Hermann Ebbinghaus

Über das Gedächtnis. Untersuchungen zur experimentellen Psychologie, Fig 2

Über das Gedächtnis. Untersuchungen zur experimentellen Psychologie, Fig 4

Über das Gedächtnis. Untersuchungen zur experimentellen Psychologie, Fig 6

ForgettingCurve

Mond-vergleich

Hermann Ebbinghaus (January 24, 1850 – February 26, 1909) was a German psychologist who is best known for his pioneering work in the study of memory, a field in which he is considered one of the most influential figures of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His most notable contributions include the discovery of the forgetting curve and the spacing effect, as well as the development of the nonsense syllable test to study learning and memory processes.

Early Life and Education

Hermann Ebbinghaus was born in Barmen, in the Rhine Province of the Kingdom of Prussia (now part of Germany). He was the son of a wealthy merchant, but little is known about his early life and education. Ebbinghaus pursued higher education at the University of Bonn, where he initially studied philosophy and history. However, his interest in psychology was sparked by the works of British empiricists such as John Stuart Mill. Ebbinghaus completed his doctoral degree at the University of Halle in 1873.

Career and Research

After completing his education, Ebbinghaus began a series of self-experiments to study the processes of learning and memory. In 1885, he published his groundbreaking work, Über das Gedächtnis (On Memory), where he introduced the concepts of the forgetting curve and the spacing effect. Ebbinghaus was the first to quantify the decline of memory retention over time and demonstrated that memory loss occurred rapidly within the first few hours of learning, followed by a gradual decline.

Ebbinghaus's method involved the use of nonsense syllables, combinations of letters that do not form actual words, to study pure memory devoid of prior knowledge. This method allowed him to measure memory capacity and retention without the influence of pre-existing associations.

In addition to his work on memory, Ebbinghaus made significant contributions to the understanding of the learning process. He was among the first to demonstrate that repeated learning and spacing of study sessions could improve memory retention, a phenomenon now known as the spacing effect.

Legacy

Hermann Ebbinghaus's research laid the foundation for modern memory studies. His methods and findings remain influential in the fields of psychology and education. The forgetting curve, in particular, has been validated by numerous studies and has implications for the design of learning and revision schedules.

Ebbinghaus also had a profound impact on the development of experimental psychology in Germany. He was a pioneer in the use of controlled experimental methods to study higher mental processes, setting a precedent for future research in psychology.

Selected Works

• Über das Gedächtnis (On Memory, 1885)
• Grundzüge der Psychologie (Fundamentals of Psychology, 1897)

Death

Hermann Ebbinghaus passed away on February 26, 1909, in Halle, Germany. His work continued to influence the field of psychology long after his death, cementing his legacy as a foundational figure in the study of memory.