Mnemonic versus nonmnemonic vocabulary-learning strategies: Additional comparisons.

The keyword method of vocabulary learning was compared with 5 methods designed to increase semantic processing of the definitions of the vocabulary words. In Exps I–III with 254 undergraduates, recall of the definitions from the vocabulary words was the critical dependent measure, with the keyword method producing greater learning than in any of the semantic-based or control conditions. None of the semantic-based conditions facilitated definition recall relative to a no-strategy control condition. In Exps IV and V with 144 Ss, the keyword method, 2 semantic strategies, and the no-strategy control procedure were compared with respect to associative and response-learning components of vocabulary learning. The keyword method enhanced vocabulary/definition (associative) learning but not definition (response) learning per se. In contrast, the semantic conditions tended to increase nonassociative learning of the definitions. Results bolster the case that the keyword method is a vocabulary-learning procedure superior to semantic-based strategies advocated by reading theorists. (29 ref) (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)     

Context and the recallability of concrete and abstract sentences.

Examined the influence of contextual information on the recall of abstract and concrete sentences in 3 experiments, using 216 undergraduates. In Exp I, concrete and abstract target sentences were presented in either a coherent paragraph context or a random paragraph context. In the random context, Ss recalled more concrete target sentences than abstract ones, but there was no difference between the 2 groups when the sentences were presented in a coherent context. Exp II extended this finding by adding a moderately coherent context that used many of the same nouns as the coherent paragraph, but it was not as thematically coherent. Exp II replicated the results of Exp I and found that the moderately coherent context provided intermediate facilitation for the recall of abstract sentences relative to the random context and the coherent context; context structure had no effect on the recall of concrete sentences. In Exp III, the target sentences were abstract and the concreteness of the context was varied. Abstract context sentences were recalled as well as concrete context sentences if the contexts formed a coherent paragraph; if the context was a randomly ordered list of sentences, concrete context sentences were recalled better than abstract context sentences. Results were interpreted in terms of the differential availability of contextual information for abstract and concrete materials and support the context availability model. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Associative learning of abstract and concrete nouns and their subject-drawn pictorial representations.

Conducted 2 experiments to examine undergraduates' associative learning and pictorial representations of 48 concrete and 48 abstract noun pairs. In Exp. I, 24 Ss drew their own pictures of each noun. In Exp. II, another 24 Ss chose S-drawings that best represented their subjective meaning of the word referents. These Ss also received pretraining in labelling the S-drawings. Results from both experiments show that recall of noun pairs was superior to recall of S-drawn picture pairs. These findings conflict with the literature on picture and word paired-associate learning. In addition, concreteness of items facilitated recall. In Exp. I, concrete S-drawings were significantly better retrieval cues than abstract S-drawings. Results are discussed in terms of Pavio's theory of verbal and imagery processes of memory. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the utility of the keyword mnemonic for vocabulary learning.

Examined the use of the keyword mnemonic for vocabulary learning by university students given extensive keyword training. Keywords were identified by the learners rather than supplied by the experimenter. In Exp 1, Ss studied and recalled English equivalents of German nouns before and after mnemonic training under different presentation conditions. Before training, learning was 60% better with 4 list presentations at a 2.5-s rate (4?×?2.5) than with 1 presentation at a 10-s rate (1?×?10). Learning was better after training, especially in the 1?×?10 condition; Ss reported difficulty using the keyword mnemonic in the 4?×?2.5 condition despite higher learning scores in that condition after training. In Exp 2, Ss learned brief definitions of unusual words with self-paced presentation. The keyword Ss scored significantly more poorly than controls on items not selected for keyword suitability, and additional data indicated that it was difficult to generate keywords for many of those items and that an alternative mediational strategy was preferred. A 3rd experiment showed no learning difference between the keyword-generated version of the keyword method used in Exps 1 and 2 and a keyword-supplied condition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influence of spatial organization in prose learning.

In Exp I, 40 undergraduates either did or did not create a map-like representation while learning a passage. Learners who generated a map exhibited significantly greater retention than did control Ss. In Exp II, 120 undergraduates were either forced to study the map, instructed to study, or given no map prior to reading. Learners who were forced to process performed significantly better than other groups on retention measures. Ss not forced to study performed no better than the control group who received no map. Free-recall data showed that forced map study benefited learners with low vocabulary scores more than Ss with higher vocabulary scores. This was not true for multiple-choice or constructed response measures. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pictures in sentences: Understanding without words.

In 5 experiments with a total of 120 Ss of college age, sentences were presented in which a pictured object replaced a word (rebus sentences). Sentences were shown using rapid serial visual presentation at a rate of 10 or 12 words/second. With one set of materials (Exp I and II), Ss took longer to judge the plausibility of rebus sentences than all-word sentences, although the accuracy of judgment and of recall were similar for the 2 formats. With 2 new sets of materials (Exps III and V), rebus and all-word sentences were virtually equivalent except in 1 circumstance: when a picture replaced the noun in a familiar phrase such as seedless grapes. In contrast, when the task required overt naming of the rebus picture in a sentence context, latency to name the picture was markedly longer than to name the corresponding word, and the appropriateness of the sentence context affected picture naming but not word naming (Exp IV). It is concluded that the results fail to support theories that place word meanings in a specialized lexical entry. Instead, the results suggest that the lexical representation of a noun or familiar noun phrase provides a pointer to a nonlinguistic conceptual system, and it is in that system that the meaning of a sentence is constructed. (40 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Incidental learning, noun imagery-concreteness and direction of associations in paired-associate learning.

Examined the effect of imagery-concreteness pairs in incidental learning. In Exp. I with 96 undergraduates, intentional learning was superior to incidental learning. Recall of concrete-concrete noun pairs was significantly better than recall of all other pairs, while concrete-abstract and abstract-concrete nouns did not differ from each other but did differ from abstract-abstract recall. In Exp. II with 64 Ss, instructions to use imagery during the orientation task resulted in similar performance for incidental and intentional learning Ss. Concreteness yielded a greater effect on the stimulus side than on the response side of pairs, particularly for stimulus-response recall. Associative directionality had no reliable effects in either experiment. Results are discussed in terms of A. Paivio's conceptual peg hypothesis and 2-process theory of verbal and imaginal memory. (French summary) (17 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Keyword and context instruction of new vocabulary meanings: Effects on text comprehension and memory.

New vocabulary was taught by one of three methods: keyword, semantic context, and no-strategy control. The semantic context method involved presenting subjects verbal contexts from which they might infer the meanings of the words, followed by explicit provision of the definitions. After a vocabulary definition acquisition phase, subjects in all conditions read a text in which some of the newly acquired vocabulary was embedded, with half of the texts providing richer contextual clues to the meaning of the target items (embellished text) than the other texts (unembellished text). Reading times did not differ as a function of acquisition condition, nor did one acquisition condition consistently elicit better performance than the others across text comprehension/memory measures. The one significant difference in comprehension favored the keyword method. The usual superiority of the keyword method for recall of definitions given vocabulary items was also replicated. Despite theoretically motivated concerns that keyword-method acquisition of definitions might inhibit comprehension of vocabulary in discourse relative to a semantic context method, none of the reaction time (RT) or performance analyses reported here supported those hypotheses. A subsidiary finding was that test text embellishments increased comprehension (as indexed by recall measures), a result suggesting that certain kinds of contextual support can enhance comprehension of "new" vocabulary. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of keyword on long-term retention: Help or hindrance?

Three experiments assessed the long-term effectiveness of the keyword mnemonic relative to a nonmnemonic (i.e., semantic-context) learning strategy. Following incidental-learning instructions, cued recall was assessed either immediately or after a 2-day delay. The keyword mnemonic produced superior immediate performance relative to the semantic-context strategy. However, after 2 days, there was a marked reversal in performance, with higher levels of delayed recall associated with semantic-context learning. This pattern of findings was obtained when obscure English words (Exp 1) and 2nd-language vocabulary (Exp 2) were the learning stimuli. When practice frequencies were manipulated (Exp 3), increased opportunities for study were more likely to boost the long-term retention of keyword learners compared with semantic-context learners. The implication is that keyword-based memories are especially fragile over time and will benefit from repeated testing and rehearsal. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Semantic relatedness and the scope of facilitation for upcoming words in sentences.

Three experiments examined the generality of context effects displayed for congruous completions appearing in high- and low-constraint sentences. Exp 1 found an effect of context for a broader range of completions for low-constraint than high-constraint sentences. Lexical decisions for unexpected congruous words that were related in meaning to the most expected completion for the sentence showed a benefit from context in low-constraint sentences only. Unexpected words that were unrelated to the most expected completion never benefited from appearing in either high- or low-constraint sentence contexts. Exp 2 varied the semantic relatedness of the unexpected words within Ss and found that unrelated words still did not benefit from sentence context. Exp 3 included only low-constraint sentences to encourage Ss to develop broader expectations for upcoming words. Unrelated words continued not to display any benefit from context. It is concluded that the scope of facilitation for upcoming words demonstrated in a lexical decision task is wider for low-constraint than high-constraint sentences, but never includes unrelated, although acceptable, completions for the sentence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of text structure on use of cognitive capacity during reading.

The demand that text processing imposes on learners' cognitive capacity was measured with a secondary-task technique; the meaning of the textual materials was held constant while several structural (surface) variables were manipulated. Exp I (36 undergraduates) showed that text versions with simplified vocabulary and syntax (but equivalent content) required less cognitive capacity to process than standard versions. Exp II (96 Ss) revealed that the reduction in use of cognitive capacity was due primarily to syntactic factors. Exp III (72 Ss) demonstrated that texts containing signals about idea importance and relations required less cognitive capacity to process than texts with approximately the same propositional content but no such signals. Measures of total inspection time and content recall were also secured. In general, findings indicate that aspects of the surface structure of text made demands on Ss' cognitive processing capacity. (44 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Children's use of the keyword method to learn simple Spanish vocabulary words.

Assessed children's ability to use a mnemonic procedure to learn foreign language vocabulary, the keyword method, using 107 2nd and 5th graders as Ss. To remember a foreign word translation, the keyword method user (a) associates the foreign word to an English word (the keyword) that sounds like part of the foreign word, and (b) remembers a picture of the keyword and translation referents interacting. Ss who were instructed in keyword method use and provided with interactive pictures for each vocabulary item remembered more simple Spanish vocabulary translations than did control Ss not instructed to use the keyword method. Learning the acoustic links without a keyword method instruction did not improve vocabulary learning. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Confusing memories for verbal and nonverbal communication.

In 2 experiments, with 150 undergraduates, emotion portrayed nonverbally in videotaped conversations impaired memory for the specific meaning of utterances. Ss produced more recognition (Exp I) or recall (Exp II) errors that were consistent with the emotional versions they had viewed than errors reflecting other emotions. In Exp I, this effect on recognition memory depended neither on the type of orienting task for nonverbal behaviors (attention to surface characteristics vs interpretations) nor on the length of the retention interval. In Exp II, the number of emotional errors in recall was slightly dependent on the reported moods of the viewers. Findings suggest that emotional interpretations of the nonverbal behaviors of others are associated in memory with the meaning of utterances. Results are discussed in reference to the effects of misleading information and to models of mood and memory. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mnemotechnics in second-language learning.

Discusses the author's keyword method, a mnemonic aid for vocabulary learning. According to this method, a foreign word is connected to its English translation by a chain of 2 links-similarity in sound (acoustic link) and a mental image of the interaction between the 2 words (imagery link). Experiments using Russian and Spanish vocabularies are described to illustrate that the keyword method produces significantly greater vocabulary recall than the rote-rehearsal method of second-language learning. Results also suggest that (a) providing the keywords for the S is better than having him generate his own keywords, (b) imagery instructions have a significant advantage over sentence-generation instructions when the keyword method is used, (c) the keyword method does not affect word retrieval times, and (d) the keyword method produces significantly better backward associations than the rote-rehearsal method. Problems in the application of the method are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Suffix interference in the recall of linguistically coherent speech.

In Exp 1, definitions of low-frequency words were presented for on-line written recall. Each definition was followed by a nonword speech suffix presented in the same voice as the definition, the same nonword presented in a different voice, or a tone. There was a significant reduction in the recall of the terminal words of the definitions in the speech suffix conditions compared with the tone control. This pattern was replicated in Exp 2, in which Ss did not begin their recall until the suffix item or tone was presented, although the magnitude of the suffix effect was reduced in this experiment. In Exp 3, the suffix effect was considerably reduced compared with the suffix effect found with the definitions presented in Exps 1 and 2. This pattern was replicated in Exp 4, in which Ss did not begin their recall of the story sentences until the speech suffix or tone was presented. Results suggest that auditory memory interference can take place for linguistically coherent speech, although the magnitude of the interference decreases as one increases the level of linguistic structure in the to-be-recalled materials. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Unsolicited interpretation and recall of interpersonal events.

Conducted 4 experiments with a total of 246 undergraduates to examine the variables that influence interpretations and cued recall of interpersonal events. In Exp I, Ss were given a set to empathize with or to be detached from a couple who were shown having an intimate discussion on videotape. The discussion culminated in either a seriously or a moderately negative outcome (SO or MO). A greater amount of attribution (AT) and more accurate recall were found for the empathy set vs the detached set. Greater AT was also found for SO vs MO conditions. In Exp II with a different videotaped event, an SO version and a set to remember the event led to more AT than did an MO version or no set, respectively. Memory-set Ss showed greater recall than no-memory set Ss. In Exp III, Ss given a set to anticipate interaction with 1 of the stimulus persons showed more AT and more accurate recall (R) than did Ss given no such set and an SO led to more AT than did an MO. In Exp IV, Ss given a set about the emotional condition of a stimulus person before observing the event exhibited greater AT and more accurate recall than did Ss given the same set after observing the event or Ss given no set at all. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developmental differences in organization and recall: Training in the use of organizational techniques.

Used an alternating sort-recall procedure in 3 experiments to train 204 elementary school children in the use of organizational techniques as memory aids. All Ss sorted a group of words into 2–7 categories, and some Ss were required to learn the sorting patterns generated by adults. In Exp I, the semantic sophistication of a S's sorting style predicted recall performance. Further, the tendency to improve memory performance as a result of being constrained to adult sorting patterns varied with age; constrained 5th graders significantly improved their recall, whereas the recall of 3rd and 7th grade Ss was not affected by this training. However, more detailed organizational training in Exp II facilitated the recall of 3rd graders. In Exp II, it was found that the constraining procedure was not necessary for facilitation to be observed. Rather, instructions to group words on the basis of meaning were sufficient to produce improved recall. Further, improvements in sorting style accompanied all significant changes in recall. Findings are discussed in terms of a discrepancy between the information which a child has in permanent memory and that which he uses spontaneously in the context of a memorization task. The importance of input organization as a mediating factor in memory performance and development is suggested. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Contamination of facial memory through exposure to misleading composite pictures.

In Exp I, 46 male and 51 female undergraduates witnessed a filmed incident and later described the target. Results show that Ss who observed a composite containing misleading information (either incorrect hair or an added moustache) were significantly more likely to misreport hairstyle and the presence of a moustache than those who did not. In Exp II, 210 17–65 yr old Ss observed a filmed incident and were tested for their recall and recognition of the target either immediately or after delays of 2 or 7 days. Significant bias, consistent with the content of the misleading composite, was present for both cued recall and choice of mug shot in a photo spread. The effect did not increase over delay but was greater when the composite was seen just prior to recall than immediately after the incident. Implications concerning interference with the memory of the witness who produced the composite and for other witnesses exposed to the misleading composite are discussed. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)