Lesson 2.4.1

2.4.1 Key question: memory in society Quiz: Pearson Edexcel Psychology, Unit 2

20 questions

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Lesson 2.4.1, Key question: memory in society: 20 multiple choice questions for the Pearson Edexcel Psychology (9PS0), Unit 2: Cognitive psychology, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. Which key question is an example of memory in society that a student could discuss?

    • How do hormones such as testosterone affect aggression in adult males in laboratory conditions?
    • How do neurons release neurotransmitters into the synaptic cleft during an action potential in the brain?
    • How should eyewitness testimony be treated in court, given that memory is reconstructive and can be influenced?
    • How does the central executive allocate attention between the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad?

  2. Which finding about eyewitness testimony is the best-known example of how memory can be influenced?

    • Milgram (1963) found that most participants obeyed the experimenter when asked to deliver shocks to a learner
    • Tulving (1972) found that episodic memory is always more accurate than semantic memory in every context
    • Loftus and Palmer (1974) found that the verb used in a question changed participants' estimates of car speed
    • Bartlett (1932) found that participants recalled the War of the Ghosts story word for word after one hearing

  3. Why does reconstructive memory raise concerns for the courtroom?

    • Because memories are always perfectly stored in the sensory register, so courtroom testimony is always accurate
    • Because memories are stored only in the working memory, which is cleared at the end of every trial
    • Because memories can be changed by leading questions and schemas, so recall may be inaccurate
    • Because memories are determined only by genetics, so environmental factors such as questions have no effect

  4. What is a practical implication of research on reconstructive memory for interviewing witnesses?

    • Interviewers should avoid asking any questions at all, since memory is always fully accurate without prompting
    • Interviewers should ask witnesses to repeat their account many times, since repetition always improves accuracy
    • Interviewers should avoid leading questions, to reduce the risk of distorting the witness's memory
    • Interviewers should always use leading questions, since these produce the most accurate witness recall

  5. How does memory decline in dementia such as Alzheimer's disease affect older people?

    • It has no effect on memory, since Alzheimer's disease is a condition that affects only physical movement
    • It impairs recent memory and everyday functioning, and can make daily life harder for the individual
    • It improves recent memory and everyday functioning, so older people become better at learning new tasks
    • It affects only sensory memory and has no effect on long-term episodic or semantic memory in any patient

  6. Which ethical issue arises from research on memory loss in dementia?

    • It is sensitive only when the sample is male, since women are not affected by memory loss in any study
    • It is socially sensitive, because it affects individuals' sense of self and their families' wellbeing
    • It is not sensitive at all, since memory loss affects only the physical health of older people in any study
    • It is sensitive only in animal research, since human memory studies of dementia never raise ethical issues

  7. How could understanding of memory be used to help people with memory loss?

    • Memory loss is caused by eating too much sugar, so the only useful intervention is changing the diet
    • Memory aids and strategies, such as external reminders, can support everyday functioning for people with memory loss
    • Memory loss can be reversed by simply trying harder to remember, with no need for any form of support or aid
    • Memory loss is unaffected by any intervention, so understanding memory has no practical use in any setting

  8. What is an ethical issue in using memory research in court?

    • Memory research must always be kept secret from the courts, since sharing it would damage public trust in science
    • Evidence from memory research must be applied carefully, so that justice is not compromised by unreliable testimony
    • Memory research is always perfectly reliable, so its results can be applied to court cases without any review
    • Memory research is never relevant to courts, since courts rely only on physical evidence and never on testimony

  9. Which study shows that participants' memories can be distorted by the wording of a question?

    • Loftus and Palmer (1974), who varied the verb in a question about a car crash
    • Henry Molaison's case study, which showed loss of new episodic memory after surgery on the medial temporal lobes
    • Sebastian and Hernandez-Gil (2012), who studied the development of digit span in Spanish children
    • Baddeley (1966), who varied the acoustic similarity of word lists in a laboratory experiment

  10. How might the study of memory development relate to society?

    • It informs only the study of animals, so children's memory is not relevant to any social issue at all
    • It has no relevance to society, since children's memory is unrelated to learning in school and daily life
    • It informs education and support for children with memory difficulties, such as dyslexia that affects working memory
    • It informs only the design of laboratory equipment, with no link to the wellbeing of children in any setting

  11. Which of these is an example of a socially sensitive research issue in memory?

    • Research into the speed of reaction times in a computer task, which is not linked to any social group
    • Research into the colour of word cards, which has no effect on any individual or family in any setting
    • Research into the physical size of the brain, which does not involve any individuals or social consequences
    • Research into memory loss in dementia, which may affect individuals and families emotionally

  12. Why might a researcher consider cultural differences when studying memory?

    • Because memory can be reconstructed using cultural schemas, which may differ between groups
    • Because memory is identical in all cultures, so culture has no effect on any memory process whatsoever
    • Because culture determines only the speed of the central executive, which is the same for everyone
    • Because culture determines only the length of the sensory register, which is the same for everyone

  13. Which conclusion about eyewitness testimony is best supported by reconstructive memory research?

    • Testimony is always false, so it should be ignored completely by courts in every case of crime
    • Testimony is determined only by the length of the trial, so the wording of questions has no effect at all
    • Testimony may be accurate but can also be distorted, so it should be treated with caution
    • Testimony is always accurate, so it should be accepted without any question in every court case

  14. A psychologist advises that a witness should be interviewed soon after an event. Why?

    • Because memories are only stored in the sensory register, which is cleared when the witness is interviewed later
    • Because memories are unaffected by time, so the timing of the interview has no effect on the witness at all
    • Because memories become more accurate with time, so later interviews produce better information in every case
    • Because memories fade and can be altered over time, so earlier recall may be more accurate

  15. Which of these is most relevant to using memory research to inform policy?

    • Evidence should be ignored, because memory research is never useful for informing any policy decision at all
    • Evidence should be weighed for its reliability, and its limits should be recognised before being applied
    • Evidence should be applied immediately, without any review, because all memory research is always correct
    • Evidence should be used only for animals, since human memory research cannot inform any social policy

  16. Which of these best links memory research to the key question on society?

    • Applying findings on reconstructive memory to improve how witnesses are interviewed in legal settings
    • Applying findings on episodic memory to decide the price of food in a canteen for students in a school
    • Applying findings on the multi-store model to decide the number of desks needed in a university library
    • Applying findings on the working memory model to choose the colour of classroom walls in a school

  17. Which evaluation point is most relevant when applying lab-based memory findings to the courtroom?

    • Laboratory findings may not fully reflect the stress and context of real events, so generalisation is limited
    • Laboratory findings always reflect the stress and context of real events, so generalisation is never a problem
    • Laboratory findings cannot be used in any setting, since they are never relevant to human life in any way
    • Laboratory findings are always about animals, so they have no relevance to the courtroom or to human witnesses

  18. What is meant by 'socially sensitive' research in psychology?

    • Research that uses only sensitive equipment, such as electrodes, which may be damaged during the study
    • Research that may have wide implications for groups or individuals, such as effects on their identity or wellbeing
    • Research that is always carried out in public places, so that participants can be observed by others in the community
    • Research that focuses on the senses, such as vision and hearing, rather than on higher cognitive processes

  19. Which of these would be an appropriate question on the key question of memory in society?

    • What are the implications of memory research for the reliability of eyewitness testimony in legal cases?
    • What is the exact number of neurons in the hippocampus of a healthy adult man aged thirty in the lab?
    • What is the average reaction time of participants in a visual search task across the whole sample?
    • What is the chemical structure of the neurotransmitter dopamine and how is it synthesised in the body?

  20. Which statement about memory and older people is most accurate?

    • Memory never changes with age, so older people and younger people perform identically on all memory tests
    • Memory changes with age and can be affected by conditions such as Alzheimer's, which may impair daily life
    • Memory always improves with age, so older people are better at all memory tasks than younger people
    • Memory is determined only by the colour of the person's eyes, which has no link to age or to any condition

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