Tma01

How can the way in which we organise our thinking by using mental images, concepts and schemas help us to improve our memory' Memory is the ability to store and recall experiences. It helps to define who we are, and to learn new skills. Our memory can be improved by organising our thoughts. This can involve using mental images, concepts and schemas. This essay will explore each of these processes, how they improve our memory and what evidence there is to support this. A mental image is the process of picturing something that isn’t actually there, so if you think of a dog, a picture of a dog will appear in your imagination. Daydreaming is the calling up of an image in our minds. It can be thought of as thinking in pictures. This also happens as we read a book; the written information builds a picture in our head of what is being described. The mental image does not have to be exact, in fact the more distinctive, colorful and out of the ordinary, the easier it is to recall. Mental images can help us to improve our memory because the image can provide another cue to back up the verbal or written information. The extra effort of creating a picture attached to the information you wish to recall, is thought to help fix it in your memory. It is less effort, more fun to create a mental image than learning by repetition. One method of using mental images to improve memory is to create an image that is related to the word. This is especially useful in learning a new language. Spoors et al. (2010, p.37) state that if you take the French word ‘poubelle’, translated as bin in English, the first step is to find an English word or words that sound like the French word. In this case they suggest you could picture a bell shaped bin that is very smelly. Raugh and Atkinson developed this key word technique, and conducted an experiment; Participants were asked to learn a list of Spanish words. Half of the participants were taught to use the key word technique. Those using the key words scored on average much higher than those who didn’t use this technique. (Raugh and Atkinson, 1975, cited in Spoors et al. 2010, p37) Another example of using mental images to improve memory is ‘the method of loci’, developed by the poet Simonides who lived in ancient Greece in the year 500 BC. (Spoors et al. 2010, p38) Mental images are linked to the items to be remembered with a sequence of locations, which are already familiar to the person. A concept is finding a set of defining features, to be able to organize information so it is grouped with related items, or put into a category. It is comparing things with one another to establish in what way they are similar. So, the concept of a dog is a mental image of a four legged, furry creature that barks. This can be divided into sub – concepts of different types of dog; for example, Labradors, Jack Russell’s and Spaniels. By storing information in categories, recall can be improved. It is especially useful in remembering lists, as the item in the same category can cue the next item. Bousfield asked participants to learn a list of words that could be divided into four categories. Though the words were presented at random the participants tended to remember them in groups which belonged to the same category. (Bousfield 1953, as cited in cited in Spoors et al. 2010) George Mandler suggested that by organising information, we learn it even though we are not making any effort to memorise it. (Mandler 1967, cited in Spoors et al. 2010) Mandler carried out an experiment where two groups of participants were given a pack of cards with words printed on them. One group were asked to memorise the words as they sorted them into categories. The other was told only to sort the cards. When tested later, the group that only sorted the cards remembered as many words as the group who were also told to memorise them. A schema is mental framework of the knowledge developed through personal experience. The concept for a dog is a furry, four legged animal that barks. So for instance an individual may develop a schema around dogs that would include further information, such as; dogs are noisy, smelly creatures that need walking everyday, or, that they are cute and cuddly companions that give you a reason to get out of the house. Schemas can be useful in improving memory, because they organize current knowledge and provide a framework for future understanding. They allow us to take shortcuts in interpreting a huge amount of information; this means you can deal with new situation more efficiently. Schemas also provide cues to prompt the memory. John Bransford and Marcia Johnson carried out a number of experiments to illustrate the role of schemas in our understanding and recall of information. (Bransford and Johnson 1972, cited in Spoors et al. 2010) Participants were asked to read a paragraph that explained a process, and then asked to recall it as accurately as possible. Half of the group were given the title, half were not. Most that did not have the title had great difficulty understanding the passage, let alone being able to recall it. The ones that were given the title had a schema to organise the information, so recall was much easier. We can see that using these processes can improve our ability to remember. This has been demonstrated through some of the experiments outlined above. It is clear that we all use mental pictures, concepts and schemas on a day to day basis. If we make a conscious effort to utilize these processes, it can help to organize information, and improve our memory. Word Count: 984 References Bousfield (1953), as cited in cited in Spoors et al. 2010 Bransford and Johnson (1972), cited in Spoors et al. 2010 Mandler (1967), cited in Spoors et al. 2010 Raugh and Atkinson, (1975), cited in Spoors et al. 2010, p37 Spoors, P., Dyer, E. and Finlay, L. (2010) Starting with Psychology, Milton Keynes, The Open University. I found reading the course book and writing notes relatively easy. I feel this is a good way for me to process information. I have to record my observations at work, and have had training on effective recording. I found getting started on writing the essay plan quite difficult. Also referencing took some time to get clear in my head. To make getting started easier in the future I need to be more determined and set aside a specific time to start and not allow any distractions to my focus. Although now the first one is out of the way I hope that the following TMA’s will be less daunting. I think now I have written one essay with references and spent quite a bit of time working out how to reference, I have a basic understanding of how to do it. I think referencing will get easier the more I do it. Word count: 153