The self-choice effect from a multiple-cue perspective

The self-choice effect refers to the fact that self-chosen items are remembered better than experimenter-assigned items (Takahashi, 1991). The present study investigated the hypothesis that (a) response choice involves relational processing as activation of both target and context items, and (b) such activated context items are effective as potential retrieval cues for recall of target items. In the experiment, participants chose (choice condition) or were assigned (force condition) a target to remember for each trial. Prior to free recall of the target items, context words, related new words, or unrelated words were presented in a recognition task as potential retrieval cues. The results of a subsequent free recall test indicated that the incidental cues were more effective in the choice condition than in the force condition. Also, recognition resulted in a greater rate of successfully recognized context words at the cost of increasing falsely recognized related new words in the choice condition in comparison with the force condition. These results indicated that response choice activates context items at encoding, which operate as potential retrieval cues for recall of target items. Such cuing mechanisms operative in the self-choice effect are consistent with the multiple-cue theory proposed by Soraci et al. (1994; see also Soraci et al., 1999) for generative processing.     

Experimental manipulation of prior experience: Effects on item and associative recognition

Frequency of exposure to very low- and high-frequency words was manipulated in a three-phase (familiarisation, study, and test) design. During familiarisation, words were presented with their definition (once, four times, or not presented). One week (Experiment 1) or one day (Experiment 2) later, participants studied a list of homogeneous pairs (i.e., pair members were matched on background and familiarisation frequency). Item and associative recognition of high- and very low-frequency words presented in intact, rearranged, old-new, or new-new pairs were tested in Experiment 1. Associative recognition of very low-frequency words was tested in Experiment 2. Results showed that prior familiaris ation improved associative recognition of very low-frequency pairs, but had no effect on high-frequency pairs. The role of meaning in the formation of item-to-item and item-to-context associations and the implications for current models of memory are discussed.     

Experimental manipulation of prior experience: Effects on item and associative recognition

Frequency of exposure to very low- and high-frequency words was manipulated in a three-phase (familiarisation, study, and test) design. During familiarisation, words were presented with their definition (once, four times, or not presented). One week (Experiment 1) or one day (Experiment 2) later, participants studied a list of homogeneous pairs (i.e., pair members were matched on background and familiarisation frequency). Item and associative recognition of high- and very low-frequency words presented in intact, rearranged, old-new, or new-new pairs were tested in Experiment 1. Associative recognition of very low-frequency words was tested in Experiment 2. Results showed that prior familiarisation improved associative recognition of very low-frequency pairs, but had no effect on high-frequency pairs. The role of meaning in the formation of item-to-item and item-to-context associations and the implications for current models of memory are discussed.     

Effects of study list composition on the word frequency effect and metacognitive attributions in recognition memory

In two experiments, study-list composition was manipulated and its impact was observed on metacognitive judgements associated with recognition hits (Hs) and false alarms (FAs). Both studies involved recognition of high-frequency (HF) and low-frequency (LF) words, and focused on the FA portion of the word frequency effect. Our hypothesis was that participants can actively reject items that are distinctive from the study list, and that this effect may be strong enough to overcome the FA word frequency effect. Experiment 1 manipulated list composition with a conjunctive rule and Experiment 2 varied it by having participants study either HF or LF items prior to a test consisting of words of both frequencies. In each study H rate, FA rate, and metacognitive attributions underlying recognition decisions were investigated. In both studies, participants reported rejecting test items predominantly through a process of active rejection, which was more often reported for LF items. This effect was strong enough to reverse the FA portion of the word frequency effect in Experiment 2, but not Experiment 1. The results are discussed in terms of metacognitive rejection mechanisms in recognition memory.     

Effects of study list composition on the word frequency effect and metacognitive attributions in recognition memory

In two experiments, study-list composition was manipulated and its impact was observed on metacognitive judgements associated with recognition hits (Hs) and false alarms (FAs). Both studies involved recognition of high-frequency (HF) and low-frequency (LF) words, and focused on the FA portion of the word frequency effect. Our hypothesis was that participants can actively reject items that are distinctive from the study list, and that this effect may be strong enough to overcome the FA word frequency effect. Experiment 1 manipulated list composition with a conjunctive rule and Experiment 2 varied it by having participants study either HF or LF items prior to a test consisting of words of both frequencies. In each study H rate, FA rate, and metacognitive attributions underlying recognition decisions were investigated. In both studies, participants reported rejecting test items predominantly through a process of active rejection, which was more often reported for LF items. This effect was strong enough to reverse the FA portion of the word frequency effect in Experiment 2, but not Experiment 1. The results are discussed in terms of metacognitive rejection mechanisms in recognition memory.     

错误记忆的自我参照效应：易化的作用

采用DRM范式,设置三种参照对象条件（自我、他人和中性参照）,考察错误记忆是否存在自我参照效应。结果发现：（1）与正确记忆一样,错误记忆中亦存在自我参照效应;（2）无论是正确记忆还是错误记忆,自我参照条件下的回忆成分均显著多于他人参照和中性参照,但熟悉性成分在三种不同参照对象条件下没有显著差异;（3）当词表中学习项目由分组呈现变为随机呈现时,错误记忆的自我参照效应仍稳定存在。结果揭示,自我参照效在促进正确记忆的同时,亦可易化错误记忆效应。     

On the Nature of Semantic Constraints on Lexical Access

We present two eye-tracking experiments that investigate lexical frequency and semantic context constraints in spoken-word recognition in German. In both experiments, the pivotal words were pairs of nouns overlapping at onset but varying in lexical frequency. In Experiment 1, German listeners showed an expected frequency bias towards high-frequency competitors (e.g., Blume, 'flower') when instructed to click on low-frequency targets (e.g., Bluse, 'blouse'). In Experiment 2, semantically constraining context increased the availability of appropriate low-frequency target words prior to word onset, but did not influence the availability of semantically inappropriate high-frequency competitors at the same time. Immediately after target word onset, however, the activation of high-frequency competitors was reduced in semantically constraining sentences, but still exceeded that of unrelated distractor words significantly. The results suggest that (1) semantic context acts to downgrade activation of inappropriate competitors rather than to exclude them from competition, and (2) semantic context influences spoken-word recognition, over and above anticipation of upcoming referents.     

A dissociative word-frequency X levels-of-processing interaction in episodic recognition and lexical decision tasks

The effects of levels-of-processing and word frequency were directly compared in three different memory tests. In the episodic recognition test, the subjects decided whether or not a word or a pronounceable nonword had been previously studied. In the two lexical decision tests with either pronounceable or unpronounceable nonwords as distractors, the subjects decided whether a test item was a word or a nonword. There were four main results: (1) in all three tests, reaction times (RTs) in response to studied words were faster if they had received semantic rather than rhyme processing during study; (2) in the episodic recognition test, RTs were faster for low- than for high-frequency words; in both lexical decision tests, RTs were faster for high- than for low-frequency words, though less so when the nonword distractors were unpronounceable; (3) prior study facilitated lexical decisions more in response to low- than to high-frequency words, thereby attenuating the word-frequency effect, but more so when the nonword distractors were pronounceable; (4) in the lexical decision test with pronounceable nonword distractors, relative to prior rhyme processing, prior semantic processing facilitated performance more for high- than for low-frequency words, whereas the opposite was the case in the episodic recognition test. Discussion focused on the relationship of these results to current views of the mechanisms by which (1) word frequency and depth of processing affect performance in implicit and explicit memory tests, and (2) repetition priming attenuates word-frequency effects for lexical decisions.     

Associative false recognition occurs without strategic criterion shifts

In the DRM (Deese/Roediger and McDermott) false memory paradigm, subjects studied lists of words associated with nonpresented critical words. They were tested in one of four instructional conditions. In a standard condition, subjects were not warned about the DRM Effect. In three other conditions, they were told to avoid false recognition of critical words. One group was warned before study of the lists (affecting encoding and retrieval processes), and two groups were warned after study (affecting only retrieval processes). Replicating prior work, the warning before study considerably reduced false recognition. The warning after study also reduced false recognition, but only when critical items had never been studied; when critical items were studied in half the lists so that subjects had to monitor memory for their presence or absence, the warning after study had little effect on false recognition. Because warned subjects were trying to avoid false recognition, the high levels of false recognition in the latter condition cannot be due to strategically guessing that critical test items were studied. False memories in the DRM paradigm are not caused by such liberal criterion shifts.     

Identifying the Basis for the Word Frequency Effect in Recognition Memory

Abstract

Recent theories of recognition memory have identified two bases on which recognition-memory judgments may be made: recollection, which involves retrieval of contextual information from an earlier episode of stimulus presentation; and familiarity, which is distinguished by a general sense of familiarity in the absence of recollection. Four experiments were conducted to test whether the word frequency effect (WFE) in recognition memory (superior performance with low- in comparison with high-frequency targets) results from recollection-based processes, familiarity-based processes, or both. In two of the experiments, superior memory for aspects of the study context was found for low-frequency in comparison with high-frequency words, suggesting frequency-related differences in recollection. The other two experiments used Jacoby's (1991) inclusion/exclusion paradigm to provide estimates of the contribution of recollection and familiarity to recognition. In both experiments the data suggested that the WFE is primarily a recollection-based phenomenon. These findings suggest that the recognition memory WFE for old items results primarily from the effects of word frequency on recollection. The implications of these findings for theories of recognition memory are discussed.     

A naturalistic study of the word frequency effect in episodic recognition

In order to separate the effects of experience from other characteristics of word frequency (e.g., orthographic distinctiveness), computer science and psychology students rated their experience with computer science technical items and nontechnical items from a wide range of word frequencies prior to being tested for recognition memory of the rated items. For nontechnical items, there was a curvilinear relationship between recognition accuracy and word frequency for both groups of students. The usual superiority of low-frequency words was demonstrated and high-frequency words were recognized least well. For technical items, a similar curvilinear relationship was evident for the psychology students, but for the computer science students, recognition accuracy was inversely related to word frequency. The ratings data showed that subjective experience rather than background word frequency was the better predictor of recognition accuracy.     

The dual effect of context on memory of related and unrelated themes: Discrimination at encoding and cue at retrieval

The influence of contextual factors on encoding and retrieval in recognition memory was investigated using a retroactive interference paradigm. Participants were randomly assigned to four context conditions constructed by manipulating types of presentation modality (pictures vs words) for study, interference, and test stages, respectively (ABA, ABB, AAA, & AAB). In Experiment 1 we presented unrelated items in the study and interference stages, while in Experiment 2 each stage contained items from the same semantic category. The results demonstrate a dual role for context in memory processes-at encoding as well as at retrieval. In Experiment 1 there is a hierarchical order between the four context conditions, depending on both target-test and target-interference contextual similarity. Adding a categorical context in Experiment 2 helped to specify each list and therefore better distinguish between target and interferer information, and in some conditions compensated for their perceptual similarity.     

Word frequency effects in associative and item recognition

The word frequency effect (WFE) has been taken as evidence that recall and recognition are in some way fundamentally different. Consequently, most models assume that recall and recognition operate via very different retrieval mechanisms. Experiment 1 showed that the WFE reverses for associative recognition, which requires discrimination between intact test pairs and recombinations of study list words from different study pairs. Experiment 2, in which word triples were used, revealed an interaction between word frequency and test type: for item recognition, performance was better for low-frequency words; however, for associative recognition and free recall, performance was better for high-frequency words. In Experiment 3, item recognition was tested: although overall performance was better for low-frequency words, the recognition advantage for items in intact pairs was larger for high-frequency words, suggesting two components in recognition memory. These results imply common mechanisms in recall and recognition. Theoretical implications are discussed within the framework of the SAM model.     

Remembering source evidence from associatively related items: explanations from a global matching model

The authors tested source memory across three conditions, one in which 3 strongly associated primes of a target word were presented in the same source as the target, one in which primes were presented in a different source than the target, and one in which no associates of targets were encoded. In the first 2 experiments, target source memory increased in the same-prime condition and decreased in the different-prime condition relative to the no-prime condition. In Experiment 3, the different-prime condition created the illusion that target words had been presented in both sources at encoding. The MINERVA 2 model (D. L. Hintzman, 1988) was able to predict these effects by basing source decisions on the global match of source-specific retrieval probes to all of the items in the memory set.     

Recognition and frequency judgments in young and elderly adults

Three experiments examined frequency judgments and recognition memory in young and elderly adults. Subjects were presented a long list of words at either a 5-s rate (Experiments 1 & 3) or a 1-s rate (Experiment 2), after which frequency-judgment and recognition memory tasks were administered. Either an absolute (Experiments 1 & 2) or a relative (Experiment 3) frequency-judgment task was used. The recognition test, which involved repeated tests of some items, involved either one incorrect item paired with each correct item (Experiments 1 & 2), or four incorrect items (Experiment 3). Age-related differences in frequency judgments, for the more frequently presented items, were found in all three experiments. For the recognition scores, the predicted interaction between age and successive tests was found only in Experiment 3. The results were interpreted within the framework of age-related differences in elaborative encoding and in distractibility to irrelevant stimuli.     

Effects of orienting task,spacing of repetitions,and list context on judgments of frequency

Subjects were given an unexpected frequency judgment test following a list of words in which items were presented either two, three, and five times or three, five, and seven times, with a spacing of 0, 2, 16, or 32 items between repetitions. During list presentation, they either rated the imagery value of each word or made continuous frequency estimates. Postlist frequency judgments of words presented three and five times were higher for the list containing words of Frequency 7, and judgments were also higher following the imagery rating task. Continuous judgments were unaffected by the list context and showed different effects of spacing than postlist judgments. The results provide support for the operation of response bias factors in the frequency judgment task and are relevant to theoretical interpretations of the spacing effect.     

The word frequency effect in recognition memory versus repetition priming

The role of word frequency in recognition memory and repetition priming was investigated by using a manipulation of attention. In Experiment 1, the lexical decision task produced greater repetition priming for low-frequency words than for high-frequency words following either the attended or the unattended study condition. The recognition memory test, on the other hand, showed a low-frequency word advantage only following the attended study condition. Furthermore, this advantage was limited to the measure of recognition memory based on conscious recollection of the study episode. In Experiment 2, a speeded recognition memory test replicated the pattern obtained with the unspeeded recognition memory test in Experiment 1. These results argue against the view that the word frequency effects in recognition memory and repetition priming have the same origin. Instead, the results suggest that the word frequency effect in recognition memory has its locus in conscious recollection.     

Activation and elaboration effects in recognition and word priming

Two experiments investigated the effect of direct and indirect activation on subsequent accessibility to individual items. In the first experiment, words were semantically processed in the context of either phonologically (rhyming) or conceptually (categorical) related words and tested subsequently for recognition and word completion. On the completion test the initial three letters of a word are presented for completion. The previously presented target word is one of several possible completions. The presence of different contexts had no differential effect either on recognition memory—which persisted at high levels for two days—or on completion—which decayed in the course of about 15 min.

In the second experiment, the contexts were presented but the target words were not. Thus the rhyming and categorical contexts were directly activated but not the actual words that were scored on the subsequent tests. Prior activation of phonologically similar items affected both recognition and completion performance on immediate testing, but not after 10 min. Conceptual activation affected only recognition—an effect that lasted for a period of days. Completion performance demonstrates access to the integration component of recognition. The results were compared with attempts to demonstrate independence of recognition and completion.     

Retrieval independence between parts and wholes in successive recognition tasks

Participants studied AB word pairs and completed three recognition tests. In one recognition test each A word was presented with two distractors that did not appear on the study list. In another recognition test each B word was presented with two distractors that did not appear on the study list. In a third recognition test an AB target was presented with two distractors composed of words not on the study list. Six different groups of participants each performed the recognition tests in a different order, so that all possible orders were tested. Recognition of the A, B, and AB targets for a given study pair were independent of each other when single-word recognition preceded double-word recognition. There was almost complete independence in the reverse order. Even when recognition judgements were restricted to those for which the participants were most confident, there was independence of recognition among the three tests. A pair recognition test served as an additional study trial for the individual words; however, the reverse was not the case. All of these results were predicted by a single three-parameter mathematical model derived from the hypothesis that single-word and double-word targets had independent representations in memory.     

Cognitive effort and recollective experience in recognition memory

The difficulty of the cognitive operations required to process study items was manipulated in two experiments investigating recollective experience. In subsequent recognition tests, subjects indicated whether their recognition judgements for items processed in these tasks were based on recollection ("remember" responses) or on familiarity ("know" responses). In Experiment 1 target items were presented in the context of a category decision task. It was found that remember responses increased with the difficulty of the category decision. For positive instances, remember responses were greater for items of low instance frequency than for items of high instance frequency, while for negative instances remember responses were greater for items from similar categories than for items from dissimilar categories. These effects were not present in know responses. In Experiment 2, remember responses were more frequent when study items had been presented in the form of anagrams to be solved than when they had been presented in the form of words to be read aloud. The incidence of know responses was not affected by the format in which study items were presented. Source judgements were also more accurate when recognition was based on recollection. It is argued that the type of conscious awareness experienced during recognition is determined by the knowledge activated by items presented in the recognition test, which in turn is determined by the nature of the operations engaged at encoding.