The Effects of the Processing Levels on the Capability to Recall Words - Research Paper Example

RESEARCH REPORT The effects of the processing levels on the capability to recall words A total of fifteen participants were included within the research and tested in the experiment. The participants were exposed to a number of words which they were supposed to recall for the second time when the words were included in a longer list of words. The research was based on understanding and capability of for the people to recall words which they have been shown. The research supports the presumption that high level of processing leads to better recalling of words which people have been shown. Introduction Memory remains a fundamental element in the human cognition and behaviour as it enables people to develop behaviours according to what they know. The learning process involves the ability for people to recall various material through the enhancing the processing of information. The capability for individuals to recall information is mainly based on the processing of the information which is presented into their memory (Eysenck, 2012). The process of learning is critical in determining the presence learning disorders among different individuals. Understanding the impact of the level of processing on the cognitive skills of individuals can enhance e the proper administration of interventions which are aimed at ensuring that learning disorders are overcome. The cognitive skills which people gain are based on the level of processing which is experienced by the persons involved in the learning process. Different levels of processing which learners are exposed to have different capabilities in enhancing the information processing. The capability to recall information becomes critical to individuals as they learn new language and seek to improve their behaviour. The cognitive skills of the individuals must be understood in order to ensure that the information processing becomes developed to enable learning to occur. The process involves the individual becoming able to recall things which have been taught. The level of processing effect describes the memory recall which enables people to be able to learn through a mental process of deep thought on various stimuli which they are exposed to. Memory strength has been identified as something variable and is influenced by various attributes of the individuals. Within the learning environment, the strength of memory is affected by these variable factors which become critical in enhancing the learning capability. It has been argued that rehearsal results in an inevitable memory improvement on the long-term (Rhodes & Anastasi, 2000). This consists of various elements which involve continuous repetition of things in order to enhance the memory of the individual. This commonly occurs through the individuals becoming familiar with the specific stimulus which induce three learning process. Since the introduction of the theory of memory recall of stimuli, there have been numerous assumptions which are made regarding the process of learning. In seeking to understand the role of stimuli in recall and development of memory to remembers things. Through the investigations of the capacity to recall, an increased knowledge on the various factors which affect the short-term memory of humans will be developed. While long term memory has been presumed to be affected to a significant level by the processing level, short-term memory remains an element which is utilised to aid in much simpler situations (Flegal & Reuter-Lorenz, 2014). Continued exposure to certain phenomena has been descried as having an effect in the development of the long term memory. This investigation will seek ascertain whether high or low level processing enhances the capability to recall information among individuals. Method Design The research design will be an experimental design which will involve a test being conducted upon the participants. The application of the experimental design will enable various parameters regarding recall of information to be tested as desired by the research. The independent variable in the study will be the level of processing while the dependent variable is the recall of information among the participants. The dependent variable will be established through the number of words which individuals will be able to recall. Standardised questions will be used to measure both the low and high level of processing among the participants. This will ensure that the findings and conclusions from the research present information with could be tested and replicated elsewhere Participants The participants who were involved in the research were fifteen individuals who were selected using non-probability sampling techniques. Convenience sampling was utilised in the selection of the participants, where individuals were included if they met the basic requirements and based on their availability. The participants in the study were a mixture of male and female persons who were available during the time for the research. Many of the participants were people residing within the neighbourhood where the researcher lives. This made it relatively easy for the researcher to conduct the data collection. Apparatus/Materials The participants will be presented with a set of words which they well be expected to be able to recall at a later stage. The words will be 10 with 5 testing for short memory while the rest will be testing the long memory. The long memory words will have to be deeply processed by the participant. The categorisation of words becomes critical to ensuring that the measurement of the capability to recall words will be analysed in the research. Procedure The data collections will be conducted at home of the researcher inside the researcher’s study. This will be able to ensure that external distractions are eliminated during the time of conducting the research. The procedure which was utilised in conducting the research was explained to the participants and each participant entered into the room alone. Each participant signed the consent form before being presented with the questions which they were to answer for the sake of the research. This ensured that the researcher had all the necessary requirements and the participants were able to understand their roles. The participants will be presented with a list of 10 words which will require deep and shallow processing in answering the questions attached to the words. Once this has been done, another lost containing 30 words will be presented to the same participants but this time with a different list of words. The initial words will be among the 30 words presented, and the participants will be expected to identify the previous 10 words. Each participant was expected to undertake the process of recalling words within a period of five minutes. This ensured that the researcher was able to conduct the research within the desired time limit Results The number of words recalled by the participants for the different levels of processing was relatively similar. There was a higher recall for the words which required shallow processing when compared to those words which required deep processing. The rate of recalling for the high levels processing was 4.3 while low levels processing was 3.9. The standard deviations for both these tests were similar which seems to suggest that the levels of processing have a significant effect on the capability to recall words at different processing levels. Table 1recognition performance for words as a function of the experiment task level of processing 1 2 3 4 5 Proportion recognised 0.22 0.18 0.78 0.93 0.96 Note: n = 10 The data collected for both the test was not skewed and was assumed to fit a normal distribution curve. The data was considered at interval levels of score with the means being tested using the t test. The effects of categorising the words into different levels was highly significant t (14) = 5.69, 2-tailed, p < .001; hence the alternate hypothesis which was developed was supported by the results of the research. There were minimal errors mainly because of the small six of participants and the understanding of the procedures following briefing from the researcher. Discussion In the study the hypothesis which was tested was that high level of information processing leads to a better recall of the original words presented. The findings of the research were that the participants were able to recall more words following a high level of information processing. The research findings supported the alternate hypothesis which had been developed for purposes of the research. The findings from the present study provide evidence that high level of processing enhances a better recalling of words which have been presented to people. This supports other findings which have been presented in previous research which have been conducted in other areas (Pereira-Pasarin & Rajaram, 2011). During the course of the study, a minimal number of errors were made because the participants had been briefed about the process and procedure for undertaking the research. The participants became confidence of the research being conducted because of the ethical consideration which was undertaken. The design was appropriate because of the inclusion of an experimental approach which was involved in undertaking the research. The research was sufficiently powered as the number of participants was sufficient for the research. References Eysenck, M. (2012). Fundamentals of Cognition (2nd ed.). New York: Taylor & Francis. Flegal, K. E., & Reuter-Lorenz, P. A. (2014). Get the gist? The effects of processing depth on false recognition in short-term and long-term memory. Memory & Cognition, 1–11. Pereira-Pasarin, L. P., & Rajaram, S. (2011). Study repetition and divided attention: Effects of encoding manipulations on collaborative inhibition in group recall. Memory & Cognition, 39(6), 968–976. Rhodes, M. G., & Anastasi, J. S. (2000). The effects of a levels-of-processing manipulation on false recall. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 7(1), 158–162.  Appendices Appendix 1 hypothesis testing Mean 0.61 Mean = (0.22+0.18+0.78+0.93+0.96)/5 =0.61 Variance 0.1477 Using the formula below the standard deviation can be calculated the standard deviation is 0.38429 At the confidence interval of 95%, the alternate hypothesis will be accepted Appendix 2 consent form Invitation/informed consent to participate in the research project titled: “The Cognitive Levels of Information Processing” Dear (participant), I am conducting an experiment as part of a research study to increase our understanding of both the low and high levels of information processing. The experiment takes approximately half an hour to carry out and is relatively informal. You will be presented with a number of written words in which you will be asked to answer accordingly. Your responses will be strictly confidential. Each participant will be assigned a number code to help ensure that personal identifiers are not revealed during the analysis and write up of the findings. There is no compensation for this study. However, your participation will be of valuable addition to my research and could possibly lead to further development and understanding of current knowledge in this field. You are under no obligation to take part in this study. However, if you do, you may quit or decide not to answer any questions you are not comfortable answering at any point during the study. If you are willing to participate, kindly suggest a convenient day and time to meet at my house and I will do my utmost best to comply. Please do not hesitate to ask if you have any queries. Thank you! Victoria Appendix 3 debriefing form Debriefing Form Title of study: “The Cognitive Levels of Information Processing” Thank you for taking part in this research study to investigate the cognitive levels of information processing in one’s recall memory. You may contact me at V.Yong1@unimail.derby.ac.uk if you have any study related questions or if you are interested in receiving a copy of the summary report of this research once it is completed. If you later decide to withdraw from this study, you may do so up to two weeks after your participation. Kindly refer to the articles; Craik & Lockhart (1972) and Craik and Tulving (1975) for further reading and understanding of the research study you have just participated in. Thank you again for you participation in this study. Victoria Appendix 4 raw data Number of words recalled in 5 minutes level of processing 1 2 3 4 5 Average number of words recalled 2 2 8 9 9 Read More