| Abstract: | Conducted a study with 240 undergraduates to examine the contribution of response-word frequency and associative strength of paired-associates (PA) on the 2 stages of PA learning. 2 levels of word frequency and 2 associative strength levels were used to form 4 PA lists. 4 study-test trials were provided, with separate groups being given matching or free-recall test trials on either the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th trials, and a conventional PA test on all other trials. Overall PA learning revealed the influence of both variables. Associative strength played a significant role on both the matching and free-recall tests; word frequency, however, did not. Matching trials revealed superior learning to that obtained by free-recall. Results suggest the need for some revision of the 2-stage analysis of PA learning. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
