Cognitive Practical

Question 1

What was the aim of the experiment?

Answer 1

To test whether or not schemas aid in the recollection of memory better when given titles on a sample of text

Question 2

Give a one-tailed hypothesis for the experiment.

Answer 2

Participants will obtain a higher score when given a title than those who aren’t given a title

Question 3

Give a two-tailed hypothesis for the experiment.

Answer 3

There will be a difference in scores in participants who are given a title and those who aren’t given a title

Question 4

Give a null hypothesis for the experiment.

Answer 4

There will be no difference in score between participants who are given a title and those who aren’t given a title

Question 5

What was the sample for he experiment?

Answer 5

16 16-17 year old psychology students (2 boys, 14 Girls) from NSFC.

Question 6

What was the procedure for the experiment?

Answer 6

• 16 students in a classroom (lab setting) conducted in an independent measures design
• All students provided with a paragraph (8 with a title at the top named “Doing Laundry”, 8 without)
• Given 2 minutes to memorise the paragraph
• Asked an irrelevant question about Christmas as an interference task
• Given 3 minutes to recall as many words as possible

Question 7

What were he results of the experiment?

Answer 7

The mean number of key words remembered:

With a title - 7.38

Without a title - 5

Question 8

Is the study generalisable?

Answer 8

No because:
- All psychology students

• Only 2 boys
• All within the same age range

Question 9

Is the study reliable?

Answer 9

Yes because:

• Standardised lab conditions (replicable)
• Controlled

Question 10

Is the study valid?

Answer 10

Yes because:

• Independent measures design ~ no order effects
• Standardised ~ no extraneous variable

However, it was conducted in an artificial setting therefore is low in ecological validity

Question 11

Is the study ethical?

Answer 11

No because students didn’t give informed consent, however they were debriefed at the end and weren’t exposed to any harm.