Memory Interview



Memory Interview

Here are the questions to use in organizing your interviews of 2 informants. Spaces allow you to put notes right after each question. You might want to print this out twice, once for each informant.

Every time someone gives you some information, ask “What are you thinking of... do you have an example?” (this is important for interpreting responses)

1. give some examples of when you use your memory. What are some situations in which you use memory? [note: use this information on following questions as examples to give context. On this question, most informants will think of studying for a test, remembering a short grocery list, or remembering a to-do list for the day. If they don’t name these, ASK if these are good examples]

2. have you heard of the idea that there are 2 memory systems? short and long term memory? (if so, what is the difference... examples?)

3. Do memories fade? Are they lost? why?

(some possibilities:

++ they fade away,

++ they get lost in the jumble of things to remember,

++ important or relevant memories are stored better than ordinary memories, and they last longer

++ your memory can get too full so storing more becomes difficult, especially in older people

3a. does repetition help prevent loss?

3b. can making associations help to store memories better?

4. Does storing something in memory usually involve effort? Do you usually have to work to get something to stay in memory? Does recalling information often involve effort?

5. Are some people better than others at memory? Are some cultures better?

6. Is the memory system organized? If so how?

7. Is memory selective? Do you remember some things and not others? Explain the selective aspect.

8. Can memory be improved if you work at it? What helps? Does practice help? What should you do?

9. Test this: Let’s say a friend tells you about an episode that occurred to them yesterday. Assuming they are trying to be accurate in their description, do you normally believe what they say? Are their reports generally trustworthy? Do most people have a fairly accurate memory? About how often are peoples’ memories inaccurate? [ask for %]

a. Give a couple of examples of the ways memories may be inaccurate

b. … is it because they are incomplete? … or confuse two events? … or what else?

10. How often are memories completely false? (for ex., someone “remembers” doing something they never did… or being someplace they were never at) [ask for a %]

11. What about your memory? Are most of your memories a fairly accurate record of your experiences? [ask for %]

12. Freud believed unpleasant memories could be repressed. This is not a conscious process but an involuntary process where the unconscious mind makes a memory inaccessible to the conscious mind. Do you believe this can occur? Why?

Or instead of repression, can you just “wipe” something out of your memory banks so it is not there?

Or can you change an unpleasant memory into one less unpleasant?

Or can you just avoid recalling the memory?

13. Are emotional events (such as 9-11 or a car accident or winning the lottery) better remembered than ordinary events? For example?

14. Is complex information more difficult to store than simple information?

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