retrieval failure

• retrieval failure theory

  forgetting occurs when there is absence of appropriate ques. the encoding principle argues that for a cue to be helpful in recall, it has to be present at encoding and retrieval. it is inaccessible due to lack of cues.
• context dependent forgetting

  being in a different place at recall may stump memory. eternal cues available when learning are different to those at recall. for example, a class room and an exam hall.
• state dependent forgetting

  being in a different mood at recall may stump memory. the internal cues at learning are different from those at recall. for example, drunk v sober.
• abernethy

  a group of students were tested. some were tested in their teaching rooms by their usual instructor, others by a different instructor. others were tested ina different room by either their instructor or a different one. those tested by the same instructor in the same room preformed the best. familiar things acted as memory cues. however higher achieving students were affected by this the least.
• godden and baddeley


  investigated the effect of contextual cues, recruited scuba divers as participants and got them to learn a set of words on land or underwater. they were then tested on land or underwater. results showed that the highest recall occurred when the initial context matches the recall environment.
• goowin et al


  asked male volunteers to remember a list of words when drunk or sober, participants were asked to recall after 24 hours, some got drunk again. information learned when drunk is more available when in the same state later.