How does schema...?

Question

How does schema affect memory distortion? What is the connection? Thanks.

Answer 1

A schema is a mental structure that represents some aspect of the world. People use schemata to organize current knowledge and provide a framework for future understanding. Examples of schemata include rubrics, stereotypes, social roles, scripts, worldviews, and archetypes.

Individuals' existing schemata and stereotypes influence not only how they interpret new information but also how they recall the information over time.

The factors that influence recall:

Omission of information that was considered irrelevant to a participant;
Transformation of some of the detail, or of the order in which events etc were recalled; a shift of focus and emphasis in terms of what was considered the most important aspects of the tale;
Rationalisation: details and aspects of the tale that would not make sense would be 'padded out' and explained in an attempt to render them comprehensible to the individual in question;
Cultural shifts: The content and the style of the story were altered in order to appear more coherent and appropriate in terms of the cultural background of the participant.

Answer 2

A schema is a construct we make in order to group our memories. This is because we cannot possibly remember every little detail, I know I'd go crazy.
schema: the organization of experience in the mind or brain that includes a particular organized way of perceiving cognitively and responding to a complex situation or set of stimuli
Like if my schema for attending basketball games was that they are "always noisy and have a lot of people there and the food is bad" Then say I went to a basketball game and in reality there wasn't that many people and the hot dog was ok, I might "REMEMBER" there being more people than there really was, I would report that it was nosier than it really was and I would report that the food was worse than it really was.
Schemas are good for helping us represent memories in our heads but very bad when you have to rely on memory for any reason. This is why there have been many studies about eyewitness testimony in the court systems and how unreliable it is.
Schema affects memory distortion because your predispositions about the world will affect how you remember a particular event.

Answer 3

A schema is a mental plan, diagram, or outline. Schemas aid the way you remember and so eliminate memory distortion. If you've been taught to do something the wrong way, then you'll keep doing it the wrong way untill you learn the correct way. Once you know the correct solution, it becomes the correct schema and eliminates all other incorrect schemas.

Answer 4

yes