Lara Parsons, 0308932

Mr Chalker Harris

Cognition and Emotion Task

Word Count: 1321

The experiment used a single subject, placing a physical and emotional burden on them and slowed
down the presentation of stimuli to 2 seconds per stimuli from Ebbinghaus’ original 0.4 seconds,
which allowed the subject time to attach meaning to otherwise meaningless stimuli, and conducted
the experiment at differing times of the day. These measurements may allow room for relatively
small errors in the results, but the replicative nature and precise instructions of the experiment
supports its overall validity and reliability. Murre & Dros (2015) measured memory retention when
maintenance rehearsal is used by comparing the amount of nonsense syllables, a reliable measure
that was consistent and uniform, retained after a certain period after learning, meaning it is easily
replicable and the variables are able to be isolated effectively, especially as inter subject variability
was ruled out, adding further validity to the results.

The independent variable was the time interval which started after learning the list. The dependent
variable was the percentage of correct information recalled from the list at the end of the time
interval. Controlled variables included the format of the information and the environment in which
the experiment was conducted.

Limitations of the experiment included, the controlled laboratory environment, not reflective of real-
world learning conditions and only one type of material was used (nonsense syllables) meaning
Murre & Dros (2015) couldn’t test the response to non-written stimulus, and how visual stimulus can
influence forgetting especially in relation to different cultural methods. Due to no meaning being
attached to the stimulus the study was limited to only measuring the effects of maintenance
rehearsal.

Additionally, the study only examined memory retention over a period of 31 days, which may not
provide a complete understanding of long-term memory retention.

Finally, there were potential variables that may influence memory retention, such as sleep quality or
stress levels, fatigue, restlessness that were not controlled.

The article was published by a credible organization, the United States National Library of Medicine.
It discusses the method, findings and limitations in detail and is structured in an organised manner,
with an abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion, and conclusion, therefore presenting the
complete findings and psychological concepts explored scientifically.

The only participant in the experiment was also one of the authors, meaning there was an
opportunity for confirmation bias to influence the results. Furthermore, the lack of a sufficiently
sized sample, which did not account for the differing educational levels and cultural variation in the
wider population, as cultures accustomed to oral or visual teaching where not accounted for in the
rehearsal of written material, negating some of the result’s credibility in replicating learning.
However, words were removed that had too much meaning in Dutch, the subject’s native language
allowing it to be more generalisable across languages. The subject was 22, so it is possible their
cognitive abilities were still developing, further skewing the data as different results might occur
once the brain has fully developed. However, because the experiment was a replication and the data
yielded very similar results to the numerous replications in the past, the recurrent findings can be
concluded as relatively generalizable.
Murre & Dros (2015) found that their results largely replicated Ebbinghaus’ original findings, with a
rapid decline in memory retention in the first day following learning, followed by a more gradual
decrease over the following days and weeks as seen in Figure 1. The prominent idea Murre & Dros
(2015) explored was the level of processing model, and the study indicates how structural or
phonemic processing which only involves maintenance rehearsal (repetition to help
us hold something in the short term memory) leads to fairly short-term retention of information
(Badri 2016), which is the forgetting curve exhibits a rapid plummet in amount of retained
knowledge shortly after learning if the information is not revisited, as 75% of material is typically
forgotten within the first day (Murre’s & Dros’ (2015). However, after the 24-hour mark, the rate of
forgetting is shown to levels off, consistent across all forgetting curve replications (Finkenbinder
2013), declining at a much slower rate due to human ability to partially absorb the most prominent
details and store them in long term memory, which is why the amount retained after one week is
similar to that after a month (Badri 2016). The research supported Ebbinghaus’ conclusion of the
serial position effect, which is a form of cognitive bias, including both the primacy and recency
effect. These effects occur due to the nature of short-term memory versus long term memory as the
first elements of a list are generally rehearsed the most when one is attempting to recall the list,
meaning they are the first to enter long term memory (Finkenbinder 2013). In contrast, the last
elements of a list remain in short term memory, explaining the recency effect. This is why the first
two and the last three syllables of each list in (Murre’s & Dros’ (2015) experiment were easily
learned and relearned across all time intervals.

While the replication of Ebbinghaus experiment suggests that the forgetting curve remains
exponential this is however contested to an extent by the 2014 study, ‘Measuring forgetting; a
critical review of accelerated long-term forgetting studies’ by G Elliott. The findings of this article
suggest that the condition ALF, in which individuals experience rapid forgetting of information after
an extended period, despite their ability to recall that information in the hours following learning,
can mean the findings of the forgetting curve do not apply to individuals with the condition (Elliott
2014), one which is difficult to detect using existing standardized tests which typically only assess
memory over delays of approximately 40 min (Baker & Zeman, 2017).
(Elliott 2014) concludes that recognition tests may be more sensitive than free recall tests in
measuring ALF as recognition tests may reduce the impact of retrieval failures caused by
interference of this condition. The forgetting curve replication uses free recall tests, therefore
meaning if this easily undetectable condition is present in a subject it may skew the results, again
suggesting a potential of this experiment to not be generalizable to the population.

Murre & Dros (2015) supports human inability to retrieve information in the long term using
methods of maintenance rehearsal, especially if the material has not been revisited, therefore
recommending the repeated use of elaborate rehearsal when processing new information as
semantic encoding is used, where unlike the rehearsal of meaningless stimuli in this experiment,
new information is connected with information already encoded in long term memory, giving it
meaning and allowing more of the new information to enter long term memory.

This topic is heavily applicable in managing how I structure and manage the study I do of written
material learned from a maintenance rehearsal perspective in class that I must retain for a test.
Implementing the key findings of the serial position effect, I will aim to read or recite the most
important ideas or information at the beginning and end of each studying block. Furthermore, as I
understand maintenance rehearsal is less effective as elaborative rehearsal due to the temporary and
fallible nature of short-term memory, I will aim to avoid it, as well as avoiding cramming information
before a test, as it will be rapidly forgotten if not rehearsed over a period of time to enter long term
memory.

I am also able to understand the application of serial position theory for example in advertising
where commonly the most relevant claims about a product are reiterated at the start and end of an
advertisement in order for customer’s to remember the most important benefits of the product
when forming their impression of it. Similarly, when formatting an essay or a lesson, the prominent
ideas are stated in the introduction and the conclusion, in order for a higher chance of the audience
retaining them.

Overall, the study found that the forgetting curve is a robust phenomenon that has remained
relatively consistent over time, and that the rate at which individuals forget written information can
be influenced by a variety of factors, including the position of the material in a list and the time
between learning and recital. The authors suggest that this research has important implications for
educational practices and the design of effective learning strategies.

Bibliography:
E. O. Finkenbinder, 2013, University of Illinois, JSTOR, accessed 7 May 2023,
https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/1413271.pdf

G, Elliott G, 2014, ‘Measuring forgetting: a critical review of accelerated long-term forgetting

H, Badri et al 2016, Institute of Physics, accessed 7 May 2023