Interdomain transfer between isomorphic topics in algebra and physics.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 15(5) of Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition (see record 2008-10689-001). On page 157, parts of two sentences in the Results and Discussion section were omitted. The corrected sentences are provided in the erratum.] Three experiments examined transfer between 2 isomorphic subdomains of algebra and physics. The two areas were arithmetic-progression problems in algebra and constant-acceleration problems in physics. High school and college students who had learned one of these subtopics were presented with word problems that used either content from the domain they had originally studied or content based on the unfamiliar but analogous domain. Ss who had learned arithmetic progressions were very likely to spontaneously recognize that physics problems involving velocity and distance can be addressed using the same equations. Analysis of problem-solving protocols revealed that the recognition was immediate and that the solutions were a straightforward application of the algebraic method. Such recognition occurred even when the algebraic procedures were taught using example word problems all of which were drawn from a single content area (e.g., "money" problems). In contrast, Ss who had learned the physics topic almost never exhibited any detectable transfer to the isomorphic algebra problems. The results were interpreted in terms of content-free vs content-specific applicability conditions for mathematical procedures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Transfer of domain-specific problem-solving procedures.

Two experiments examined transfer of mathematical problem-solving procedures learned in content-rich quantitative domains (e.g., physics, finance) to isomorphic algebra word problems dealing with other contents. In spite of content-specific embedding, many high school and college students exhibited spontaneous transfer when the variables in the learned and in the transfer problems represented similar types of quantities (e.g., speed and typing rate). Spontaneous transfer to structurally isomorphic problems with variables representing different types of quantities (e.g., speed and salary) was blocked. Protocol analyses showed that for matching quantities, transfer solutions were straightforward applications of the learned methods, whereas transfer to problems with nonmatching quantities demanded a hint for retrieval followed by an effortful process of abstraction and analogical mapping. The results suggest a complex interrelation between content and structure: Many features of the embedding content may be "screened out" as irrelevant, but content features used for interpretation of variables (e.g., intensive vs. extensive) may affect both access and use. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Identification of disoriented objects: Effects of context of prior presentation": Errata.

Reports an error in the original article by P. Jolicoeur and B. Milliken ( Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 1989 [Mar], Vol 15[2], 200–210). Parts of 2 sentences were omitted in the left column on page 202; these sentences should read as follows: "Half of the Ss in the rotated group received the following type of block order: R1A, R2A, R3A, R4A, R5A, T6A–6B. The other half of the Ss had Set B objects in the training phase (first 5 blocks), but received the same transfer trials. Half of the Ss in the upright group received the same transfer trials. Half of the Ss in the upright group received block orders of the following type: U1A, U2A, U1A, U2A, U1A, T6A–6B." (For original abstract, see record 1989-24712-001). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"When are social judgments made? Evidence for the spontaneousness of trait inferences": Correction to Winter and Uleman.

Reports an error in "When are social judgments made? Evidence for the spontaneousness of trait inferences" by Laraine Winter and James S. Uleman (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1984[Aug], Vol 47[2], 237-252). There are errors in the labeling of Figure 1 on p. 244. The ordinate percentages should be three times greater than indicated. In addition, the algebraic formula in the note for Table 2 on p. 245 is incorrect. The correct ordinate percentages and the correct algebraic formula are provided in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1985-01259-001.) Adapted E. Tulving and D. M. Thomson's (see record 2005-09647-002) encoding specificity paradigm for 2 recall experiments with 153 undergraduates to investigate whether Ss would make trait inferences without intentions or instructions at the encoding stage of processing behavioral information. Under memory instructions only, Ss read sentences describing people performing actions that implied traits. Later, Ss recalled each sentence under 1 of 3 cuing conditions: a dispositional cue (e.g., generous); a strong, nondispositional semantic associate to an important sentence word; or no cue. Results show that recall was best when cued by the disposition words. Ss were unaware of having made trait inferences. Interpreted in terms of encoding specificity, findings indicate that Ss unintentionally made trait inferences at encoding. It is suggested that attributions are made spontaneously, as part of the routine comprehension of social events. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depth of processing and interference effects in the learning and remembering of sentences.

In 2 experiments with a total of 140 undergraduates, Ss who completed the last words of sentences they read learned more than Ss who simply read whole sentences. This facilitation was observed even with sentences that were almost always completed with the wrong words. However, proactive interference attributable to acquisition errors appeared on recall and recognition tests administered after a 1-wk interval. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Recognition processes in episodic memory.

In 5 series of experiments with 5th, 6th, and 10th graders and undergraduate and university students, Ss encouraged to process related sentences at the same time (integrated storage) were compared with those encouraged to process the related sentences independently of each other (independent storage). Overall results show that Ss in the integrated storage condition were better at deriving inferences based on interconnections among the related items, at identifying the sentences that had been presented, and at recalling the sentences to a word cue. There was no difference between conditions on word recognition tests. Thus, Ss in the independent condition had a more difficult time retrieving the sentences that had been presented, but not in identifying the words contained in these sentences. This finding is explained by postulating a 2-stage recognition process. It was also found that Ss were able to combine 2 related sentences presented independently of each other, if the intervening sentences did not contain concepts in common with these sentences. However, when there were several sentences containing overlapping information, each presented independently of the others, Ss were unable to combine them into a single idea. This result indicates that the presence of several episodic traces containing common concepts interferes with the retrieval of information from these traces. (French summary) (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"What is learned during automatization? The role of attention in constructing an instance": Correction to Logan and Etherton.

Reports an error in "What is learned during automatization? The role of attention in constructing an instance" by Gordon D. Logan and Joseph L. Etherton (Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 1994[Sep], Vol 20[5], 1022-1050). In the aforementioned article, the Appendix on page 1050 was incomplete. The complete Appendix is presented in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1995-04305-001.) Seven experiments with 372 Ss were conducted to examine the role of attention in automatization. Ss searched 2-word displays for members of a target category in divided-attention, focused-attention, and dual-task conditions. The main issue was whether attention conditions would affect what Ss learned about co-occurrences of the words in the displays. The attention hypothesis, derived from the instance theory of automaticity, predicts learning of co-occurrences in divided-attention and dual-task conditions in which Ss attend to both words but not in focused-attention conditions in which Ss only attend to 1 word. The data supported the attention hypothesis and therefore the instance theory. [A correction concerning this article appears in Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory & Cognition, 1994(Nov), Vol 20(6), 1390. The Appendix was incomplete and the complete Appendix is presented.] (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Working-memory capacity as long-term memory activation: An individual-differences approach.

One explanation of the correlation often observed between working-memory span scores and reading comprehension is that individuals differ in level of activation available for long-term memory units. Two experiments used the fan manipulation to test this idea. In Exp 1, high- and low-working-memory Ss learned a set of unrelated sentences varying in the number of shared concepts (fans) and then performed speeded recognition for those sentences. Low-working-memory Ss showed a larger increase in recognition time as fan increased. When the slope of the fan effect was partialled out of the relationship between working-memory span and verbal abilities, the relationship was reduced to nonsignificance. In Exp 2, Ss learned thematically related sentences that varied in fan. Low-span Ss showed the positive fan effect typically found with thematically unrelated sentences, whereas high-span Ss showed a negative fan effect. The results are discussed in terms of a general capacity theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What's new in speech perception? The research and ideas of William Chandler Bagley, 1874–1946.

Describes W. C. Bagley's (1900, 1901) research on the relation between sound and meaning in human speech perception. Using phonograph cylinders, Bagley presented Ss with spoken words, either individually or in sentences, that had been pronounced with a missing consonant sound. Ss, who were instructed to report only what they had heard, often restored words to their original form (i.e., heard the words as if they had been spoken correctly). Restorations were determined by the position of the missing sound in the word and the position of the word in the sentence. The pattern of results observed by Bagley and his conclusions about human speech perception find remarkable parallels in contemporary psycholinguistics. For example, Bagley explained his results in terms of the critical role of context in speech perception and the sequential use of sound in spoken-word recognition. Some of the main results of Bagley's research are compared to those obtained in more recent experiments. It is concluded that many of the most important insights about spoken-word recognition were first offered by Bagley. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationships between associative and content structure of physics concepts.

Investigated the development of the associative structure of physics concepts as a result of the content presented to the learner and the relationship between associative structure (as determined by a series of word association tests) and academic achievement. College students were divided into a treatment group of 19 Ss who received physics instruction and a control group of 11 Ss who did not. Experimental Ss' associative structures indicated significantly greater correlation with the instructor's associative structure after exposure to course content than previously; experimental Ss also were more similar to the instructor than control Ss. Comparison of regression models showed that associative structure itself contributed significantly to the prediction of achievement. Results suggest that assessment of associative structure may allow insight into a learner's progress which complements achievement testing. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Development of the concept of truth-functional negation": Correction to Kim.

Reports an error in "Development of the concept of truth-functional negation" by Kyung Kim (Developmental Psychology, 1985[May], Vol 21[3], 462-472). In the article, several key words were omitted from the last sentence of the Method section on page 464, column 2, third paragraph. The corrected sentence is included in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1985-25108-001.) Studied the development of the concept of truth-functional negation in 2 experiments, using 36 English-speaking children (aged 3-6 yrs) and 10 Korean-speaking children (aged 4-5 yrs) as Ss. In Exp I, English-speaking Ss were given a sentence-variation task in which the following 4 sentence types were used to describe 36 pictures of common items: true affirmative, false affirmative, true negative (TN), and false negative. The results show that a majority of Ss under 5 yrs had difficulty with negative sentences, particularly TN sentences, indicating a lack of explicit understanding of truth-functional negation as defined in logic. In Exp II, a cross-linguistic replication of Exp I was attempted with Korean-speaking Ss. Despite some cross-linguistic differences in the negation system, the Korean-speaking Ss showed essentially the same pattern of results, suggesting that the development in question proceeds within the general limit set by the general cognitive development. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Semantic priming during sentence processing by young and older adults.

Examined semantic processing of sentences by 30 younger (mean age 25.1 yrs) and 30 older (mean age 68.5 yrs) adults, using a priming technique. Ss read a sentence and then made a lexical decision about a target presented immediately after the sentence. For both age groups, word targets that were instruments implied by the action of the sentence had faster latencies than unrelated word targets. There was no evidence of inhibition of unrelated targets, suggesting that the facilitation of instrument targets involved automatic processes. Results provide no evidence for age-related changes in semantic processing of sentences, including access to implied information. Older Ss did, however, have poorer memory for the sentences on a recognition test. It is suggested that previous findings by G. Cohen (see PA, Vols 63:747 and 67:958) of age deficits in comprehension may depend on techniques that measure what is remembered rather than what is understood. (35 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Automaticity of word recognition under phonics and whole-word instruction.

38 undergraduates learned to read words spelled with novel letters under phonics or whole-word conditions. Training was carried through several overlearning trials, and vocalization latency of word recognition responses was measured. On initial overlearning trials, vocalizations of phonics Ss were faster than those of whole-word Ss. At no stage of overlearning were whole-word Ss faster than phonics Ss. Vocalization latencies declined as overlearning progressed at approximately equal rates for phonics and whole-word Ss but did not reach fully automated speeds. Correlations of vocalization latencies from overlearning trials and a baseline task indicated that whole-word instruction resulted in word recognition mechanisms similar to fully automated mechanisms but that phonics instruction did not. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An illusion of memory: False recognition influenced by unconscious perception.

The results of two experiments showed that an illusion of memory can be produced by unconscious perception. In a first phase of those experiments, a long list of words was presented for study. For the test of recognition memory given in the second phase of each experiment, presentation of a "context" word preceded that of most recognition test words. Ss were to judge whether or not the test words had been presented during the earlier study phase of the experiment. Effects of a context word on this recognition memory decision were opposite when Ss were aware vs. unaware of its presentation. For example, as compared to a condition in which no context word was presented, the probability of false recognition was increased when Ss were unaware but decreased when Ss were aware of the presentation of a context word that matched the recognition test word. Results are discussed in terms of unconscious influences on an attribution process. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of real and recalled success on learned helplessness and depression.

The effects of recalling past successes on the deficits in learned helplessness and depression were examined and, for learned helplessness, compared with those of real success. Ss were 84 female, English university students who had been rated on the Beck Depression Inventory. Depressed Ss and nondepressed Ss receiving unsolvable problems showed deficits in anagram performance and some evidence of lowered mood compared with nondepressed Ss receiving no unsolvable problems. Experience with solvable letter substitution problems reversed anagram deficits and low mood associated with learned helplessness, replicating previous findings. Recalling successes on letter substitution problems had no effect on the anagram deficits in learned helplessness and depression and had an effect in improving mood only in learned helplessness. Real and recalled success both significantly modified attributions for failure in the learned helplessness condition. Results suggest real success does not have its therapeutic effects by modifying attributions for failure toward external factors. Some evidence of a facilitatory effect of depression on initial anagram performance was obtained. It is concluded that recall of past successes, while easier to arrange than real success experiences, may not be a powerful clinical procedure. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Self Verbalization and Emotional Arousal": Erratum.

Reports an error in the original article by David C. Rimm and Stuart B. Litvak (Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 1969[April],74[2],181-187). On page 187 of the article corrections need to be made in the first and second paragraphs. (The following abstract of this article originally appeared in record 1969-09037-001.) Investigated certain assumptions derived from A. Ellis' theory relating implicit verbalization to emotional arousal. Emotional responses (GSR and respiration changes) of 18 undergraduates instructed to silently read sequences of affectively loaded sentences were compared with those of 9 Ss who read neutral sentences. The relationship between relevance to S of the content of the sentences and level of emotional response was investigated, as was the effect of sentence type (observation, inference, or evaluative conclusion) on level of emotional response. Results were that Ss showed a significantly greater response to affectively loaded than to neutral sentences on 2 out of 3 responses measures. Neither relevance nor sentence type were found to have any significant effect. Results were interpreted as offering only partial support for the theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Problem-specific information and the development of problem-type schemata.

Examined the proposition that problem-type schemata include both problem-specific and abstract information. Recognition priming was used to capture schema acquisition as it evolves in analogical problem solving. Priming was used to show that Ss form associations in memory between problem-specific sentences drawn from analogous problems. In Exp 1, Ss formed such associations but only when analogical transfer was facilitated. In Exp 2, Ss formed associations only among sentences that related to abstract problem information. In Exp 3, Ss did not form associations among sentences that interfered with access to abstract information during transfer. In Exp 4, Ss accessed problem-specific sentences in problem-type schemata when given new problems of the same type. The results suggest that problem solvers retain problem-specific information in schemata because the information affords access to abstract information during transfer. Results are discussed in terms of a conservative generalization model of schema acquisition that emphasizes the importance of problem-specific information in problem solving. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavior modification through covert semantic desensitization.

Matched 12 male and 18 female snake-phobic undergraduates on degrees of behavioral avoidance and subjective fear. Ss were randomly assigned to (a) an experimental group who received a semantic counterconditioning of meaning treatment; or (b) a control group who were pseudodesensitized on a buffer task. Results show that snake-phobic Ss initially rated the word "snake" on the semantic differential scale as significantly negative in evaluative meaning. Ss in the experimental group showed significant alteration in their semantic differential rating of the word snake, significant decrement in their fear of snakes, and significant behavioral approach toward a live gopher snake. Semantic counterconditioning of meaning is interpreted to provide the basis for some desensitization procedures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of topical learning and indirect learning directions on prose recall.

Studied the recall effects of telling readers what sentences to learn by referring to words in sentences or to topics of sentences. Ss were 130 undergraduates. There were 5 sets of learning directions: (a) Control directions told Ss to learn the text; (b) word-positive directions gave the 1st few words of relevant (to be learned) sentences; (c) word-negative directions gave the 1st few words of incidental (not to be learned) sentences; (d) topical-positive directions gave the topics of the relevant sentences; and (e) word-negative directions gave the topics of incidental sentences. Word reference (but not topical reference) facilitated relevant recall and depressed incidental recall. Results support the importance of precise reference in the use of learning directions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Some conditions of meaningful learning for computer programming: Advance organizers and subject control of frame order.

In 2 experiments, a total of 160 nonprogrammers (undergraduates) learned a computer programming language and took a multileveled transfer posttest. Ss who were given pretraining with a concrete model of the computer before learning performed better on novel transfer and worse on near transfer relative to no-pretraining Ss including Ss who were given posttraining with the same model after learning. Similar differences in the pattern of transfer were noted for Ss who controlled the order of presentation of frames relative to E-controlled Ss. Results suggest that availability and activation of assimilative sets influence the structure of learning outcomes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)