Recall Performance as a Function of Memory Cues

PSY101 Lab Experiment

Recall Performance as a Function of Memory Cues

Course: Psy101L

Section: 03

Researcher-

Ishtiaque Hossain Sajid

ID-1731485030

Supervisor-

Dr. Akib Ul Huque,

Department of History & Philosophy,

North South University

Date: 24/12/2020
 2

Table of Contents
Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 3

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 4

Literature Review........................................................................................................................ 4

Objective of the Study ................................................................................................................ 4

Rationale of the Study................................................................................................................. 5

Hypothesis of the Study .............................................................................................................. 5

Method ............................................................................................................................................ 5

Participant ................................................................................................................................... 5

Materials ..................................................................................................................................... 5

Design and procedure ................................................................................................................. 6

Data processing and statistical analysis ...................................................................................... 6

Results ............................................................................................................................................. 6

Discussion ....................................................................................................................................... 7

References ....................................................................................................................................... 8

Appendix ......................................................................................................................................... 9

Study information Sheet ............................................................................................................. 9

Consent Form ............................................................................................................................ 10

Data Sheet ................................................................................................................................. 11

Graph......................................................................................................................................... 12
 3

Abstract
The objective of the study was to investigate whether memory cues facilitate the recall of
information. There are some theories suggesting that absence of cues might result in forgetting,
or failure to recall information. Our research aims to experiment whether the theory is right or
not. We had two hypotheses while experimenting the problem. 1. Our first hypothesis was that
participants would correctly recall more when memory cues were present than when they were
absent. 2. Our second hypothesis was that participants would take less time to recall when
memory cues were present than when they were absent. For this study we experimented on one
male participant of 20 years of age. We used the “Zoom” platform to communicate and present
him with two sets of stimuli, one without cues and another with cues. From the study we found
that our first hypothesis was correct. That is, the participant recalled more with memory cues
present. However, our second hypothesis proved wrong as the participant took more time to
recall information presented with cues.
 4

Introduction
Memory plays a vital role in every human. Memory is our ability to encode, store, retain
and subsequently recall information and past experiences in the human brain. (Ian, 2020). We are
capable to learn skills, behaviors because our memory enables us to store that information. Our
brain automatically retrieves information from our memory when it feels the need. Memory
recall or retrieval is remembering the information or events that were previously encoded and
stored in the brain. (Antic, 2020). There are mainly 3 ways, our brain retrieves information, by
free recall, cued recall and serial recall. Now, Cued Recall means when we are able to retrieve
information from our memory by coming in contact of cues or guides. In the other 2 types of
retrieval no cues are presented.

Literature Review
In an experiment from Wong (1978, p. 36). titled, “The Effects of Directive Cues on the
Organization of Memory and Recall in Good and Poor Readers,” they found that poor readers
couldn’t adapt to directive cues as much as the good readers. They also found that poor readers
have performance deficit.

In another research from Paris and Lindauer (1976, p. 218) titled, “The role of inference
in children's comprehension and memory for sentences,” they found that children of 6-7 years
and 11-12 years could not understand the inferred relationships when they were provided with
implicit relationships.

In a research by Black and Bern (1981, p. 271), it has been found that Causally related
events in narratives were remembered better than events that were not causally related.

So, as we can see there is no found research on memory recall performance as part of
cued recall on healthy adults.

Objective of the Study

The objective of the study was to investigate whether memory cues facilitate the recall of
information.
 5

Rationale of the Study

A psychological theory states about cue-dependent theory. It says that a person might fail
to recall an information when they do not have any cues related to the memory when it was
encoded. With my experiment I will able to study whether the theory presented is accurate or not.

The study will also allow us to know how big of a role cue has in recall, and that will further
allow more studies to find out ways on helping people recall information more frequently and
efficiently.

Hypothesis of the Study

The study had two Hypotheses.

1. Our first hypothesis was that participants would correctly recall more when memory cues
were present than when they were absent.
2. Our second hypothesis was that participants would take less time to recall when memory
cues were present than when they were absent.

Method
Participant
A Male participant aged 20 years with no physical, mental or cognitive disability was
recruited for this study.

Materials
We used the “Zoom” platform to contact with the participant. A link was generated, which
both the researcher and the participant used to join.

The researcher prepared 2 lists of country names with one list containing memory cues
whereas the other didn’t. The first letter of the capital was given as cues. It was ensured that the
overall difficulty and familiarity of both the lists were similar.

Then, the researcher cut 20 small pieces of paper, and had the country names written on
them. The cues of the 10 names were also written just below the country name.

A mobile phone’s stopwatch was used to record the response time.

 6

A datasheet was prepared and kept with the researcher to record the data.

Design and procedure

Single-subject design was used to conduct the experiment.

First, the researcher welcomed the participant, and then provided him with the study
information sheet. Then, when he gave his verbal consent to participate, the researcher started
randomly presenting stimuli, that is, country name with and without stimuli, via the webcam. The
response time for every stimulus of the participant was recorded in the data sheet.

Data processing and statistical analysis

Descriptive statistics (e.g., number of correct responses, total and mean response time for correct
responses) were used to draw the results.

Results
Table 1

Number of Correct Recall and Response Time in the Presence and absence of Memory
Cues

Absence of memory cues Presence of memory cues

Correct Response Correct Response
Country name Country name
recall time recall time
Sri Lanka (2.3) - - South Korea (2.3) Yes 2.78

Iraq (3.0) - - Germany (3.0) Yes 1.9

Italy (3.0) Yes 1.43 Spain (3.0) - -

Thailand (3.3) Yes 2.90 Australia (3.3) - -

Greece (3.3) - - Indonesia (3.3) Yes 6.58

Egypt (3.7) Yes 3.90 Saudi Arabia (3.7) Yes 1.5

Mexico (4.0) - - Maldives (4.0) Yes 7.8

Kuwait (4.3) - - Malaysia (4.3) Yes 2.60

 7

Bhutan (5.3) - - Japan (5.3) Yes 3.15

Iran (5.7) Yes 5.90 China (5.7) Yes 3.10

Total correct
4 14.13 8 29.41
recall
Average
3.53 3.68
response time

As we can see in table 1, the total number of correct responses were 12, 4 of them were
from without cues while the participant could answer 8 when presented with cues. The average
response time without cues were 3.53 seconds while with cues were 3.68 seconds.

Discussion
From our study, it became evident that the participant could recall more answers when he
was given cues related to the answer. The correct responses with presence of memory cues were
as much as double i.e., 8, compared to 4, with absence of memory cues. So, it supports our first
hypothesis that, “Our participants would correctly recall more when memory cues were present
than when they were absent.” This means that if people are given a hint then people will be able
to remember more contextual information. The result also proves the theory of forgetting, that is,
forgetting may occur because of cue-dependent forgetting, forgetting that occurs when there are
insufficient retrieval cues to rekindle information that is in memory. (Feldman, 2018, p. 403)

Our second hypothesis was that participants would take less time to recall when memory
cues were present than when they were absent. It proved to be false in our study, since the
participant had less average response time for questions with absence of cues, 3.53 seconds, while
questions with cues had average response time was 3.68 seconds. If we look closely, we can see
there are two outliers in questions with presence of memory cues. It can be due to the fact that cues
instigated a vague recall and needed time to properly remember the answer. The assumption is
also backed by the theory of Interference, that, “information stored in memory disrupts the recall
of other information stored in memory.” (Feldman, 2018, p. 403)
 8

References
Ian. (2020, 11 25). WHAT IS MEMORY? Retrieved from The Human Memory: https://human-
memory.net/what-is-memory/

Antic, V. (2020, November 25). Memory Recall/Retrieval | Types, Processes, Improvement &

Problems. The Human Memory. https://human-memory.net/memory-recall-retrieval/

Black, J. B., & Bern, H. (1981). Causal coherence and memory for events in narratives. Journal

of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 20(3), 267–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0022-

5371(81)90417-5

I. (2020, November 25). What Is Memory? The Human Memory. https://human-

memory.net/what-is-memory/

Paris, S. G., & Lindauer, B. K. (1976). The role of inference in children’s comprehension and

memory for sentences. Cognitive Psychology, 8(2), 217–227.

https://doi.org/10.1016/0010-0285(76)90024-4

Wong, B. (1978). The Effects of Directive Cues on the Organization of Memory and Recall in

Good and Poor Readers. The Journal of Educational Research, 72(1), 32–38.

https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.1978.10885116

Feldman, R. (2018). Why We Forget. In Essentials of Understanding Psychology (13th ed., pp.

402–403). McGraw-Hill Education.

 9

Appendix
Study information Sheet
Study Information Sheet
Department of History and Philosophy
Title of the Study: Recalling Capital Names

Introduction

You are invited to take part in an experiment on memory performance. Please read this
information sheet carefully so that you are able to make an informed decision about whether or
not to participate in this study. If anything is unclear or you have any questions about the research,
you are very welcome to ask me and I will do my best to provide the information you need.

What is the aim of the study?

The present study is part of my Psychology Lab course. The main objective is to understand how
our memory functions.

What would I be asked to do if I took part?

If you decide to take part in this study, you will be asked to attend a 30-minute study session. During
this time, you will be presented with some small pieces of paper with country names printed on
them. Your task is to write the names of the capitals as soon as possible. In some of the trials you
will see the first letter of a capital while in other trials there will be no such hints.

Will my data be confidential?

Yes, we will manage all of your data in a secure way to ensure that your confidentiality is
protected.

What happens if I do not want to take part or if I change my mind?

It is entirely up to you whether you take part or not. If you do decide to take part, you are free to
withdraw at any point without having to give a reason.

What are the benefits and risks to taking part in the study?

It is very unlikely that the present research will cause any physical or psychological harm to you.
The experimental procedure is simple and benign in nature and has been used in a number of
other studies so we do not expect any harm that might befall you. There is no monetary or other
benefit for taking part in this study.

Will the outcomes of the study be published?

 10

The outcome of the research will be used to write a research report to fulfil the requirements of
Psychology Lab course. However, the report will not contain your name or address.

What if something goes wrong?

We do not expect anything to go wrong. In the very unlikely event that something untoward does
happen, you can contact me in the first instance. You can also contact my supervisor
(akib.huque@northsouth.edu).

Contact details of the researcher

Name: Ishtiaque Hossain Sajid

Email: Ishtiaque.sajid@northsouth.edu

Consent Form

DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY

Consent Form

Title of Study: Recalling Capital Names

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you are happy to participate please complete the consent form below

Please write
“Yes” in the
box
1. I confirm that I have read the attached information sheet on the above project and Yes
have had the opportunity to consider the information and ask questions and had
these answered satisfactorily.

2. I understand that my participation in the study is voluntary and that I am free to Yes
withdraw at any time without giving a reason and without detriment to any
treatment/service.

Yes
3. I give consent to store my data for use in future studies.

I agree to take part in the above project

 11

Name: _Hossain Usama____________________________________

Signature: _Munaj______________________

Date: _22-11-2020______________________

Data Sheet
Data Sheet

Name of the experiment: Recall Performance as a Function of Memory Cues

Country name Correct recall Response time (Second)

Sri Lanka (2.3)

Iraq (3.0)
Yes 1.43
Italy (3.0)
Yes 2.90
Thailand (3.3)

Greece (3.3)
Yes 3.90
Egypt (3.7)

Mexico (4.0)

Kuwait (4.3)

Bhutan (5.3)
Yes 5.90
Iran (5.7)
Yes 2.78
South Korea-S (2.3)
Yes 1.90
Germany-B (3.0)

Spain-M (3.0)

Australia-C (3.3)
Yes 6.58
Indonesia-J (3.3)
 12

Yes 1.5
Saudi Arabia-R (3.7)
Yes 7.8
Maldives-M (4.0)
Yes 2.60
Malaysia-K (4.3)
Yes 3.15
Japan-T (5.3)
Yes 3.10
China-B (5.7)

Graph

Correct Recall
9

0
Without Cues With Response

Correct Recall
 13

Average Response Time

3.7

3.65

3.6

3.55

3.5

3.45
Without Cues With Cues

Average Response Time