Psychology Unit One

Aim-To see if context affects perception     

Sample-64 Psychology students     

DV-Number of correctly identified objects that was counted

IV-Appropiate objects (recognising a loaf of bread after seeing a kitchen scene)

   -Inappropiate, similar objects (recognising a mail box after seeing a kitchen scene)

  -Inappropiate, different objects (recognising a drum after seeing a kitchen scene)

  -No context

Controls-How long participants saw the context and object for

              -Instructions

              -Participants results were not used if they had forgotten their glasses

             -Same four conditions of the context (same scenes and objects)

Results-The participants correctly identified the most objects after seeing an appropiate context; and the least after seeing an inappropiate context

Conclusion-Expectations affect perception. People have a perceptual set based on context which affects how accurately they recognise objects

Percentage of correctly identified objects-Appropiate=83%

                                                                      -Inappropiate, similar=40%

                                                                      -Inappropiate, different=49%

                                                        -No context=63%

Aim-To investigate how information changes with each reproduction and why

Sample-British people (split into two groups: repeated reproduction and serial reproduction)

DV-How accurately the participants recall the story

IV:

Repeated reproduction-Participants had to read 'The War of the Ghosts' twice and then recall it after time delays.

Serial reproduction-One participant had to read 'The War of the Ghosts' twice and after 15-30 minutes they had to retell the story to another participant. The second participant retells their story to the next in a chain of participants.

Controls-How long after reading the story the participants had to recall the story

               -How many times the story is read (twice)

               -The story used (The War of the Ghosts)

              -Culture of participants (British)

Results-Very few participants recalled the story accurately

Pattern of errors:

-Form (order of events)

-Details (names and numbers were lost)

-Simplification (details were left out or made more familiar)

-Addition (inaccurate details were included)

Conclusion-Unfamiliar material changeswhen it is recalled. It becomes shorter, simpler and more stereotypical - this may be due to the affect of schema on memory.

Aim-To find out whether words shown with pictures were remembered

Sample-95 college students and teachers

DV-The drawings compared to the original

IV-The different labels the participants heard in groups one and two

   -The control group (heard no labels)

Controls-The labels heard in each group

             -How long they see the pictures for

             -The control group with no labels, just pictures

             -12 pictures

Results

-List One=73% accurate

-List Two=74% accurate

-Control group=43% accurate

Conclusion-Memory for pictures is reconstructed and the verbal context in which the drawings are learned affects the recall because the memory of the word alters the way the picture is represented.

Schema

We have a framework of knowledge about objects, people, events, places, and these affect our perception of information, and our memories.

Schemas are useful in the real world because they help us to remember and identify objects. For example, we can recognise that we are in school, because of the objects we see around us lets us know what to expect.

Eye witnesses use schemas to recall events better. For example, a witness from a crime scene will remember some details because it is typical to their schema of a crime scene. The eyewitnesses fill in the gaps when recalling the event, so that it fits their expectations by their perceptual set-this is why they can be considered as unreliable.