ABSTRACT
Frederic Bartlett is widely credited with the insight that remembering is a reconstructive process, and that social factors play a principle role in it. This chapter discusses the key features of Bartlett's approach to remembering and in so doing contextualize them within his time as well as some present-day theorizing. For an extended explication of Bartlett's theory, its development and appropriation by others readers should consult The Constructive Mind: Frederic Bartlett's psychology in reconstruction. The chapter describes the context and rationale for his seminal 'experiments on remembering' from which he later developed his celebrated theory. It then outlines Bartlett's reconstructive theory of remembering mainly through an analysis of his well-known concept of schema and how the memory researchers that followed him have transformed it from his time until the present day. Finally, the chapter highlights the often-neglected social aspects of his theory in order to show that Bartlett aimed to develop an integrated sociocultural and psychological approach to remembering.
