Memory Retrieval
After information is encoded and stored, in order to remember something the information must be again retrievable. There are four types of remembering:(("Memory (mental process)." 2000))
- Recollection (Benjamin,
Hopkins, & Nation, 1994. p.268-269)(Hasher
& Griffin, 1978)
This is the type of remembering used in reconstructive memory. Pieces of memories are fit together and an event or a fact is recreated based on the logical organization of partial memories and clues.
An essay test may well test one's ability to recollect the material.
Nancy presumes that she was eating lunch at school with her friends Suzy and Shannon on Tuesday, October 5th, 18 years ago, when she was in fifth grade. However, she doesn't remember it exactly, it could be that this was not the case on that particular day. - Recall (Loftus,
1900.p.393)
Recall is being able to regenerate the memory without being provided any part of the memory.
A fill in the blank question on a test reflects one's ability to recall the material.
Nancy remembers one specific day that she had to eat alone at school because she had had a fight with Shannon that day, Suzy was sick, and she was too shy to sit with anyone else.
- Recognition (Loftus,
1900.p.393)
Recognition is being able to identify something as a memory once the stimuli from the memory is experienced once again.
Multiple choice or matching questions on a test reflect one's ability to recognize the information learned.
Nancy cannot recall Shannon or Suzy's face. She cannot generate the image in her head. But when she looks back at the fifth grade class photo, she can pick them out immediately. - Relearning (Loftus,
1900.p.393)
Relearning is evident when one has an easier time remembering something when he or she learns it for the second time. This is even if the material was forgotten in the meantime.
Even though Nancy doesn't remember any of the other children in the fifth grade picture, she reads through the names on the bottom and with very little practice, she can soon identify everyone without referring back to the list. Her husband, who never knew Nancy's fifth grade class, took a much longer time memorizing everyone's name in the picture.
