Differential roles of frequency and meaningfulness in free recall.

Performed 2 experiments with 91 experimentally naive high school students to study the comparative influence of frequency and meaningfulness (m) on free recall. In Exp. I, the free-recall scores of 3 lists of words matched for m but varying in frequency levels were compared. In Exp. II, free recall of 3 lists of words matched for their frequency but varying in their m values were compared. Findings reveal that it is the frequency and not m of the words that influences free-recall, and that the influence of frequency is noticeable in the early trials of free-recall learning. Findings are discussed in terms of the existing theories of verbal learning. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Selective recall of positive and negative feedback, self-control behaviors, and depression.

Tested 2 sets of hypotheses, derived from cognitive–behavioral theories of depression, that (a) compared to a sample of nondepressed controls, depressed Ss would underestimate the frequency of reinforcement and overestimate the frequency of punishment received during an ambiguous laboratory task; and (b) when given the opportunity to self-reinforce or self-punish, depressed Ss would self-reinforce less often and self-punish more often than controls. Three of these predictions were supported. In an experiment with 24 depressed and 21 nondepressed undergraduates (Beck Depression Inventory), depressed Ss recalled less positive and more negative feedback than controls. As expected, these differences were significant only at a high rate of reinforcement and at a low rate of punishment. In the latter condition, however, depressed Ss were accurate in their recall, while nondepressed Ss underestimated the frequency of negative feedback. Depressed Ss self-reinforced less often than controls, but there were no differences in rates of self-punishment. Implications for cognitive and behavioral theories of depression are discussed. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Judged happiness: Effects of mode of recall of positive and negative experiences.

Obtained ratings of happiness with life in general from 159 undergraduate Ss before or after estimates of how often they felt either delight or annoyance. Estimates were made both in terms of absolute frequency categories and in self-ratings, and half of the Ss were instructed to base their frequency ratings on detailed memories for actual events. Comparative ratings of delight were positively related to overall happiness, regardless of experimental condition, although the direction of correlation between comparative ratings of annoyance and overall happiness depended on the condition. For Ss who rated annoyance before happiness, those who reported relatively more annoyance than others gave lower ratings of general happiness when using vivid, detailed, recalled events, but not under nonvivid recall. The pattern was reversed when happiness was rated before annoyance. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Discrimination learning utilizing positive or negative cues.

Trained 3 groups of children from 3 age groups (4, 7, and 9 yrs) to discriminate between 2 simultaneously presented displays which could be differentiated by a single distinctive feature located on 1 of the displays. It was found that 4-5 yr old Ss could learn the discrimination if the distinctive feature appeared on the positive display but not if it appeared on the negative display. This learning disparity was only minimally present among 7 yr olds and not present at all among 9 yr olds. Several possible interpretations of the data are presented. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

More positive or less negative? Trends in research on adjustment of families rearing children with developmental disabilities

Breast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer observed in women, and endogenous estrogen is thought to play a major role in its development. Because of this, any conditions or exposures which enhance estrogenic responses would result in an increased risk for breast cancer. The role of xenoestrogenic compounds, such as DDT, in the etiology of breast cancer is still very controversial. In the following paper we discuss recently-published observations by ourselves and others which indicate that xenoestrogens may play a significant role in the development of breast cancer. Specifically, we hypothesize that during periods of high growth rates and during breast development the sensitivity of breast cells to estrogenic compounds is sufficiently great for xenoestrogens to significantly enhance risk for breast cancer.     

A discounting model for decisions with delayed positive or negative outcomes.

Conducted 4 experiments with 93 undergraduates to assess the subjective values of investments and credit plans that were defined as temporally remote outcomes. Three studies used investment stimuli that varied in the amount of interest to be gained in the future; the 4th study used credit plans and investments that varied in the amount of money to be lost in the future. Converging support was obtained for a ratio discounting function for time. Findings are discussed in relation to (a) the evidence for a ratio discounting function for time, (b) the presence of task-dependent response patterning, and (c) the comparison of subjective values for money and time derived with risky and riskless stimuli. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relation of positive and negative sociometric valuations to social and personal adjustment of school children.

For students (N = 250) in seven grade-school classes, the frequency of positive and negative sociometric choices was related to scores on the subtests of the California Test of Personality. Frequency of both positive and negative choices was dichotomized into "few" and "many," and the subtest scores were analyzed in a 2 X 2 factorial design created by the four possible combinations of choices. "Seven of the 12 subsections of the… test… produced evidence to indicate a relationship between one's social position among his peers and some aspect of personality adjustment as measured by this test." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Proactive interference and the dynamics of free recall.

Proactive interference (PI) has long been recognized as a major cause of forgetting. Two experiments were conducted that offer another look at the subject by providing a detailed analysis of recall latency distributions during the buildup of and release from PI. These functions were accurately characterized by the convolution of the normal and exponential distributions (viz., the ex-Gaussian), which previously has been shown to describe recognition latency distributions. Further, the fits revealed that the increase in recall latency associated with the buildup of PI results from a slowing of the exponential retrieval stage only. The same result was found even when a short retention interval was used (and recall probability remained constant). These findings suggest that free-recall latency may be a sensitive index of the increased search set size that has often been assumed to accompany the buildup of PI. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What makes dreams positive or negative: relations to fundamental dimensions of positive and negative mood

The coding sequence at the boundaries of exons flanking nuclear introns shows some degree of conservation. To the extent that such sequences might be recognized by the splicing machinery, this conservation may be a derived result of evolution for efficient splicing. Alternatively, such conserved sequences might be remnants of proto-splice sites, which might have existed early in eukaryotic genes and served as the targets for the insertion of introns, as has been proposed by the introns-late theory. The distribution of intron phases, the position of the intron within a codon, is biased with an over-representation of phase 0 introns. Could any distribution of proto-splice sites account for today's intron phase distribution? Here, we examine the dicodon usage in six model organisms, based on current sequences in the GenBank database, and predict the phase distribution that would be expected if introns had been inserted into proto-splice sites. However, these predictions differ between the various model organisms and disagree with the observed intron phase distributions. Thus, we reject the hypothesis that introns are inserted into hypothetical proto-splice sites. Finally, we analyze the sequences around the splice sites of introns in all six of the species to show that the actual conservation of sequence in exon regions near introns is very small and differs considerably between these species, which is inconsistent with a general proto-splice sites model.     

Serial organization and prior free recall.

Assessed serial recall and organization of a list after different levels of prior free-recall learning with the same list. Performance was expected to be impaired as a direct function of amount of free recall because of inappropriate organizational units formed during free recall. Recall on serial trials following 15 free-recall trials was inferior to 5 or 10 prior free-recall trials. 4 groups of 24 Ss each were tested. Serial organization on the 1st serial trial was inferior if prior free recall occurred, but did not vary with the amount of free recall. These results, and those of part-whole and whole-part free-recall transfer studies, were interpreted by a component analysis of free recall, including response learning/unlearning and organizational learning/unlearning. (16 ref.) (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clustering and organization in free recall.

Evaluated various indexes developed to measure clustering and subjective organization and presents 2 intercorrelation matrices among clustering measures and the number of words recalled. The existence of a large negative bias in the correlation between the ratio of repetition measure and theoretical recall was demonstrated. Various issues which have developed from the study of organization in free recall are discussed. (3 p. ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Lag invariance with forced encodings in free recall.

Describes an experiment in which 144 undergraduates read 28 sentences, each 6 words in length. The last word was a homograph for which either of 2 meanings could be biased by the context of the sentence. 6 of the homographs appeared twice, with 1, 6, or 11 sentences intervening between the 1st and 2nd presentation. For 72 of the Ss, the same meaning was biased on both occasions (condition SC), while the remaining Ss were given 2 different meanings (condition DC). In free recall of the homographs, probability of recall was an increasing function of the number of intervening sentences (lag) for condition SC, whereas this function was invariant with lag for condition DC. For both conditions, the probability of an early output of a homograph was also an increasing function of lag. Findings are interpreted within an encoding variability framework. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personal adjustment and prediction of academic achievement.

The hypothesis tested was that "better" adjusted students would be more predictable than maladjusted students. Predictability was determined by correlation coefficients between aptitude test (CEEB-M and CEEB-V) scores and both 1st-quarter and 1st-yr grades. The sample consisted of 188 freshmen male business students who were classified into positive-, average-, and negative- adjustment groups on the basis of the means of the 10 Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey (GZTS) trait raw scores. Comparisons of the adjustment groups on correlations between the mathematics and verbal scores and grade averages indicated that the adjustment groups did not differ in terms of academic predictability. Analysis of differences between the groups on both high school achievement and college achievement revealed, however, that the positive-adjustment group earned significantly higher grades than the negative group. These results indicated that although the adjustment groups did not appear to be significantly different in terms of academic predictability, a definite relationship did exist between the groups on levels of achievement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mnemonic organization and free recall in schizophrenia.

Investigated word-storage structure and processes of organization and retrieval in 17 young schizophrenics (mean age 26.5 yrs) and 13 normal Ss (mean age 25.7 yrs). Ss were required to establish a stable organization of 25 unrelated words through repeated, self-paced sortings into self-determined categories. Subsequently, they were asked for free recall of the words. The schizophrenics required significantly more trials to complete the sorting task, but once this was achieved they recalled as many words in equally regular order as the normals did. The groups did not differ in regard to organizational structure in the sortings as assessed by hierarchical structure analysis. It is concluded that a schizophrenic deficit of mnemonic organization is indicated, possibly due to difficulties in maintaining a stable system of categories. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cued recall and free recall as a function of the number of items per cue.

Tested the generality of M. Earhard's (see record 1967-13073-001) findings that (a) the number of items/cue determines the rate of cued-recall learning, and (b) free-recall Ss perform as well as cued Ss under the conditions of 6 or 8 items/cue. Categorized materials consisting of English nouns were given to a total of 135 undergraduates in 2 free-recall and 7 cued-recall conditions. Differences were obtained between cued-recall Ss who had 6 or less and 8 or more items/cue. Free-recall Ss performed as well as 6.6 items/cue, which exactly replicates Earhard's result with alphabetized word lists. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Distinctiveness of encoding and recall of text materials.

Four text-recall experiments, involving 243 undergraduates, examined the distinctiveness-of-encoding hypothesis. Exp I investigated the comparative recall of distinctively (DE) vs nondistinctively (NDE) encoded summary sentences and revealed a significantly higher rate of recall for DE summary sentences and associated text material. Exp II combined an activity that required Ss to interact with the semantic base of the text with the DE operations employed in Exp I. Data indicate that each approach resulted in a greater level of recall than a control condition and that the combination of the 2 produced the highest overall recall. Exp III examined possible mechanisms by which semantic content associated with the summary sentences was encoded and recalled. The most facilitative arrangement of activities involved the physical presence of text materials at the time at which the operations on summary sentences took place. Exp IV investigated the role of inspection time and rereading on DE processes. Although controlled inspection time reduced the amount recalled compared with uncontrolled conditions, DE summary sentences still led to a significantly higher rate of recall than NDE sentences. (43 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Unmixing effects of spacing on free recall.

In 3 unmixed-list free-recall experiments, total recall was as high for lists that contained massed repetitions as for those containing spaced repetitions. This finding and differences between spaced and massed lists in the pattern of recall (notably serial position differences) indicate that displaced rehearsal (review of earlier list items) was more prevalent during study of the massed lists. These results imply that displaced rehearsal has a large role in producing the free-recall advantage typically observed for spaced compared with massed items in mixed lists and that unmixed-list designs generally are to be preferred for spacing experiments. They also imply that intentional free-recall experiments are not instructive concerning effects of spaced vs massed study, because rehearsal strategies for free recall result in the spaced study of massed items. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sources of recency effects in free recall.

Discusses evidence casting doubt on the primary-memory account of the recency effect in recall and reviews an alternate account that attributes recency to the use of temporal or contextual cues. The discussion is presented in the paradigm of free recall. The recency effect refers to the fact that when people memorize a list of words, they tend to recall items at the end of the list more often than those in the middle. Recency effects have often been attributed to output from primary memory, a short-term memory buffer system. Evidence that recency effects can be found in the absence of primary memory (in conditions of concurrent distraction, multicategory lists, interactions of other independent variables with serial position, negative recency effects, and auditory recency) is reviewed. It is concluded that primary-memory theories are no longer adequate accounts for the recency effect. A temporal-contextual theory of the recency effect is discussed as a plausible alternative account, although these accounts are not fully developed or tested. (108 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Time orientation in the positive and negative free phantasies of mildly abnormal versus normal high school males.

Contrasted 12 9th-12th grade males with mildly abnormal MMPI scores with 12 matched normal controls in a free phantasy procedure covering 2 sessions. It was predicted that the abnormals would proffer more negative ideas and images than would normals, as well as reflect a poorer sensitivity to future time perspective. Results confirm the negativity of ideas and images among abnormals, but the time perspective hypothesis was true only regarding the positive contents projected. Normals "think positively" into the future, while abnormals do not. A general outline is presented for the conception of human mental behavior as premising and arbitrary rather than mechanical and controlled. A logical learning theory embracing the dialectical features of meaning is given as rationale for the research findings and procedure employed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the independence of positive and negative affect.

Three separate but mutually compatible explanations are offered for N. M. Bradburn's (1969) finding that positive and negative affects are statistically independent: (1) In terms of a higher-order generalization, numbers of experienced desirable and undesirable episodes are generally uncorrelated. (2) The independence is a function of a response mode and scoring procedure that differ from those used elsewhere. (3) Short-term affective states are linked with more stable personality dispositions. 500 undergraduates served as Ss. Findings support each of these explanations: (a) Numbers of desirable and undesirable recent life events were statistically independent and correlated with positive and negative affect in the predicted manner. (b) Amending the response format from counting the number of positive and negative experiences to requiring reports of the proportion of time each was experienced yielded an intercorrelation of –.54 compared to –.01 in the original format. (c) Positive and negative affects were significantly associated with extraversion and neuroticism, respectively, but not with the other dispositional measure. Each explanation had value within 3 different conceptual and methodological frameworks. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)