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Understanding H.M.'s Retrograde Amnesia

The document discusses various research methods including case studies, naturalistic observation, surveys, and random sampling. It highlights the case of H.M., who suffered from retrograde and anterograde amnesia after undergoing brain surgery, illustrating the implications of these memory issues. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of question wording in surveys and the necessity of random sampling for obtaining representative samples.

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3 views11 pages

Understanding H.M.'s Retrograde Amnesia

The document discusses various research methods including case studies, naturalistic observation, surveys, and random sampling. It highlights the case of H.M., who suffered from retrograde and anterograde amnesia after undergoing brain surgery, illustrating the implications of these memory issues. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of question wording in surveys and the necessity of random sampling for obtaining representative samples.

Uploaded by

letrieubaotran0207
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Methods: Description

steven j. barnes
• Explain what a case study is.
• Explain what naturalistic observation is.
• Explain what a survey is and how wording can strongly affect the
results of a survey.
• Explain what random sampling is.

Learning Goals
The Case of H.M.
H.M. received a bilateral temporal lobectomy--the removal of
the medial portions of both temporal lobes, including most of
the hippocampus and amygdala, and some adjacent cortex.

Normal H.M.

Case Studies
The Case of H.M.
Retrograde amnesia: Inability to retrieve memories for some
delimited period of time prior to that time at which the brain
damage occurred. H.M. had difficulty remembering the events
in the 2 years prior to his surgery. He had a temporally-graded
retrograde amnesia.

Anterograde amnesia: Inability to form memories of events


occurring after the time at which the brain damage occurred.
H.M. had a severe anterograde amnesia. He could remember
events for only a very short time.

Case Studies
The Case of H.M.

“Every day is alone in itself, whatever enjoyment


I’ve had, and whatever sorrow I’ve had.”
(H.M.; quoted in Milner et al., 1968)

Case Studies
The Case of H.M.

“Every day is alone in itself, whatever enjoyment


I’ve had, and whatever sorrow I’ve had.”
(H.M.; quoted in Milner et al., 1968)

“His experience seems to be that of a person


who is just becoming aware of his surroundings
without fully comprehending the situation,
because he does not remember what came
before.” (Milner et al., 1968)

Case Studies
In general, case studies can suggest useful theories and
hypotheses, but other methods are better suited to testing
those hypotheses.

Case Studies
The recording of behavior in it’s natural environment is known
as naturalistic observation.

An example: Suppose we wanted to know what high school


students do in their every day lives. We could equip them with
sound recorders or video cameras and follow them for a period
of time.

Naturalistic Observation
A researcher might use a survey when they want to predict
the attitudes or behaviors of a population based on a
representative sample.

For example, if we wanted to know how many people believe


in UFOs, we might create a survey that asks questions related
to beliefs in UFOs and then distribute it to a representative
sample of the population.

Surveys
Wording Effects
The way you word the questions on a survey can have a major
effect on the outcome of the survey.

For example, which of the following questions would you be


more likely to answer yes to?

1. Do you believe the government should spend more money


on aid to the needy?

2. Do you believe the government should spend more money


of welfare?

Surveys
The best basis for generalizing from a finding (e.g., a survey)
is if the sample the finding is based on is representative of
the population we want to generalize to. Random sampling
will typically give us a representative sample if the sample is
sufficiently large.

Random Sampling

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