3.2 Evaluate schema theory

List the Limitations of Schema Theory

1) Cohen 1993: the concept of schema is too vague to be useful; it is not clear how schemas are acquired in the first place. 2) May focus too much on the errors of memory, since our memories are usually fairly accurate.

What is a Schema?

A cognitive schema is a mental representation of knowledge stored in the brain, a network of knowledge, beliefs, and expectations about the world. Schemas serve to process incoming information, and how we interpret that information is shaped by the schema we have about that item.

Research Supporting Schema Theory: Bartlett 1932 AIM AND PROCEDURE

Aim: Investigated whether people's memory for a story is affected by schemas (previous knowledge), and the extent to which memory is reconstructive Procedure: They asked British participants to hear a story and, first, reproduce it after a short period of time, and then repeatedly reproduce it over a period of months or years (serial reproduction). The story was an unfamiliar Native American legend called "The War of the Ghosts"

Research Supporting Schema Theory: Brewer and Treyens 1981 AIM AND PROCEDURE

Aim: to investigate whether people's memory for objects in a room (an office) is influenced by existing schemas about what to expect in an office Procedure 30 university students, arriving individually at the lab were placed in an office containing two types of items 1. typical office equipment (desk, typewriter, coffee pots, etc) and 2 objects not normally found in an office (a skull, a piece of bark, a pair of pliers). After a period of time participants were taken out of the room and asked to write down everything they could remember from the room

Research Supporting Schema Theory: Brewer and Treyens 1981 EVALUATION

Confirms schema and reconstructive memory. However, it was a lab and therefore artificial and lacking in ecological validity. The study used deception, but participants were debriefed and not harmed by the deception, so it was justified. There was sample bias, since sample only included university students.

Describe DiMaggio's Schema Theory

DiMaggio subdivided schema into 1. representations of knowledge (e.g., stereotypes and social roles), and 2 mechanisms that simplify understand via "cognitive shortcuts" They are shaped and biased by culture (example, culturally biased stereotypes); gender schemas are examples of sociocultural ideas about what is appropriate for men and women (norms).

Research Supporting Schema Theory: Bartlett 1932 EVALUATION

It confirmed schema theory and reconstructive memory. The study had shortcomings; as a lab experiment, it lacked ecological validity. Also participants did not receive standardized instructions and some of the memory distortions may be due to participant guess (a demand characteristic). In spite of methodological issues, it remains a crucial study in memory.

Describe Schema Processing

It is largely automatic, unconscious, and processed with little attention. There are two sources of information for schema processing 1. input from the sensory system (bottom-up processes), and 2 information from memory (top-down processing). Information from memory is used to process the incoming information. With familiar circumstances we used top down processing.

Research Supporting Schema Theory: Brewer and Treyens 1981 RESULTS

Most participants recalled the schematic objects (desk, typewriter, things one expects to find in an office). Some participants reported seeing things that could be found in an office, but were not in this office (telephone, books, etc.). Many participants remembered unexpected objects, such as the skull; unusual object memory recall was better than predicted by schema theory.

Research Supporting Schema Theory: Bartlett 1932 RESULTS

Participants remembered the main idea or "gist" of the story. However, they changed unfamiliar elements. They tried to make sense of the non-linear story by using terms more culturally familiar to them. While the story remained a coherent whole, it changed; it became noticeably shorter with reproduction. It appears that memories are in fact "reconstructions" or copies of experience. They are changed to fit our schematic expectations.

Research Supporting Schema Theory: Darley and Gross 1983 PROCEDURE AND SIGNIFICANCE

Procedure Participants saw two videos of a girl: Video 1: girl playing in a poor environment and Video 2: girl playing in a rich environment. When asked to judge, the all said the "rich" girl would do well, but the "poor" girl would not Significance It is likely participants used their own schema of what it means to be rich and poor. They nterpreted ambiguous situations according to their pre-existing schematic expectations; they processed information quickly (automatically), based on just a few salient facts, which proved to be incorrect.

List the Strengths of Schema Theory

Proven to be extremely useful in explaining cognitive processes (perception, memory, and reasoning). It explains the reconstructive nature of memory in many instances--eye witness testimony, gender identity (gender schema), and cultural differences (cultural schemas).

Describe Barlett's Schema Theory

Schemas are active recognition devices that help us make meaning of the world. They help us make predictions, lead us to believe what to expect, and provide guidance on how to behave.

Research Supporting Schema Theory: Darley and Gross 1983 IMPLICATIONS

Ways in which schemas affect memory 1. People tend to remember the gist or the key element of something, not the actual event or the actual wording. 2 Most sensory information is incomplete, and we "fill in the blanks" by relying on the attitudes, beliefs and stereotypes that we hold 3. Our memory is a "reconstruction" of the original event, with bits of sensory information strung together by the values of our schema 4. If we encounter things we don't expect, our schema may exclude them. If we think a group of people are not intelligent (stereotype), we ignore instances of intelligent members of that group. 5. People tend to focus on information that is in line with their schemas (schematic information). This may result in "confirmation bias"