On the form of ROCs constructed from confidence ratings

A classical question for memory researchers is whether memories vary in an all-or-nothing, discrete manner (e.g., stored vs. not stored, recalled vs. not recalled), or whether they vary along a continuous dimension (e.g., strength, similarity, or familiarity). For yes-no classification tasks, continuous- and discrete-state models predict nonlinear and linear receiver operating characteristics (ROCs), respectively (D. M. Green & J. A. Swets, 1966; N. A. Macmillan & C. D. Creelman, 1991). Recently, several authors have assumed that these predictions are generalizable to confidence ratings tasks (J. Qin, C. L. Raye, M. K. Johnson, & K. J. Mitchell, 2001; S. D. Slotnick, S. A. Klein, C. S. Dodson, & A. P. Shimamura, 2000, and A. P. Yonelinas, 1999). This assumption is shown to be unwarranted by showing that discrete-state ratings models predict both linear and nonlinear ROCs. The critical factor determining the form of the discrete-state ROC is the response strategy adopted by the classifier.     

Reducing prejudice through priming of control-related words

We investigated the effect of incidentally presented constructs that imply self-control on activated stereotypes associated with immigrants. To activate immigrant stereotypes, participants responded to a scale that measures people's prejudice toward immigrants. They were then primed, using scrambled sentences, with words that were related to self-control (e.g., control, restrain, self-regulate) or with neutral words. After the priming task, participants evaluated an ambiguous behavior of a target person. On the basis of three experiments, the results showed that participants primed with the control-related words rated the target behavior more positively than those primed with neutral words. The results are discussed in relation to previous research on self-control, automatic influence of activated constructs, and prejudice reduction.     

The "one-shot" hypothesis for context storage

In 3 experiments motivated by the implicit memory literature, the authors investigated the effects of different strengthening operations on the list strength effect (LSE) for explicit free recall, an effect posited by R. M. Shiffrin, R. Ratcliff, and S. E. Clark (1990) to be due to context cuing. According to the one-shot hypothesis, a fixed amount of context is stored when an item is studied for at least 1 or 2 s. Beyond the initial context storage, increases in study time or different orienting tasks do not influence the amount of context that is stored, and thus only spaced repetitions should produce a positive LSE. Consistent with prior findings, spaced repetitions always produced a positive LSE, but increases in depth of processing, study time, and massed repetitions did not. A model implements the one-shot hypothesis, and a role for context storage as a link between episodic and semantic memory is discussed.     

Improving memory after environmental context change: A strategy of “preinstatement”

A change in environmental context between study and test can produce detrimental effects on memory. For instance, when a change in the environment occurs after an event, memory for the event declines. However, the negative effects of context change can be eliminated when participants are provided with contextual cues. Here, we report that, as predicted by the Lehman–Malmberg model (Lehman & Malmberg Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 35(4):970, 2009, Psychological Review, 2012), participants can overcome a change in the environment by recalling the future test environment while studying, a strategy referred to as preinstatement.     

Child temperament and paternal transition to non-residence

Using the Millennium Cohort Study data this study showed that, even after adjustment, resident biological fathers of high-regularity children at 9 months were less likely than resident biological fathers of low-regularity children at 9 months to become non-resident by the time these children were 3 years old.     

Discriminating between changes in bias and changes in accuracy for recognition memory of emotional stimuli

A debate has emerged as to whether recognition of emotional stimuli is more accurate or more biased than recognition of nonemotional stimuli. Teasing apart changes in accuracy versus changes in bias requires a measurement model. However, different models have been adopted by different researchers, and this has contributed to the current debate. In this article, different measurement models are discussed, and the signal detection model that is most appropriate for recognition is adopted to investigate the effects of valence and arousal on recognition memory performance, using receiver operating characteristic analyses. In addition, complementary two-alternative forced choice experiments were conducted in order to generalize the empirical findings and interpret them under a relatively relaxed set of measurement assumptions. Across all experiments, accuracy was greater for highly valenced stimuli and stimuli with high arousal value. In addition, a bias to endorse positively valenced stimuli was observed. These results are discussed within an adaptive memory framework that assumes that emotion plays an important role in the allocation of attentional resources.     

On the flexibility and the fallibility of associative memory

We report the results of four experiments in which we explored the flexibility and fallibility of associative recognition memory. In each experiment, pairs were studied one or more times, and the task was to discriminate intact from rearranged pairs. The critical findings are that the pattern of false alarm rates was dependent on the nature of the recognition procedure (e.g., ratings vs. yes-no) and the situation in which the task was performed. The specific pattern of findings suggest that subjects adopt different recognition strategies in order to achieve a desired level of performance in the most efficient manner possible by varying the degree to which they base their decisions on familiarity versus recollected information. Implications for theories of recognition memory are discussed.     

Modeling the effects of verbal and nonverbal pair strength on associative recognition

Operations that improve the accuracy of associative recognition can do so in qualitatively different ways. Increasing repetitions and study time increases hit rates but has small effects on false alarm rates, and the specific patterns of false alarms are dependent on the stimuli (e.g., pairs of words, pseudowords, faces, or Chinese characters). In contrast, manipulating the type of stimuli that make up pairs produces a robust mirror effect: The hit rate is greater, and the false alarm rate is lower, for better recognized stimuli. To explain these findings, a model of single-item recognition is extended to associative recognition. Within this dual-process framework, the present results suggest that words are encoded more extensively than nonverbal stimuli and that recognition of frequently encountered stimuli (words and faces) is more likely to be based on recollection than is recognition of uncommon stimuli (pseudowords and Chinese characters).