Does category labeling lead to forgetting?

What effect does labeling an object as a member of a familiar category have on memory for that object? Recent studies suggest that recognition memory can be negatively impacted by categorizing objects during encoding. This paper examines the “representational shift hypothesis” which argues that categorizing an object impairs recognition memory by altering the trace of the encoded memory to be more similar to the category prototype. Previous evidence for this idea comes from experiments in which a basic-level category labeling task was compared to a non-category labeling incidental encoding task, usually a preference judgment (e.g., “Do you like this item?”). In two experiments, we examine alternative tasks that attempt to control for processing demands and the degree to which category information is explicitly recruited at the time of study. Contrary to the predictions of the representational shift hypothesis, we find no evidence that memory is selectively impaired by category labeling. Overall, the pattern of results across both studies appears consistent with well-established variables known to influence memory such as encoding specificity and distinctiveness effects.     

Thought listing and endorsement measures of self-referential thinking in test anxiety

Abstract

The primary purpose of the present study was to examine cognitive reactions of high and low test-anxious subjects while performing a task of extreme difficulty. A sample of 44 subjects (28 females, 16 males) attempted a difficult analogies task and then reported their thoughts during the task. Subjects also completed the Sarason Test Anxiety Scale and several other self-report measures of their cognitive reactions to the task. Thought listings were classified according to their referent (self, task, or unrelated) and their valence (positive, negative, or neutral). Correlational analyses were then performed with the various measures and revealed an association between test anxiety and reports of negative thoughts involving the self. Test anxiety was not related significantly to the number of thoughts involving the task nor to actual performance on the task. However, test-anxious subjects did report more negative expectancies for their performance and greater cognitive interference during the task. Negative self-expectancies were also related to more negative self thoughts, fewer positive self thoughts, and fewer positive task-related thoughts. The results are interpreted as further evidence for both the role of negative self-related cognitions in the experience of test anxiety and the usefulness of unstructured measures in anxiety research.     

Contextual cueing based on specific and categorical properties of the environment

Theories of visual search have generally assumed that rejected distractors are marked so as to avoid further processing of these items (memory-driven search). To test this assumption, Horowitz and Wolfe (1998) developed the randomized search paradigm, in which standard static search is compared to dynamic search where items are randomly replotted at new locations throughout a trial. Memory-driven search predicts that search slopes should double in the dynamic condition. After reviewing earlier findings that slopes were similar in the two conditions, we present two new experiments. Experiment 1 replicated and extended our previous findings using a larger range of set sizes, a slower rate of change, and adding a fixed location dynamic condition. Experiment 2 employed stimuli that required overt fixation. Neither experiment showed evidence for memory-driven search. We conclude that visual search is best understood as a series of successive judgements of the momentary probability of target presence.     

The Effect of Age on Rule-Based Category Learning

ABSTRACT

An explicit, rule-based, category-learning task with abstract visual stimuli was administered to 50 healthy older adults and 48 younger adults. Accuracy and reaction time (RT) were examined for the effects of age, perceptual abilities, rule memory, rule complexity, stimulus novelty, and response competition. Older adults performed at equivalent levels to younger adults when applying a simple rule, but showed performance decrements when applying a more complex rule. The age effect interacted with both stimulus novelty and response competition, and was not eliminated after controlling for basic perceptual abilities and rule memory. The authors suggest that older adults show category learning deficits in conditions that require enhanced cognitive control. These results are discussed in reference to the growing body of literature regarding age-related change in executive abilities and frontal lobe function.     

Color Vision in Alzheimer’s Patients: Can We Improve Object Recognition With Color Cues?

Sixty-three frail, elderly patients seen in a university-based outpatient geriatric assessment clinic were divided into three dementia diagnosis categories (Alzheimer’s disease, “other” dementias, cognitively intact) to investigate the use of color cues as memory aids. Recognition time was measured for three cues: (1) same color/different form; (2) same form/different color; and (3) different color/different form. Log transformed response times were longer for form cues (same color/different form) compared to color cues (different color/same form, p =.001; different color/different form, p <.001). No differences in log transformed response time were noted among dementia categories for each test condition. Color cues make a significant difference in short-term memory recall ability compared to form cues. Vivid color-coding the environment of a frail, elderly population may enhance short-term memory and improve functional ability. This may prove to be especially useful in long-term care settings, which provide services to a variety of people with differing cognitive abilities.     

I can’t stop looking at them: Interactive effects of body mass index and weight dissatisfaction on attention towards body shape photographs

Although attentional biases toward body-related information contribute to the etiology and maintenance of body dissatisfaction (BD) and eating disorders (EDs), attentional disengagement in women with BD and EDs is not clear. The present study investigated the association between weight dissatisfaction and attentional disengagement from body-related pictures and the possible moderating effect of body mass index (BMI) on this relation. Two hundred and four undergraduate women engaged in an experiment using a pictorial spatial cueing paradigm including fat/thin bodies and neutral household photos. Partial correlations and simple slopes regression analyses were conducted with attentional disengagement index scores of each category of cues. Findings suggested that independent of BMI, weight dissatisfaction was directly associated with attentional disengagement from both fat and thin pictures. In addition, among women with low and medium BMIs, the more they were dissatisfied with their bodyweight, the more difficulty they had disengaging their attention from fat body pictures.     

Does body satisfaction differ between gay men and lesbian women and heterosexual men and women? A meta-analytic review

Studies investigating body image satisfaction among groups of different sexual orientations (i.e., gay men, lesbian women, and heterosexual men and women) have produced equivocal findings. To synthesise the available research, 27 studies (20 published and 7 unpublished) were meta-analysed (N=5220). Comparisons between heterosexual (n=1397) and gay men (n=984) produced a small effect size, with the former being slightly more satisfied with their bodies. An even smaller difference was observed for studies comparing heterosexual (n=1391) and lesbian women (n=1448), with greater levels of body satisfaction being evidenced by the latter group. Tests of homogeneity for each effect size were found to be highly significant. In an attempt to identify variables that may be responsible for the observed heterogeneity, the following categorical factors were assessed: the measures used to evaluate body satisfaction, date of study (1980s versus 1990s+), publication status (published or unpublished), and body weight. The results of this exploratory search for potential moderator variables as well as limitations of the current meta-analysis are discussed.     

From implicit skills to explicit knowledge: a bottom-up model of skill learning

This paper presents a skill learning model CLARION. Different from existing models of mostly high-level skill learning that use a top-down approach (that is, turning declarative knowledge into procedural knowledge through practice), we adopt a bottom-up approach toward low-level skill learning, where procedural knowledge develops first and declarative knowledge develops later. Our model is formed by integrating connectionist, reinforcement, and symbolic learning methods to perform on-line reactive learning. It adopts a two-level dual-representation framework (Sun, 1995), with a combination of localist and distributed representation. We compare the model with human data in a minefield navigation task, demonstrating some match between the model and human data in several respects.     

Context and Prior Impression Effects on Attention, Judgment Standards, and Ratings: Contrast Effects Revisited

The present study extended research on contrast effects by (a) examining the effect of context performances on ratings of a target performance when a prior impression of the target performer already exists, and (b) clarifying the issue of whether contrast is caused by attention to context-discrepant behavior or shifts in judgment standards. The results demonstrated that the existence of a prior impression mitigates the influence of context performances on ratings. Judgment standards were found to be unstable and dependent on information provided to raters by the experimental manipulations. Regression analyses showed that both attention and standards of judgment mediate the relationship between context and ratings. Implications of these findings for contrast effects, performance ratings, and the importance of reliable judgment standards for real-world performance appraisals are discussed.