The Accuracy and Precision of Memory for Natural Scenes: A Walk in the Park

In: Open mind: discoveries in cognitive science, Band 8, S. 131-147

Abstract

Abstract
It is challenging to quantify the accuracy and precision of scene memory because it is unclear what 'space' scenes occupy (how can we quantify error when misremembering a natural scene?). To address this, we exploited the ecologically valid, metric space in which scenes occur and are represented: routes. In a delayed estimation task, participants briefly saw a target scene drawn from a video of an outdoor 'route loop', then used a continuous report wheel of the route to pinpoint the scene. Accuracy was high and unbiased, indicating there was no net boundary extension/contraction. Interestingly, precision was higher for routes that were more self-similar (as characterized by the half-life, in meters, of a route's Multiscale Structural Similarity index), consistent with previous work finding a 'similarity advantage' where memory precision is regulated according to task demands. Overall, scenes were remembered to within a few meters of their actual location.