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David Parsons
Professor Caruso
UWRT 1102
June 21st 2016
Defense Paper

We all can relate to depending on our memory to recall specific material, whether for a job, or
most commonly studying for school in order to pass a test. We all know that time may be scarce when
trying to balance school, jobs, social life, and adequate sleep. Knowing these challenges, learning
material should be done as efficiently and effectively as possible to achieve desired results. From
further research conducted into the subject of music and studying, I have highlighted two major
influences on memory; context-dependent learning and state-dependent learning. The product will be a
brochure, including information about the influences, statistics, and helpful tips and reminders for
studying effectively. The goal of the brochure is to express why paying close attention to the study
environment (external and internal) is extremely helpful with productivity.

The first major influence on memory is context-dependent learning, which is defined as recall
memory improving when the context of the learning environment is the same as the testing
environment(or environment when required to recall).The external environment can be very different
depending on the situation. A waiter, for example, is required to memorize the menu, prices, and
specials for the restaurant to appropriately serve the customer in a timely manner. The waiter's
environment to recall can often be hectic and stressful. On the other hand, a student's testing
environment is most likely going to be a quiet and calm room. Considering this, it would be in a
waiter's best interest to simulate a hectic and noisy environment when learning the menu items, and the

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student would best benefit from studying in a quiet, calm room with little external distraction. The
noise level is not the only factor to consider when comparing learning and testing environments. Subtle
differences or similarities can have an impact on ability to recall such as wall color, specific people, or
objects present in the testing situation.

Pertaining to music, there are conflicting studies on the influence of music and learning. The
best approach to this issue is to consider both context-dependent learning and state-dependent learning.
State-dependent learning can be defined as improved recall when material is learned in the same state
of mind as when being tested or required to recall. As with music, studies show a positive correlation
between test scores and context of specific music, meaning context-dependent learning has a significant
impact with music(Smith). The problem is that most testing or work environments do not allow the
individual to freely listen to music as they might have during the learning process. So, when looking at
state-dependent learning, we realize that current emotional state and state of consciousness play a role
in memory recall. This matters because people often choose to study with music that psychologically
motivates them to get the task completed. Also, music is usually chosen that improves the mood and
anxiety level of the individual. This is important to consider because it may be beneficial to replicate
the state of mind in which the material is learned, which may be as simple as replaying a motivating or
calming song in your head during a test. A simpler solution to this is to study in silence to be sure the
contexts are the same in both situations, however, advantages and disadvantages of this are the
individual's responsibility to determine based on prior experience.

As for college students, there are some common habits associated with studying. Widely known
for keeping someone awake, amphetamine-based stimulants such as Adderall are often used by college
students. With use such as staying awake all night to study for a test, the negative effects are very likely

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to outweigh any perceived benefits. When studying with Adderall the night before, the individual is
(ideally) operating on a sufficient night of sleep from the previous night, allowing the Adderall to
produce a powerful concentration effect. When taking state-dependent learning into consideration, this
method is not beneficial. If awake all night, the individual is not in the same state of mind on the
morning of the test. The individual will be sleep deprived, which results in impaired memory, focus,
and coordination. A common way to combat the sleep deprivation is to take more Adderall before the
test, which is a mistake as well. A fully functional mind on adderall is not the same state of
consciousness as a sleep-deprived mind on Adderall. Another common study habit is to use alcohol
moderately while looking over something boring such as notes or a textbook. If the study session is
more than an hour or so, the individual will be likely to obtain a buzz from the alcohol. The blood
alcohol content (BAC) can be as little as .04 to produce this effect, which can be caused by as little as
one drink with some people. The state of someone with this BAC content is very different from
someone who has a BAC of 0. The reason it is in a student's best interest to consider this, is because
most students will not be allowed to show up to take a test with alcohol in their system, so the context
of the test will not be as when studied if this is the case.

In the brochure, there will be a list of tips and reminders for learning that can be concluded from
the collection of research. These tips and reminders will relate to many things such as certain people
present when studying, noise level of study environment, music, mood, substance use, and sleep. The
main point to get across with the product, is to play close attention to what the study environment is
like. Also to address current study habits and be willing to modify them if necessary. These memory
observations are not just hypotheses and can be significantly measured. Understanding these
influences could significantly improve the ability to recall information. Whether a student or employee,
maximum results are ideal and can be achieved by critically observing the external environment and

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the environment within.

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Work Cited

Freyer, Frank, Hubert Dinse, Robert Becker, and Petra Rittler. "State-Dependent Perceptual Learning." The Journal
Of Neuroscience 33.7 (2012): 2900-907. Society for Neuroscience. SN, 13 Feb. 2013. Web. 18 June 2016.

Peterson, Ronald. "Retrieval Failures in Alcohol State-Dependent Learning."Psychopharmacology 55.2 (1977): 14146. Web.

Ray, Lara, James Mackillop, Adam Leventhal, and Kent Hutchison. "Catching the Alcohol Buzz: An Examination of
the Latent Factor Structure of Subjective Intoxication." Alcoholism 33.12 (2009): 2154-161. Wiley Online Library.
Web. 18 June 2016.

Smith, Kayla. "Adderall Addiction and Abuse." Addiction Center. N.p., 25 Nov. 2015. Web. 18 June 2016.

Smith, Steven M. "Background Music and Context-Dependent Memory." The American Journal of Psychology 98.4
(1985): 591-603. JSTOR. Web. 3 June 2016.

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