| Abstract: | In six experiments we examined issues related to the retrieval context set by rereading advance organizers before recall tests. In Experiments 1 and 2, rereading advance organizers before immediate testing had no effect on recall. We hypothesized that the results of Experiments 1 and 2 were due to testing recall too soon to allow for a "loss" of the initial encoding context. Consequently, in Experiments 3–5 we varied delays between encoding and retrieval from 24 hr to 2 weeks. The results of all three experiments indicated that rereading advance organizers before delayed recall greatly facilitated memory performance. In Experiment 6 we contrasted rereading an advance organizer before delayed testing with rereading a false organizer and rereading the first paragraph of the essay. The results revealed that only rereading the advance organizer had a significant effect on recall. The results are discussed in terms of advance organizer theory and a general perspective on encoding and retrieval contexts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
