Retrospection effect

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As retrospection effect (engl. Recall bias, retrospection effect) is referred to an experience or event, a systematically changed in retrospect, more positive or more negative evaluation. In contrast to the simple rezen effect and hindsight errors , which are explained by the function of the short-term memory , complex conditions must be assumed for the retrospection effect . This tendency to answer varies depending on the person and topic, points back to emotional and cognitive processes of judgment and memory, and can be a systematic source of error in self-reports and interviews.

The retrospection effect is determined by comparing the retrospective self-assessment with the current self-reports or the self-reports averaged over a period of time. Studies have shown a negative retrospective effect in many people when mood and stress, physical complaints and pain are judged to be more intense in retrospect after days or weeks - compared to the current reports. During the outpatient assessment , the state of health and mood can be recorded in everyday life through regular queries with a personal digital assistant (PDA). Classifications requested in the evening of the day or the next day show a more negative evaluation for some people than the average value (based on the individual classifications during the day) (Käppler et al., 2001).

literature

  • Christoph Käppler, Gerd Brügner, Jochen Fahrenberg: Pocket computer-assisted assessment with MONITOR: everyday state of mind, method acceptance and the replication of the retrospection effect. In: Journal for Differential and Diagnostic Psychology, 2001, Volume 22, 249–266.
  • Amy A. Gorin, Arthur A. Stone: Recall biases and cognitive errors in retrospective self-reports: A call for momentary assessments. In Andrew Baum, Tracy A. Revenson and Jerome E. Singer (Eds.). Handbook of health psychology. Erlbaum, New Jersey 2001, ISBN 0-8058-1495-7 , pp. 405-413.
  • Rüdiger F. Pohl (Ed.): Cognitive illusions. A handbook on fallacies and biases in thinking, judgment and memory. Psychology Press, New York 2004, ISBN 1-84169-351-0 .
  • Norbert Schwarz : Assessing frequency reports of mundane behaviors: Contributions of cognitive psychology to questionnaire construction. In Clyde Hendrick & Margret S. Clark (Eds.). Research methods in personality and social psychology Sage, Newbury Park, CA. 1990, pp. 98-119.
  • Norbert Schwarz: Retrospective and concurrent self reports. The rational for real-time data capture. In: Arthur A. Stone, Saul Shiffman, Audie A. Atienza, Linda Nebeling: The science of real-time data capture: self-reports in health research. Oxford University Press, New York 2007, ISBN 978-0-19-517871-5 , pp. 11-26.