Interference
When two pieces of information conflict with eachother
Retroactive interference
When a newer memory interferes with an older one
McGeoch and McDonald (1931) - retroactive interference
Recall worse when lists A and B were similar
The more similar the new material to the previously learnt material, the greater the interference
Underwood and Postman (1960) - retroactive interference
Two sets or words, first word of the pair the same, second is different
Control group learnt list A
Experimental group learnt both lists
Control group were better at recalling list A
Baddeley and Hitch - retroactive interference
Rugby players asked to name teams they had played in the season
Players who played more games remembered less than those who played less games because they had more interference
Proactive interference
When an older memory interferes with a newer memory
Keppel and Underwood (1962) - proactive interference
Learn trigrams, count backwards
Vary delay between trigrams
Participants remembered the trigrams presented first
A03 - McGeoch and McDonald - limitation
Lack ecological validity
Retroactive interference - supportive evidence - Schmidt et al
Schmidt et al asked participants to name streets
The more you move home, the less number of street names you remember - the new streets interfere with the old streets
