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The influence of information generation on destination memory
Raquel Pinto1, Pedro B Albuquerque1
1School of Psychology, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal.
Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2006)
|September 23, 2023
Summary
Recalling recipients of personal information is harder because focusing on oneself during transmission diverts attention. This self-focus, not information generation, impairs destination memory.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Social Psychology
Background:
- Destination memory, the ability to recall to whom information was conveyed, is crucial for social interaction.
- Transmitting personal information often results in poorer destination memory compared to sharing interesting or neutral facts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate why transmitting personal information impairs destination memory.
- To differentiate the effects of information type (personal vs. non-personal) from the process of information generation on destination memory.
Main Methods:
- Experiment 1 & 2: Compared destination memory for personal facts versus interesting facts or familiar proverbs using between-participants and within-participants designs.
- Experiment 3: Examined the impact of generating versus merely transmitting familiar proverbs on destination memory.
Main Results:
- Personal information consistently led to worse destination memory compared to familiar proverbs.
- No significant difference in destination memory was found between generating and transmitting familiar proverbs, suggesting generation itself does not impair memory.
- The detrimental effect of personal information on destination memory appears linked to self-focused attention.
Conclusions:
- The self-referential nature of personal information, rather than the act of generating it, is the primary cause of impaired destination memory.
- Understanding attentional focus is key to improving memory for information transmission in social contexts.
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