intellect remained the same;
however it presented anterograde and retrograde amnesia. He was left with
a 90 second memory span. Though procedural and semantic memory was intact,
the patient's memory was not capable of incorporating new information. The
conclusion was that the hippocampus may be a specific location for the
formation of long term memory. Milner and Scoville also concluded that the
hippocampus played a crucial role in the formation of memory of recent
events.
One ethical concern was that the patient was not able to give informed
consent. Also, you can't have a part of a person's brain removed to
conduct a study on their behavior. A limitation of this study is that
because it was a case study, the findings may not have been ably to apply
to most people. A strength is that this study provided new information
about human behavior and memory. This study is relevant to the cognitive
level of analysis, because memory is a cognitive process.
Sources:
http://web.mit.edu/bnl/pdf/Scoville_Milner_1957.pdf
http://quizlet.com/2401531/models-of-memory-study-flash-cards/
Jarren Gorka
IB Psychology
23 January 2013
Atkinson and Shiffrin
The Primacy and Recency Effects
Aim: To outline a model for memory.... Explain the primacy and and recency effects.
Procedure: Colored cards (one side colored, the other blank) were presented to participants.
Participants were allowed to view the card for no more than two seconds, before being asked to
name the color of the card. After having gone through the entire stack, the participant was asked to
start from the beginning of the stack and rename recall the colored cards. If uncertain, participants
were told to guess the color. If a response was incorrect, the experimenter informed the participant of
the correct answer.
Results / Findings: This study introduced the primacy and recency effects. The primacy effect is a
result of a greater amount of attention and rehearsal being allocated to the first few items of a list.
This allocation allows for a higher probability that those first few items to be transferred into long term
memory. The recency effect is attributed to short term memory in that the most recently rehearsed
items for a list are remembered. With all that said, if given a list to remember, you are more likely to
remember the first few items, thanks to long term memory, and the last few items, thanks to short
term memory; however, you are less likely to remember anything in between.
Conclusion / Evaluation: One source, Dr. Eugen Tarnow, argues that ideas, such as long term
memory storage, are not well defined and therefore cannot form a theory. He also argues that
theories are fitted to certain results; therefore, what Atkinson and Shiffrin were trying to pass off as a
theory can only be applied to their data. It should be noted that, with that idea of Tarnow’s in mind, all
theories can be thrown out of the window. With Tarnow’s critiques in mind, it should also be noted
that Atkinson and Shiffrin eventually expanded on this memory model and idea of primacy/recency
effects by introducing Atkinson and Shiffrin’s Multi-Store Model of Memory.
References
- Atkinson, R.C., and R.M. Shiffrin. Some Two-Process Models for Memory. Rep. no.
107. N.p.:
Stanford University, 1966. Psychology Ser. University of California San
Diego. Web.
<http://www.rca.ucsd.edu/selected_papers/IMSSS_107.pdf>.
- Smith, Michelle L. "The Forgotten Middle Child of Memory: The Serial Position Effect." THE SERIAL
POSITION EFFECT. Tennessee State University, n.d. Web.
<http://capone.mtsu.edu/sschmidt/Cognitive/sample_report.htm>.
- Tarnow, Eugen. "Why The Atkinson-shiffrin Model Was Wrong From The Beginning."
WebmedCentral.com. Webmed, 19 Oct. 2010. Web.
<http:www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/1021>.
Multi-Store Model of Memory
Aim: To outline a model for memory.
Procedure:
Results / Findings:
Sensory Memory
duration: 1/4 - 1/2 second
capacity: all sensory experience
encoding: specific to each sense
Short Term Memory
duration: 0 - 18 seconds
capacity: around 7 items
encoding: mainly auditory
Long Term Memory
duration: unlimited
capacity: unlimited
encoding: mainly semantic
Conclusion / Evaluation: A major critique of the memory model is that it is too oversimplified,
especially in the sense that it suggests short term and long term memory work as single entities.
Newer research now shows that short term and long term memory is much more complex. On the
other hand, Atkinson and Shiffrin’s work has helped to generate expansive research into memory.
References
- Lynch, Patrick. "Atkinson-Shiffrin Model." Explorable. N.p., 2011. Web.
<http://explorable.com/atkinson-shiffrin-model.html>.
- McLeod, Saul. "Multi Store Model of Memory - Atkinson and Shiffrin, 1968." Simply
N.p., 2007. Web.
<http://www.simplypsychology.org/multi-store.html>.
Psychology.
Alyssa January
IB Psychology
January 23, 2013
How the Brain Reveals Why We Buy: Kilts (2003)
Aim: The aim of this study was to find out which areas of the brain are involved in forming preferences
(individual’s attitude toward a set of objects).
Procedure: The participants were given an assortment of different consumer goods. Then the participants were
asked to rate the products on a numerical scale based on appeal. After that participants were placed in an MRI
scanner that measured their brain activity while they viewed same goods.
Results: When a participant viewed a product they liked, blood rushed to an area toward the front of the brain
called the medial prefrontal cortex.
Conclusions: The medial prefrontal cortex is an area involved in self-awareness and the structure of our
personality.
Reference
http://isbeijingpsychology.wikispaces.com/Tech+in+Investigating+Cognitive+Process
Kaliice Walker
IB Psychology
January 19, 2013
Corkin et al. “H.M.’s Medical Temporal Lobe Lesion: Finding from Magnetic Resonance Imaging” The
Journal of Neuroscience (1997), 17(10):3964-3979
Aim: The aim of this was to use new MRI techniques to assess areas throughout H.M.’s brain.
Procedure: Participant H.M. stayed at the MIT Clinical Research center where he participated in research that
farther studied the damage done to his temporal lobe. Researchers took scans of brain using magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI).
Results/Findings: Researchers found that the temporal lobe lesions were less than Scoville estimated at the
time of the original surgery. They found that the ablation damaged the anterior of the medial temporal polar
cortex bilaterally and most of the amygdaloid complex.
Conclusion/Evaluation: Since this evaluation of H.M.’s brain many other scans have taken place. The research
resulting from the H.M. bilateral MTL tissue has opened the doors to the field of cognitive neuroscience of
memory. Research done him as had a huge impact on this field, because researchers to this day are still
interested on understanding the full spectrum of damage in H.M.
Source: Original Article (” The Journal of Neuroscience (1997), 17(10):3964-397)
Hannah Florence
IB Psychology
15 January 2013
Contextual Prerequisites for Understanding: Some Investigations of Comprehension and Recall
John D. Bransford and Marcia K. Johnson (1972)
Aim: To isolate the stage(s) where schemas are introduced and are likely to manipulate processing.
Method: Participants are place into one of three experimental conditions and are read a speech. The three
experimental conditions include:
1. Participants hear the speech but are not told the title at any point in time.
2. Participants are told the title of the speech before the speech is actually read to them.
a. i.e. “This speech will be about washing clothes.”
3. Participants are told the title of the speech after the speech is read to them.
a. i.e. “The speech you just heard was about washing clothes.”
Results: The participants who were in the condition in which no title was given and the participants in the
condition that were given a title after the speech reportedly had more difficulty comprehending the speech than
did the participants who were in the group that was given a title before the speech was read.
Conclusion: Those participants in the condition in which the title was given before the speech were able to use
a schema they already had about washing clothes to make sense of the following speech about washing clothes.
The participants in the group that received the title after the speech received this vital information too late to
fully understand what was read to them and by the time the title was revealed, some information from the
speech has already been forgotten.
Strengths: This research included three conditions, one being a control group which the research’s objective
views. Due to the three experimental conditions, it became easier to see the relation between schemas and
comprehension.
Weaknesses: The participants used are not representative of the entire population so the findings may be hard
to generalize. Ecological validity is not fully achieved since this is a laboratory experiment and due to the fact
that individuals, in most cases, will be told the title of any speech or at least have a general concept of what is
going to be talked about, before the speech is actually given. If participants knew that they were going to be
listening to a speech, demand characteristics may have been exhibited.
http://www.uic.edu/classes/psych/psych353cs/Bransford_&_Johnson_1972.pdf
http://www.scribd.com/doc/54082244/4/Genetics-and-behavior
Hannah Florence
IB Psychology
14 January 2013
Glanzer and Cunitz (1966)
Aim: To test the serial position effect in relation to short-term memory capacity.
Method: A participant group, consisting of 240 army enlisted men, is split into two experimental groups. The
first group read a list of words and was immediately asked to recall as many words as possible that they could
remember from the presentation. The second group was read the same list of words and then there was a thirty
second delay in which the participants had to count backwards in threes from a three digit number. After the
delay, the participants were then asked to recall as many words as they could remember from the presentation.
Results: The group that was in the immediate recall condition exhibited the serial position effect in which the
first few terms on the list were able to be moved to their long-term memory due to the fact that they could be
slightly rehearsed without distraction/delay. The short-term memory store was able the rehearse the words when
there was no distraction, as opposed to the group that was distracted and the short-term memory had no time to
convert the information into the long-term memory.
Strength: This research was able to look closely at the capacity of short-term memory recall while limiting the
effect of long-term memory conversion.
Weakness: Simply reading words and then having to recall as many as possible cannot be related to many, if
any, real world situations.
http://www.nickoh.com/emacs_files/psychology/ss_dir/glanzer_cunitz1966.html
http://www.scribd.com/doc/54082244/4/Genetics-and-behavior
http://mrhansson.weebly.com/1/post/2011/5/the-glanzer-and-cunitz-1966-study.html
http://quizlet.com/11767233/glanzer-and-cunitz-1966-flash-cards/