Retrieval failure - forgetting occurs when we don’t have the necessary cues to access memory. When information is placed in memory, associated cues are stored at the same time so that we can retrieve the information.

Encoding-specificity principle

If a cue is going to help us recall information it must be present during encoding and retrieval. If the cues are different at encoding and retrieval than there will be forgetting

 

Context dependent failure

Some cues may be based on context. This is the setting or situation in which information is coded or retrieved.  So forgetting can occur if people try and retrieve information in a different setting/situation

E.g. a room

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State dependent learning

A form of CDF where recall occurs in a different internal setting to coding

E.g. Emotional state like drunk/sober state

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Evaluation

Context-dependent forgetting

• Godden and Baddeley (1975) – studied deep-sea divers, as they have to remember key instructions when diving. The ppts were given a list of words to learn either on land or underwater and were then asked to recall the word lists on land of underwater.

• There were four conditions: learn on land-recall on land; learn on land-recall underwater; learn underwater-recall underwater; learn underwater- recall on land.

• Accurate recall was 40% lower in the non-matching conditions.

• Suggests that the context of the learning process can be used as a retrieval cue and when the context is different in the recall phase than retrieval failure occurs.

 

State-dependent forgetting

• Carter and Cassaday (1998) – gave anti-histamine drugs to participants as they have a mild sedative effect. Ppts had to learn lists of words and passages of prose and then recall the information.

• 4 conditions: learn on drug-recall on drug; learn on drug-recall off drug; learn not on drug-recall not on drug; learn not on drug-recall on drug.

• When there was a mismatch between internal state at learning and recall, recall performance was significantly worse.

• It was concluded that when the internal cues are absent, there is more forgetting.

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