Effects of item-specific and relational information on hypermnesic recall.

The role of encoding conditions in producing hypermnesia (increased recall over successive trials) was examined by manipulating the availability of item-specific and relational information at encoding. Our findings demonstrate that encodings providing item-specific information (e.g., elaborative encodings) produce hypermnesia by facilitating the recovery of new items over trials, whereas encodings providing relational information (e.g., organizational encodings) produce hypermnesia by protecting against the loss of previously recalled items. Thus, the effects of encodings on hypermnesia may be understood by considering the type of trace information they make available. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Processing relational and item-specific information: Effects of aging and division of attention.

64 young adults (aged 18–21 yrs) and 32 older Ss (aged 65–83 yrs) encoded items from categorizable lists under incidental learning conditions. Two orienting tasks were used: a category sorting task and a pleasantness rating task. The number of items/category was varied (between 2 and 14) within each list. In addition, 24 young adults performed the orienting tasks while simultaneously engaged in an attention-demanding secondary task (divided-attention condition). Recall declined with both age and division of attention, while recall clustering was greatest for the older Ss and least for the young divided-attention Ss. The effects of category size and orienting task on recall did not vary across groups. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of processing objectives on the recall of prose material.

216 undergraduates read a prose passage describing a home and its surroundings with either a specific objective (i.e., to consider the information from the viewpoint of either a burglar or a home buyer) or a more general one (to form an impression of the situation). After reading the passage, they reconsidered the information with either the same specific objective, a different specific objective, or a more general goal in mind. Ss also were unexpectedly asked to recall the information they had read. Considering the information with a specific objective in mind at the time it was presented increased the recall of goal-relevant (GR) material and decreased the recall of goal-irrelevant (GIR) material. However, reconsidering the information with a specific goal in mind after it had been received did not have these effects. Instead, Ss' recall of both GR and GIR material was increased by reconsidering the information for the same specific purpose they had had when they initially read it. Implications for the effects of information-processing objectives on selective attention and encoding, incidental learning, and the availability of retrieval cues for recalling individual aspects of the information one receives are discussed. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of item-specific information for the serial position curve in free recall.

The serial position curve in free recall of a list of action phrases differs depending on whether the phrases were memorized by listening/reading (verbal task; VT) or by additionally enacting the denoted actions (subject-performed task; SPT). In VTs there is a clear primacy effect and a short recency effect. In SPTs there is no primacy effect but an extended recency effect. H. D. Zimmer, T. Helstrup, and J. Engelkamp (2000) assumed that SPTs provide excellent item-specific information, which leads to an automatic pop-out of the items presented last. In the present study, the authors assumed that good item-specific encoding generally enhances the recency effect and that it hinders rehearsal processes and thereby reduces the primacy effect. This assumption was confirmed. An item-specific orienting task leads to parallel serial position curves in VTs and SPTs with no primacy effect but a clear recency effect. Moreover, the same serial position effects were shown with nouns as learning material. An item-specific orienting task changes the classical U-shaped serial position curve with verbal material and leads to the disappearance of the primacy and the enhancement of the recency effect. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Use of relational and item-specific information in remembering by older and younger adults.

The applicability to older adults of predictions from the integrated memory model, that optimal memory results from concurrent availability of relational and item-specific information, was assessed. In Experiment 1, older adults (M?=?69 years) encoded related or unrelated words using rating, sorting, or both tasks. Using both tasks produced better recall than either separate task. Rating facilitated recall for related items, but sorting did not facilitate unrelated items. In Experiment 2, younger (M?=?20) and older (M?=?74) adults sorted or rated lists comprising categories of varying sizes. Young adults' free recall conformed to predictions, but older adults again showed facilitation mainly from rating larger categories. The stronger effects for younger adults imply that specific combinations of encoding and retrieval manipulations and materials must be considered in predicting older adults' performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effects of perceptual interference at encoding on organization and order: Investigating the roles of item-specific and relational information.

Interfering with the perceptual processing of a stimulus can improve memory. The perceptual-interference effect was investigated from the perspective of the item-specific/relational encoding distinction. This perspective suggests that perceptual interference enhances item-specific encoding but disrupts the encoding of relational and order information. The results of 6 experiments were largely consistent with this view. In Experiments 1 and 2, perceptual interference (a hypothesized item-specific manipulation) and list organization (a relational manipulation) both enhanced free recall but had opposite effects on a measure of relational processing (category clustering). Increasing list organization increased clustering, whereas perceptual interference decreased clustering. In addition, perceptual interference typically decreased memory for order. Finally, when order information was an important determinant of free recall, the perceptual-interference effect was eliminated or reversed. When reliance on order information was lessened, the perceptual-interference effect reemerged. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dynamic changes in hypermnesia across early and late tests: A relational/item-specific account.

Two experiments tested predictions derived from R. R. Hunt and M. A. McDaniel's (1993) relational/item-specific account of hypermnesia. According to this framework, participants encoding relational information should show greater hypermnesia on early test trials than on later test trials. In contrast, participants encoding item-specific information should show greater hypermnesia on later test trials than on early test trials. These predictions were not anticipated by other accounts but were confirmed by the results. Further, the patterns of reminiscence and intertest forgetting supported the theoretical underpinnings of these predictions. A 3rd experiment examined some factors by which item-specific encoding might enhance reminiscence (and thus hypermnesia) on later test trials. These results suggested that a richer set of encoded attributes rather than a fluctuating retrieval plan supported the beneficial effects of item-specific encoding on reminiscence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of type of input and type of processing on recall hypermnesia.

120 undergraduates participated in 1 of 6 conditions representing 2 types of input (words, pictures) and 3 types of initial processing, including imagery (generate object imagery or real-world imagery), semantic (rate pleasantness or form a verbal association), and physical (rate complexity or judge the presence of a feature). After viewing 70 items, Ss attempted to recall them 4 times. Except for physical processing of words, the number of items correctly recalled improved over trials, demonstrating hypermnesia. Intrusions increased over trials in most conditions and appeared later within a trial for words than for pictures. Of 5 alternative accounts of hypermnesia, results favor the sensory/semantic model of memory coding. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Binding, relational memory, and recall of naturalistic events: A developmental perspective.

This research was an investigation of children's performance on a task that requires memory binding. In Experiments 1 and 2, 4-year-olds, 6-year-olds, and adults viewed complex pictures and were tested on memory for isolated parts in the pictures and on the part combinations (combination condition). The results suggested improvement in memory for the combinations between the ages of 4 and 6 years but not in memory for the isolated parts. In Experiments 2 and 3, the authors also examined the developmental relationship between performance in the combination condition and free recall of a naturalistic event, finding preliminary evidence that performance on a memory task that requires binding is positively related to performance in episodic memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Observations: The category access measure of relational processing.

Increases in category access (CA) and items recalled per category (IPC) are associated with increases in relational and item-specific processing, respectively. However, it has also been shown that CA increases as recall level increases and that CA scores following relational processing are actually below CA scores for randomly recalled items. These results prompted M. D. Murphy (1979) to suggest that, after adjusting for recall-level differences, relational processing decreases CA scores. Results of Experiment 1, along with a reanalysis of previously published data, showed that relational processing produces lower CA scores than purely item-specific processing (or random recall), but an increase in relational processing produces an increase in CA scores even when the CA and IPC scores are adjusted for recall-level differences. These results suggest a curvilinear relationship between relational processing and CA scores. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The influence of levels of processing on recall from working memory and delayed recall tasks.

Recent research in working memory has highlighted the similarities involved in retrieval from complex span tasks and episodic memory tasks, suggesting that these tasks are influenced by similar memory processes. In the present article, the authors manipulated the level of processing engaged when studying to-be-remembered words during a reading span task (Experiment 1) and an operation span task (Experiment 2) in order to assess the role of retrieval from secondary memory during complex span tasks. Immediate recall from both span tasks was greater for items studied under deep processing instructions compared with items studied under shallow processing instructions regardless of trial length. Recall was better for deep than for shallow levels of processing on delayed recall tests as well. These data are consistent with the primary-secondary memory framework, which suggests that to-be-remembered items are displaced from primary memory (i.e., the focus of attention) during the processing phases of complex span tasks and therefore must be retrieved from secondary memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Note-taking in the employment interview: Effects on recall and judgments.

Although note-taking in the employment interview is highly recommended, little research has examined its effects. This study investigated the effects of note-taking styles, review of the notes, and content of the notes on participants' cued recall of information and decisions made from videotaped employment interviews. Note-taking increased recall accuracy but not judgment accuracy. Being able to review notes resulted in increased judgment accuracy for those taking conventional-style notes. The content of the notes also had important implications for conventional note-takers, suggesting some benefits of recording notes using the key-points style. The findings suggest that the act of note-taking may be more important for memory and legal reasons than for improving the decisions made by interviewers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Schematic effects of social attitudes on information processing and recall.

Examined the proposal that social attitudes have schematic effects on the processing of attitude-relevant information. It was predicted that (a) such attitudes schemata would be bipolar, with information organized around "agree" and "disagree" poles; (b) attitude-relevant information would be more easily processed and, hence, judged more readily if it fits these schematic poles; and (c) schematic fit would also facilitate recall of attitude-relevant information. 23 undergraduates were asked to make pro/anti and agree/disagree ratings of 54 attitude statements on 3 issues. Ratings and decision times were recorded. The next day, Ss engaged in a free-recall task. Both schematic hypotheses were supported: Faster judgments and higher recall were found with items that were extremely agreed or disagreed with than with items that elicited less extreme agree/disagree ratings. It is shown that these effects are not due to idiosyncracies of either individual items or individual Ss. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Levels of processing: Effect of number of decisions on prose recall.

Examined differential recall of prose materials as a function of the number of decisions made about the content during reading. It was hypothesized that number of decisions would provide a means of enhancing recall and of operationally defining levels of processing. Exp I with 14 undergraduates varied the number of decisions made about a prose passage. Exp II with 30 undergraduates attempted to resolve alternative explanations to numbers of decisions (i.e., redundancy of processing and time differences spent by readers with each question). The effect of decisions on recall according to where in the passage decisions were based was investigated in Exp III using 15 undergraduates. The results indicate that (a) recall is increased as the number of decisions is increased, (b) the effects on recall are noted only in conditions requiring decisions, and (c) recall of superordinate information, along with associated subordinate information, is enhanced beyond what is obtained by decisions based upon subordinate information. (42 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Story recall in young Black and White children: Effects of racial group membership, race of experimenter, and dialect.

Tested the effects of racial group membership, race of E, and dialect on unstructured and probed recall. l6 Black and 16 White 4-6 mo old children were Ss. Subgroups of 4 Ss within each racial group were randomly assigned to the experimental conditions such that order of exposure to E (Black and White) and dialects Standard English vs Black English vernacular) were counterbalanced. Results show that Whites performed better than Blacks in Standard English, Blacks performed better than Whites in Black English vernacular, Blacks tested in Black English vernacular were equivalent to Whites tested in Standard English, and Whites performed better in Standard English than in Black English vernacular. When probed with questions, there was an overall increase in the proportion of correct information for both racial groups. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of number signals on reading and recall.

Examined the influence of number signals (i.e., numbers or number words preceding important textual information) on text recall. 120 undergraduates read and recalled 2 texts containing 10 target sentences each. Reading times were recorded for each target sentence. For half of the Ss, the target sentences were preceded by numbers indicating their organization; for the other half, the target sentences were not signaled. Half of the Ss completed a free-recall task, while the remainder completed a cued-recall task. Results indicate that Ss read target sentences more slowly if they were signaled than if they were unsignaled. Ss' recalls of target information followed the text organization more closely if the sentences were signaled. Signaling aided free recall of target sentences, but had no effect on cued recall. Results demonstrate that number signals directed attention to the sentences they marked, led to better encoding of the organization of target information, and influenced the process of recalling the target information. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Negative recency and levels of processing in free recall.

Compared initial and final free recall of 5-item lists for 4 different "processing activities"; during list presentation 32 undergraduates either silently rehearsed, overtly rehearsed, generated rhymes, or generated verbal associates. Whereas the 2 rehearsal conditions showed a marked superiority in immediate free recall, their final (delayed) recall was inferior to that of lists for which associates were generated. It appears that the negative recency effect commonly obtained in delayed recall is a consequence of processing strategies which maximize the recency effect in immediate recall. (French summary) (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Level of processing, type of processing, and the repetition effect in free recall.

Conducted 2 experiments, involving 45 high school and 60 college students, on the possibility that the effect of repetition on the long-term retention of common nouns depends upon the form of study being used. In Exp I, 3 levels of processing were combined factorially with 3 degrees of repetition in an incidental-learning task. Results indicate that semantic processing yields a larger repetition effect than "minimal" structural processing. Exp II, which entailed the factorial crossing of level of processing with type of processing, also showed that level of processing interacts with repetition to determine long-term retention. Type of processing, however, failed to have any effect. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Implicit processing in the cued recall of young and old adults.

Reports 2 cued recall experiments in which younger and older Ss studied target words varying in number of preexperimental associates. In Exp 1, targets were studied in either the absence or presence of meaning-related context cues, with recall always prompted by the cues. In the absence of context, words with smaller sets of associates were easier to recall than those with larger sets, but this effect was reduced for older Ss. The presence of a study context cue facilitated recall and eliminated the effect of associative set size for both ages. In Exp 2, targets were studied and tested in the presence of unrelated words. In this situation, words with smaller sets of associates were less likely to be recalled than words with larger sets; again the effect was reduced for older Ss. The results are interpreted as an age decrement in processing implicitly activated information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)