Beyond Associations: Strategic Components in Memory Retrieval.

Abstract : There are two dominant approaches to understanding human memory, one in the tradition of Ebbinghaus, the other in the tradition of Bartlett. The former approach views learning as the formation of associations, while in the latter views memory as the process of reconstruction of fragments based on prior knowledge. These positions are often considered antithetical: Ebbinghaus was concerned with laws of memory and tried to control for prior knowledge; Bartlett was concerned with how our world knowledge interacts with learning and memory. This paper argues that one can collect data that supports either position because people can adopt one of several memory strategies. Data are reviewed that ilustrate that the same knowledge structure can produce dramatically different results, depending on the strategies that operate on that structure. Keywords: Associated memory; plansibility judgements. (Author)