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What children recall about a repeated event when one instance is different from the others
Deborah A Connolly1, Heidi M Gordon2, Dayna M Woiwod1
1Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University.
Developmental Psychology
|June 24, 2016
Summary
Unexpected changes in repeated events improve children's memory for that specific event. However, repeated exposure doesn't enhance memory for the unusual details themselves.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Memory Studies
Background:
- Repeated events can lead to memory overgeneralization.
- Unexpected deviations may enhance memory encoding for specific instances.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if deviations improve memory for the event instance.
- To determine if repeated events improve memory for deviations.
- To examine the impact of continuous vs. discrete deviations on memory.
Main Methods:
- Children (ages 6-11) viewed live magic shows (1 or 4 instances).
- Deviation details (unexpected changes) were manipulated within shows.
- Children were interviewed about their memory for the shows and specific details.
Main Results:
- Deviation details improved memory accuracy for the event instance.
- Repeated experience did not enhance memory for deviation details.
- Continuous deviations improved recall of all instances for younger children.
Conclusions:
- Deviations enhance memory for the event instance, not necessarily the deviation itself.
- Continuous deviations can improve memory for repeated events in younger children.
- Findings have implications for memory representation and forensic applications.
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