Interference

• Interference


  Recall of one memory blocks the recall of another, causing forgetting or distorted perceptions of these memories
• Interference


  • Can be retroactive (new memories block the recollection of old memories)
  • Can be proactive (old memories block the recollection of new memories)
• Retroactive interference study


  1. Participants divided into 6 groups to recall different lists of words (synonyms, antonyms, words unrelated to the original list, 3 digit numbers, consonant syllables) or no new list (control group)

  2. Those who'd learnt the synonyms list experienced an average of 3.1 fewer correct items recalled, compared to the control group
• Extent of forgetting


  Positively correlated with similarity of memories/materials
• The artificial stimuli used in these tasks, such as learning lists of random words with no personal meaning to the participants, means that the findings of interference studies are likely to have low mundane realism</b>
• In real life, we are likely to learn lists of meaningful information, such as revision topics for psychology, which we draw links upon and also which have personal meaning to us. These factors may also influence the extent of forgetting, rather than interference alone
• Interference has been consistently demonstrated in several studies, particularly in lab experiments
• The use of highly-controlled conditions in lab experiments, standardised instructions alongside the removal of the biasing effects of extraneous and confounding variables increases the validity of the interference theory
• Baddeley and Hitch study

  1. Rugby players had to recall their last game and the number of games they'd played that season

  2. The number of games they'd played since was more important than the total time they'd been playing for

  3. This can be explained in terms of retroactive interference, where the more games each player had played, the more likely the memories of these newer games would interfere or block the recall of older games
• Interference studies are often conducted in very short spaces of time, with participants recalling their words 1 or 2 hours after they have learnt them
• This does not reflect the normal passage of time in everyday life, where we often find that several days pass until we need to recall such information e.g. in the case of an exam
• This suggests that interference is unlikely to be a valid explanation for forgetting from the LTM