Reconstructive memory

• Reconstructive Memory

  • Reconstructive memory isthe omission or addition of details to a recalled event based on an individual's personal experience.Bartlett (1932) first proposed the theory of reconstructive memory. Memories are not like a tape recorder that plays back an exact recording. Instead, it reconstructs them imaginatively. According to our schemas, we alter our memories to fit what we expect them to be.
• • Memories are pieced together from:

  1. Actual event details
  2. Schemas
  3. Post-event information
• • Reconsolidation:

  Memories become malleable when retrieved and can be influenced
• Memory reconstruction involves:


  1. Piecing together actual details
  2. Activating relevant schemas
  3. Making assumptions based on past experiences, stereotypes, and beliefs

  • Active processing for understanding
• Related Phenomena:

  1. Confabulation
  2. Schema processing
  3. False memories
• Empirical Evidence

  • Strong support from numerous studies:

  • Bartlett's (1932) "War of the Ghosts" study
  • Loftus and Palmer's (1974) car crash experiment
  • Neisser and Harsch's (1992) Challenger explosion study

  • Evidence from various fields:

  • Cognitive psychology
  • Neuroscience (e.g., studies on memory reconsolidation)
  • Forensic psychology (eyewitness testimony research)
• Testability


  • Highly testable through various experimental methods:

  • Laboratory studies (e.g., Bartlett's "War of the Ghosts")
  • Field studies (e.g., Flashbulb Memory research)
  • Eyewitness testimony experiments

  • Can be tested using:

  • Recall tasks
  • Recognition tasks
  • Comparison of memories with factual records
• Applications

  • Legal system: Improving eyewitness interview techniques. Understanding limitations of eyewitness testimony

  • Therapy: Addressing potential issues with recovered memorie. Developing techniques to minimize false memory creation

  • Education: Enhancing learning strategies based on memory reconstruction principles.
• Consistent with neurological findings:

  • Supports the idea of distributed memory storage in the brain
  • Aligns with studies on neural plasticity and memory reconsolidation
• Aligns well with other cognitive theories:

  • Schema theory
  • Information processing model
  • Levels of processing theory
• Usefulness

  • Explains real-world phenomena:

  • Inaccuracies in eyewitness testimonies
  • Formation of false memories
  • Differences in recall of shared experiences

  • Informs practices in:

  • Legal proceedings
  • Clinical psychology
  • Educational methods
• Predictive Power

  • Can predict:

  • Likelihood of memory distortions under certain conditions
  • Factors that might influence memory accuracy

  • Limitations in predictive power:

  • Individual differences in memory processes
  • Complexity of real-world situations vs. controlled experiments
• Reconstructive Nature of Memory

  • Memory is not a perfect reproduction but a reconstruction influenced by various factors
  • Bartlett's concept of "effort after meaning"