Effect of Retrieval Cues on Memory Recall

This research investigates the effect of retrieval cues on the memory recall of individuals. The study aims to determine whether retrieval cues improve the process of recalling words compared to free recall. Participants were divided into two groups, one given retrieval cues and the other asked to perform free recall. The results show that participants with retrieval cues were better able to recall words. The research supports the hypothesis that retrieval cues enhance memory recall.

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Title: To investigate the effect of retrieval cues on the number of words remembered.
Abstract
The purpose of this research is to find out the impact of retrieval cues on the memory of an
individual. More specifically, the aim f the research is to find out the weather retrial cues can
improve the process of recalling words compared to free recall. 20 participants were given 20
words to remember. 10 of them were given retrieval cues for recalling the words and 10 of them
were asked to perform the free recall. It has been found that participants who were given
retrieval cues were more capable of recalling words compared to the participants who recalled
without cues. It has been concluded that retrieval cues possess the potential to enhance the
recalling ability o individual

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Table of Contents
Literature Review............................................................................................................................3
Hypothesis (Experimental)..........................................................................................................5
Hypothesis (Null).........................................................................................................................5
Research Method.............................................................................................................................5
Research design...........................................................................................................................5
Research procedure......................................................................................................................6
Ethical consideration...................................................................................................................6
Sampling......................................................................................................................................7
Apparatus.....................................................................................................................................7
Results..............................................................................................................................................9
Discussion......................................................................................................................................11
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................13
Evaluation......................................................................................................................................13
Reference List................................................................................................................................15

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Literature Review
The term retrieval cues can be defined as the stimuli that have the potential to assist in
memory retrieval. Several memories are stored as long term memories and individuals failed to
remain constantly are of the same. Retrieval can be defined as the process of assessing the
information which is stored in the long term memory with the help of specific retrieval cues, an
individual develops the capacity of taking out the memories out of storage and become
consciously aware of the same. Therefore it can be clearly understood that cued recall can be
defined as the retrieval of memories with the help of cues. On the other hand free recall takes
place when an individual is able to recall without the help of any cues. The rationale of this study
is to analyze the impact of retrial cues on the memory of individuals. In other words, the research
article aims to find out whether retrieval cues help people to recall information more easily
compared to free recall or not. In the following paragraphs, review of relevant literature has been
conducted in order to gain an in-depth knowledge of previous researches and the results
obtained.
According to Hirst et al. (2017), memory is defined as maintaining process information over
time. Memory can be defined involved in processing a vast amount of information that is in
different forms namely images, sounds or others. According to Rinaldi et al (2015), memory
covers three crucial aspects of information processing, namely, encoding, storage, and retrial.
When it comes to memory encoding, it is defined as changing the information into a form so that
it can be stored into one's memory. Chiefly three types of information can be used namely visual,
acoustic and semantic. Memory storage mainly concerns with the destination where the
information has been stored. The third aspect that is memory retrieval includes the process of

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getting the information out of storage. Barasch et al. (2017) have pointed out that memories are
stored in the brain in two forms namely short term memory and long term memory. While short
time memories are revised sequentially, long term memories are retrieved with the help of
association. Kredlow, Unger and Otto (2016) stated that the memory of an individual gets
depressed after taking addictive substances. In an experiment conducted with one group of
participants who were given 1 gram of marijuana and others are not, after presenting them a list
of words, it has been understood that individuals who were intoxicated tend to forget the words
more compared to the participants who had not consumed the marijuana.
According to Souza and Oberauer (2016) retrieval cues can be considered as one of the major
processes that has the potential to enhance the likelihood of remembering previously learned
knowledge. Retrieval cues that may include stimuli like familiar sounds smell or sights possess
the potential to remember events that were not being through of or years. Robin, Wynn and
Moscovitch (2016) are of the opinion that the relativity of the retrieval cues with a particular
incidence possesses a higher potential for the rapid recollection of the same. Butler et al. (2016)
argued that when it comes to point of shoot memories, taking pictures of objects has the potential
to the enhancement of impairment in memory. People are more prone to remember objects that
they observe keenly compared to objects that they take photos of. The additional attention as
well as the cognitive processes engaged by this focused activity has the potential to eliminate the
photo-taking impairment effect. A good number of individuals are found to feel that taking
photograph or recording events of their lives imposes a positive impact on their memory since it
may focus the attention of the individual and thus enhance the memorability of a scene.
However, according to others, taking random photos may possess a detrimental effect on
memory. Photographing a scene may result in dividing the attention as it leads to multitasking.

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Hence visual retrieval cues at different situations act differently on the memory of individuals.
According to Kaag et al. (2018), the spontaneous eye movement that takes place at spaces
associated with the retrieved information even if those places are blank, possess the potential to
help an individual to recall an incident more rapidly than free calling.
The aim of this piece of research is to see whether retrieval cues help individuals to recall their
memory more effectively than free calling or not. More specifically the aim of the research is to
investigate the impact of retrieval cues on the number of words remembered by the participants.
The independent variables of this research are the retrieval cue and the dependent variable
includes the number of words.
Hypothesis (Experimental)
Retrieval cues enhance the memory of words of an individual.
Hypothesis (Null)
Retrieval cues have no effect on the memory of words of an individual.
Research Method
Research design
The research design that has been used for this research paper includes independent groups. In
this type of research, design participants are used in each condition of the independent variables
that is, each condition of the experiment includes a different group of participants. Considering
the fact that the aim of the research is to find out whether retried cues work better for memory
recalling compared to free calling, this research design has been chosen. In case, the repeated
measure was chosen as research design, it will result in methodological biases. When it comes to

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the matched pair research design, an effort is made in order to match the participants in each
condition on the basis of the crucial characteristics which has the potential to affect the
performance.
The research method that has been used for this research includes experiment. The experimental
method refers to a systematic as well as a scientific approach to the research where the
researcher manipulates one or several variables and is able to control as well as measure any
change in other variables. Considering the fact that the chief research aim is to compare the
impact of retrieval cues and free recalling on memory, the experimental research method is
found out to have higher potential to provide an appropriate result compared to case study or
interviews.
Research procedure
The research has included 20 participants. All of them were provided with a sheet of paper where
a list of 20 words with subheadings for each category was provided. They were given two
minutes of time. After that 20 participants were randomly grouped into two groups each
containing 10 members. One group was given retrieval cues in the form of subheadings written
on the top and another group was asked to free recall. They were provided with clear sheets of
paper as an answer sheet. Once the words are written by both the groups, they were compared to
identify which group was able to write down the maximum number of words.
Ethical consideration
No participants were pressurized for participating or continuing with the mentioned organization.
Participants were free to leave whenever they wanted to. However, they were asked to provide a
proper justification for their decision. In order to ensure that confidentiality is maintained, no

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personal information was disclosed. Participants were provided with a consent form where the
reason for conducting the research paper was clearly written.
Sampling
In order to selected participants, opportunity sampling method has been used. 20 participants
from the ABC University of Australia were chosen irrespective of gender, age or subject of
specialization. The first 20 students with whom the researcher met were selected for conducting
the research. Those participants were divided into two groups of 10 members each, namely the
retrieved cues group and the free recall group. One of the chief benefits gained by imposing
opportunity sampling over randomized sampling is that it is easy in terms of both time and
money.
Apparatus
Colours Animals Vehicles Fruit Vegetables
Red Cat Van Apple Onion
Blue Pig Bus Grapes Carrot
Black Rat Car Plum Peas
Green Dog Truck Pear Potato
Table 1: Words given to the participants
Source(Created by author)
Participant Number of Words Recalled (cued condition)
1 20

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2 18
3 18
4 15
5 20
6 19
7 15
8 12
9 19
10 15
Table 2: Number of words remembered by participants undergoing Cued Recall condition
Source (created by Author)
Participant Number of Words Recalled (free recall condition)
11 7
12 10
13 11
14 11
15 14
16 16
17 8
18 14
19 12
20 9

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Table 2: Number of words remembered by participants undergoing Free Recall condition
Source (created by Author)
Results
Mean Median Mode
Cued Recall
Condition
17.1 18 15
Free Recall Condition 11.2 11 11
Table 3: Mean, median and Cued value of Cued recall and Free recall condition
Source (Created by the Author)
Mean Number of words
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
retrieved cues free recall

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Graph 1: Mean number of words
Source (Created by the Author)
The mean value for the cued recall condition was 17.1 this is higher than the mean value of the
free recall condition which was 11.2. Similarly, the median value for the cued recall condition
was 18 while that of the free recall condition was 11. When it comes to the mode value, the value
of the cued condition included 15 and that of the free recall condition included 11 percent.

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Discussion
As per the findings of the research, it can be clearly understood that retrieved cues helped the
participants to recall more data compared to free recall. Therefore the research supports the
experimental hypothesis that includes retrieval cues enhance the memory of words of an
individual. Majority of the participants who were given retrieval cues in the form of subheadings
were able to recall the words read by them previously and write down the same. However,
participants who were subjected to free recalling were unable to perform the same. From the
values obtained by performing mean median mode, it can be clearly seen that for three of the
factors, the value of mean number of words is much higher compared to the value obtained for
that of the free recall. The literature review also pointed to the fact that retrieval cues possess the
potential to enhance the recalling power of individuals. While conducting the research it has
been observed that the ability to recall the words initially shown to the participants varied.
However, for the 1st group of participants, who were given the retrieval cues, the minimum
number of words recalled was 12 and the maximum ranged up to 20 words. In case of the 2nd
group who were given the task of free recalling, the minimum number of words recalled was 7
and the maximum was 16. According to participants of the 1st group, the subheadings given to
them helped them to remember the words read by them initially. According majority of the
participants in the 2nd group, while writing down the name, initially they were able to remember
the read words, however with time they started forgetting the words. Considering the fact that
each of the participants were given two minutes to go through the words and memorize them,
and the test was taken instantly after the two minutes were over, it can be said that the test was
taken on the basis of short term memory.

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According to Ary et al. (2018), the short-term memory is preserved as well as retrieved in a
sequential way. That is, in case a group of individuals are provided with a list of words for
remembering and then asked to remember the fourth word from the given list, they will try to
recall the word by remembering the words sequentially in order to retrieve the information. Thus
participants of both the groups had used the above mentioned process to recall the words read by
them. According to Edmonds and Kennedy (2016), organizing information has the potential to
help retrieval. If words are organized in sequences, like by size, alphabetically or by time, it
becomes easier to remember. It has been found that participants who have used the mentioned
methods were more successful in remembering words compared to participants who had
randomly remembered word and had not used any specific technique. According to Hunt, Smith
and Toth (2016), remembering words or dates with the help of certain tactics also acts like a
retrieval cue. However, these tactics cannot be considered as stimuli. According to Lyle (2018),
when a memory is encoded it can be better recalled in conditions that are similar to the ones in
which it was learned initially. This phenomenon is called matching condition. First, it included
encoding specificity that applies to the external environment during the time a memory was
encoded like sound, smell or other physical characteristics. Secondly, it is a state dependent
learning that applies to the internal state or mood of an individual at the time. Lastly, it includes
transfer-appropriate processing that applies to the type of task which was conducted during the
type of encoding. When these traits match up to the ones an individual were under when the
memory was encoding by him or her it is more likely for the individual to remember it later.
Butler et al. (2016) agreed to the fact that that it is easier for an individual to retrieve the
memory of the cues are present when the memory got initially encoded or are transformed into a
construct which can be stored in LTM (long term memory). All the participants who participated

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in the experiment were free from any kinds of intoxication. According to Barasch et al. (2017),
individuals who are intoxicated suffer from lack of recalling capacity compared to individuals
with a higher level of sobriety. Considering the fact this factor was not included in this research,
in the following time, the researcher will definitely try to incorporate this factor.
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it can be concluded that retrieval cues enhances the potential to recall
memory of an individual. From the experiment it has been found that participants who were
given retrieval cues were able to remember more words compared to participants who were not
given retrieval cues. Hence it can be said that in spite of the fact that the ability to recall is
different for different individuals, retrieval cues enhances the ability to really memories in a
significant way for all of them.
Evaluation
One of the chief limitations of the research includes all the participants are of the age ranging
from 19 to 21 years. This can lead to biasness in the result since the research. Another factor that
can be considered as a major weakness of the research is that neither T nor Mann Witneys U test
has been performed during interpreting the data. Using one of them would have enhanced the
quality of the obtained result. The lack of required time and money are two other mention worthy
weaknesses that possess the potential to deal with the mentioned weaknesses. Apart from this,
no major biasness in the result has been evidenced.
While the above discussed factors are some of the major weaknesses of the research paper, the
sufficient number of participant, effective method of investigation, ethical considerations and

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control measures applied on the participants are some of the major strengths of the research
paper. 20 participants have been taken an in order to understand the impact of retrieval cues on
memory of an individual, comparison based method of investigation has been designed. Case
study based or interview based data collection method has been avoided in order to ensure
control over the variables. This method of data collection helped the researcher to look into
controlling independent variable so that unwanted variables can be removed.

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Reference List
1. Hirst, R.B., Enriquez, R.H., Wickham, R.E., Gretler, J., Sodos, L.M., Gade, S.A., Rathke,
L.K., Han, C.S., Denson, T.F. and Earleywine, M., 2017. Marijuana stereotypes and the
“jay-dar”: Perceptions of cannabis use and memory abilities based upon
appearance. Personality and Individual Differences, 110, pp.131-138.
2. Rinaldi, L., Brugger, P., Bockisch, C.J., Bertolini, G. and Girelli, L., 2015. Keeping an
eye on serial order: Ocular movements bind space and time. Cognition, 142, pp.291-298.
3. Barasch, A., Diehl, K., Silverman, J. and Zauberman, G., 2017. Photographic memory:
The effects of volitional photo taking on memory for visual and auditory aspects of an
experience. Psychological science, 28(8), pp.1056-1066.
4. Kredlow, M.A., Unger, L.D. and Otto, M.W., 2016. Harnessing reconsolidation to
weaken fear and appetitive memories: A meta-analysis of post-retrieval extinction
effects. Psychological Bulletin, 142(3), pp.314.
5. Souza, A.S. and Oberauer, K., 2016. In search of the focus of attention in working
memory: 13 years of the retro-cue effect. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 78(7),
pp.1839-1860.
6. Robin, J., Wynn, J. and Moscovitch, M., 2016. The spatial scaffold: The effects of spatial
context on memory for events. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory,
and Cognition, 42(2), pp.308.
7. Butler, A.C., Rice, H.J., Wooldridge, C.L. and Rubin, D.C., 2016. Visual imagery in
autobiographical memory: The role of repeated retrieval in shifting
perspective. Consciousness and cognition, 42, pp.237-253.

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8. Kaag, A.M., Goudriaan, A.E., De Vries, T.J., Pattij, T. and Wiers, R.W., 2018. A high
working memory load prior to memory retrieval reduces craving in non-treatment
seeking problem drinkers. Psychopharmacology, 235(3), pp.695-708.
9. Ary, D., Jacobs, L.C., Irvine, C.K.S. and Walker, D., 2018. Introduction to research in
education. Cengage Learning. Ary, D., Jacobs, L.C., Irvine, C.K.S. and Walker, D.,
2018. Introduction to research in education. Cengage Learning.
10. Edmonds, W.A. and Kennedy, T.D., 2016. An applied guide to research designs:
Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods. Sage Publications.
11. Hunt, R.R., Smith, R.E. and Toth, J.P., 2016. Category cued recall evokes a generate-
recognize retrieval process. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and
Cognition, 42(3), p.339.
12. Lyle, K.B., 2018. Effects of handedness consistency and saccade execution on eyewitness
memory in cued-and free-recall procedures. Memory, 26(9), pp.1169-1180.
Appendices
Mean Median Mode
Cued Recall
Condition
17.1 18 15
Free Recall
Condition
11.2 11 11

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Table 3: Mean, median and Cued value of Cued recall and Free recall condition
Source (Created by the Author)
Mean Number of words
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
retrieved cues free recall
Graph 1: Mean number of words
Source (Created by the Author)