{"id":4821,"date":"2019-11-25T23:09:58","date_gmt":"2019-11-26T04:09:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/?p=4821"},"modified":"2020-02-07T10:07:44","modified_gmt":"2020-02-07T15:07:44","slug":"dont-remember-the-google-effect-dont-worry-you-can-google-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/2019\/11\/25\/dont-remember-the-google-effect-dont-worry-you-can-google-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t remember the Google Effect? Don\u2019t worry, you can Google it."},"content":{"rendered":"

Let\u2019s step in the shoes of a typical college student for just a moment (think: Birkenstocks, Vans, or Adidas sneakers). You\u2019re taking 16 credits, volunteering at the local elementary school, working in the library, and participating in countless other extracurriculars.\u00a0<\/span><\/b>Your brain is constantly moving a million miles a minute.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

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This is what happens when you’re utilizing a ton of cognitive resources!<\/p><\/div>\n

In other words? You\u2019re busy. Now let\u2019s imagine you have a sociology paper due at midnight. You want to fine-tune your conclusion with more relevant information about affordable housing, but you can\u2019t seem to remember the median household income in Reno, Nevada. \u201cNo need to fret!\u201d you think as you pull up the Google homepage on your sticker covered laptop. \u201cWhy utilize precious cognitive resources for something that I can quickly type into a search bar?\u201d This, ladies and gentlemen, is the essence of the Google Effect.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

The Google Effect describes Google\u2019s impact on our ability to remember information. In our technologically-driven era, we don\u2019t feel the need to internalize information that can be found right at our fingertips, instead using Google as an external memory source. This decreased need to internalize results in decreased memory of this easily accessible information (\u201cGoogle Effect,\u201d n.d.). <\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Please help me, Google.<\/p><\/div>\n

As humans, our cognitive resources are limited,<\/a>\u00a0so we don\u2019t have an endless supply of attention at our disposal. Instead, we have to decide what is relevant and important for us to remember, and forget the rest through the process of transience<\/a>. Sometimes we don\u2019t even attend to a stimulus enough to encode the information through a process known as absent-mindedness<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/b>Why would we need to remember the <\/span>median household income in Reno if this information is not important for us to remember for more than just the time it takes to write our paper? This tidbit of information isn\u2019t stored in our memory; instead, it exists in an external source: the Internet.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

So what do we mean by this \u201cexternal source\u201d? External (transactive<\/a>) memory is a form of memory that\u2019s \u201cstored\u201d outside of your own mind.\u00a0<\/span>Another way to think of this memory is as shared knowledge, which allows groups of people to share information with one another (Arima, 2013). <\/span>This type of memory is <\/span>typically found within groups of people<\/a> rather than between humans and technology. This new form of technological transactive memory shifts the information typically shared between people to the Internet.<\/span><\/p>\n

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My BFF? More like my BEMSF (best external memory source forever)!<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/span>One study<\/a> suggests that our brains are wired to turn to the Internet as an additional memory tool because of its unlimited storage space for information that we may need to access <\/span>(Sparrow, Liu, & Wegner, 2011)<\/span>. Researchers conducted 4 experiments to explore this effect. In one experiment, participants read random facts and then typed them into a computer. Researchers told half of the participants that the computer would save their typed information and told the other half that the information would not be saved. Those who were under the impression that their typed information wouldn\u2019t be saved were better at remembering the information than the participants who thought their facts would be saved. In other words, when you think that you\u2019ll be able to use your trusty friend, Google, you don\u2019t bother committing that information to memory.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Confidence also plays a role in external memory. One <\/span>study was conducted to determine the relationship between the organization of one\u2019s own computer (an external memory source) and one\u2019s confidence about what they know (Hamilton, McIntyre, & Hertel, 2016)<\/span>. Participants first completed an assessment to determine their confidence in how much they knew about their occupational or school work, related to how much they <\/span>thought<\/span><\/i> they should know. They then responded to questions about their external memory source organization. The results suggest that <\/span>the more organized your computer, <\/span>the more confident you are in what you know. If we utilize this external memory source in an organized and efficient way where information can be easily accessed, increased confidence in what we know follows suit.\u00a0In other words, if we remember how and where we found the Reno median household income, we have more confidence in what we know. With this organization and confidence relationship in mind, it\u2019s also important to be aware of misplacing your confidence in order to avoid overconfidence<\/a>.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

So we know how memory works and we\u2019ve learned about how the Internet acts as an external memory source. We also know that when we organize this external memory, we have greater confidence in what we know. Now we must ask ourselves: \u201cWhat are the impacts (good and bad) of using the Internet as another form of memory?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

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Good? Bad?<\/p><\/div>\n

There are people on both sides of this Google Effect argument. Some say that relying on Google (and the Internet as a whole) as our external memory source makes us less intelligent, in the sense that we really have no reason to remember and know things that we can easily Google. Another claim for those seeing the glass half empty when it comes to this bias is the fact that our minds are better than computers at connecting pieces of information that we have learned. This ability to find relationships between various pieces of information is critical because everything is associated<\/a>. Think of a liberal arts education; we pull information from all different disciplines in order to fully grasp the interconnectedness of the world.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

On the other hand, the Google Effect can also be advantageous. If you have a nearly infinite amount of information at your fingertips, then you have more space in your mind for other cognitively demanding tasks, like remembering what day your sociology paper is due and actually writing your paper.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

So now that we\u2019ve talked about the good and the bad of the Google Effect, where do we go from here? <\/span>Cognitive demands have arguably changed since the inauguration of the fast-paced technological age. It\u2019s now much more advantageous to know how to utilize Google and the Internet to your benefit in order to maximize efficiency and performance in our constantly changing society. When you’re learning something new, Google acts as a support system, providing information and resources while you learn. As you become more knowledgeable about that topic, you can begin to form connections between other topics that you’ve learned in the past in order to make more sense of the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

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How can YOU maximize your efficiency?\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

<\/span>Although it\u2019s important to be cognizant of how much you\u2019re relying on our trusty friend, Google, if you learn how to harness its power, the Google Effect can benefit you. <\/span><\/p>\n

And if you read all of this, go about your day, and don\u2019t remember the Google Effect? Don\u2019t worry, you can always just Google it.<\/span><\/p>\n

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References<\/span><\/p>\n

Arima, Y. (2013). Effect of word-list consistency on the correlation between group memory and group polarization. <\/span>Psychological Reports<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>112<\/span><\/i>(2), 375\u2013389. <\/span>doi:<\/span>10.2466\/01.07.17.PR0.112.2.375-389<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Cooper, B. B. (2014, July 9). How we store memories in other peoples\u2019 heads. Retrieved from <\/span>https:\/\/lifehacker.com\/how-we-store-memories-in-other-peoples-heads-1602512604<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Google Effect. (n.d.). In <\/span>Alleydog,com\u2019s online glossary<\/span><\/i>. Retrieved from\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/www.alleydog.com\/glossary<\/span><\/a>\/definition.php?term=Google+Effect<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Hamilton, K. A., McIntyre, K. P. & Hertel, P. T. (2016). Judging knowledge in the digital age: the role of external-memory organization. <\/span>Applied Cognitive Psychology, 30, <\/span><\/i>1080-1087. doi:<\/span>10.1002\/acp.3277<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Mednick, S. A. (1962). The associative basis of the creative process. <\/span>Psychological Review, 69<\/span><\/i>(3), 220-232. doi:<\/span>10.1037\/h0048850<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Schacter, D. L. (1999). <\/span>The seven sins of memory<\/span>: Insights from psychology and cognitive neuroscience. <\/span>American Psychologist, 54<\/span><\/i>(3), 182-203. doi:10.1037\/\/0003-066X.54.3.182<\/span><\/p>\n

Sparrow, B., Liu, L. & Wegner D. M. (2011). Google effects on memory: Cognitive\u00a0<\/span>consequences of having information at our fingertips. <\/span>Science, 333<\/span><\/i>(6043), 776-778. doi:10.1126\/science.1207745<\/span><\/p>\n

Wegner, D. M. & Ward, A. F. (2013, December 1). The internet has become the external hard drive for our memories. Retrieved from <\/span>https:\/\/www.scientificamerican.com\/article\/the-internet-has-become-the-external-hard-drive-for-our-memories\/<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Let\u2019s step in the shoes of a typical college student for just a moment (think: Birkenstocks, Vans, or Adidas sneakers). You\u2019re taking 16 credits, volunteering at the local elementary school, working in the library, and participating in countless other extracurriculars.\u00a0Your brain is constantly moving a million miles a minute. In other words? You\u2019re busy. Now […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8885,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[266316,80215],"tags":[130357,266323,370871],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4821"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8885"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4821"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4821\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5262,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4821\/revisions\/5262"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4821"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4821"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/cogblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}