GCSEPsychologyAQAExam QuestionsMemoryMemory as an Active Process

Memory as an Active Process (AQA GCSE Psychology): Exam Questions

Exam code: 8182

1 hour19 questions
1
2 marks

One factor that can affect the accuracy of memory is context.

Which two of the following are most likely to occur due to context?

A

We call our new English teacher by our previous teacher's name

B

We cannot remember information during a class test because we revised for the test at home

C

We forget our old mobile phone number since we replaced it with a new one

D

We incorrectly remember our lines in the school play because we have not rehearsed them enough

E

We see the school librarian in the local supermarket and cannot remember his name

How did you do?

2
9 marks

The theory of reconstructive memory states that people recreate their memories by actively using what they already know and believe about the world.

Describe and evaluate one study that has investigated reconstructive memory.

How did you do?

3
1 mark

Which of the following is the correct definition of a ‘false memory’?

Choose one correct answer.

  • A feeling that we have experienced something similar before

  • A memory for something that didn’t happen but feels true

  • Not being able to remember the correct answer to a question

  • The confusion between two similar memories

Choose your answer

4
3 marks

Describe the method used by Bartlett in his ‘War of the Ghosts’ study.

How did you do?

5
4 marks

Read the following information.

Dan and his Uncle Bill are chatting about the day Dan was born.

Dan: “Uncle Bill, what day of the week was I born on?”

Uncle Bill: “I think you were born on a Tuesday. Or maybe it was your older sister who was born on a Tuesday. I get mixed up.”

Use your knowledge of interference to explain why Uncle Bill cannot accurately remember what day of the week Dan was born on.

How did you do?

6a
1 mark

Identify one factor that has been shown to affect the accuracy of memory.

How did you do?

6b
3 marks

Use your knowledge of psychology to describe how the factor you have identified in question (a) affects the accuracy of memory.

How did you do?

7
4 marks

Briefly discuss two criticisms of research into factors that affect the accuracy of memory.

How did you do?

8
9 marks

Tim came home from school and said to his Mum:

‘In our lesson today, the teacher read out a story called the War of the Ghosts. Then we all had to write down what we could remember of the story. It was very difficult. I wrote that the two boys went fishing in a fishing boat, but really one of them went to a battle in a canoe!!’

Discuss what Bartlett’s theory and research into reconstructive memory and at least one theory of language and thought tell us about the possible relationship between language and thought. Refer to Tim’s conversation with his mother as part of your answer.

How did you do?

9
2 marks

Which two of the following are examples of false memories?

A

Remembering being at a party last weekend, even though you did not attend, after a friend insists you were there

B

Forgetting where you put your phone earlier in the day

C

Recalling a childhood event with details that later evidence shows could not have happened

D

Being unable to recall information because you are in a different room from where you learned it

E

Mixing up two similar psychology case studies you revised for an exam

How did you do?

10
9 marks

Describe and evaluate how interference affects the accuracy of memory.

How did you do?

11
2 marks

Which two of the following statements about the reconstructive theory of memory are correct?

A

Cultural and social expectations will not affect recall.

B

Information flows through sensory, short-term and long-term memory.

C

Memory involves effort after meaning.

D

Memory is like a video recording.

E

The way we store and recall information is an active process.

How did you do?

12
2 marks

Briefly evaluate the reconstructive theory of memory.

How did you do?

13
1 mark

Oscar is learning both French and Spanish at school. Sometimes he gets confused and uses French words when he is speaking Spanish.

Which of the following factors best explains the problem Oscar is experiencing?

  • Context

  • False memory

  • Interference

  • Serial position

Choose your answer

14
5 marks

Bartlett investigated the idea that memory is an active process. He gave each participant a Native American Indian story called ‘War of the Ghosts’. He then asked each participant to retell this story several times. He found that participants changed parts of the story when they retold it.

Evaluate Bartlett’s ‘War of the Ghosts’ study.

How did you do?

15
4 marks

Describe Bartlett’s ‘War of the Ghosts’ study.

How did you do?

16
6 marks

Read the following information.

A police officer is reading the statements of two eyewitnesses. Both statements describe the same robbery committed by one person in a local shop.

The first eyewitness described the robber as being a male, in his late teens, wearing a red hoodie and not carrying a weapon.

The second eyewitness described the robber as being a male with a facial scar, in his late-twenties, wearing a red T-shirt and carrying a knife.

Use your knowledge of the theory of reconstructive memory to explain why each eyewitness gave different descriptions of the same robber.

How did you do?

17
2 marks

Explain one weakness of the reconstructive theory of memory.

How did you do?

18a
4 marks

Read the following information.

Samir is in his bedroom packing a suitcase to go on holiday to Spain. He realises he has not packed his toothpaste. He goes to the bathroom but when he gets there, he forgets what he needs.

Explain how context can affect the accuracy of memory. Refer to Samir’s experience in your answer.

How did you do?

18b
2 marks

Read the following information.

At home, Samir drives on the left hand side of the road. Samir hires a car in Spain where people drive on the right hand side of the road. He finds he keeps driving towards the left hand side of the road instead of staying on the right.

Use your knowledge of interference to explain Samir’s behaviour.

How did you do?

19
5 marks

Evaluate the theory of reconstructive memory.

How did you do?