Interim tests of previously studied information can potentiate subsequent learning of new information, in part, because retrieval-based processes help to reduce proactive interference from previously learned information. We hypothesized that an effect similar to this forward testing effect would also occur when making judgments of (prior) learning…

Research has observed that monitoring one's own learning modifies memory for some materials but not for others. Specifically, making judgments of learning (JOLs) while learning word pairs improves subsequent cued-recall memory performance for related word pairs but not for unrelated word pairs. Theories that have attempted to explain this pattern…

Learners make a number of decisions when attempting to study efficiently: they must choose which information to study, for how long to study it, and whether to restudy it later. The current experiments examine whether documented impairments to self-regulated learning when studying information sequentially, as opposed to simultaneously, extend to…

People tend to show better memory for information that is deemed valuable or important. By one mechanism, individuals selectively engage deeper, semantic encoding strategies for high value items (Cohen, Rissman, Suthana, Castel, & Knowlton, 2014). By another mechanism, information paired with value or reward is automatically strengthened in…

People are often exposed to more information than they can actually remember. Despite this frequent form of information overload, little is known about how much information people choose to remember. Using a novel "stop" paradigm, the current research examined whether and how people choose to stop receiving new--possibly…

In multiple-list learning, retrieval during learning has been suggested to improve recall of the single lists by enhancing list discrimination and, at test, reducing interference. Using electrophysiological, oscillatory measures of brain activity, we examined to what extent retrieval during learning facilitates list encoding. Subjects studied 5…

The word length effect, the finding that lists of short words are better recalled than lists of long words, has been termed one of the benchmark findings that any theory of immediate memory must account for. Indeed, the effect led directly to the development of working memory and the phonological loop, and it is viewed as the best remaining…

This study presents a systematic investigation of three factors which seem necessary to initial success in obtaining recall facilitation when list member cues are presented during free recall. (Author/KM)

Four experiments are described that demonstrate that under certain conditions, encoding constancy results in better recall performance than encoding variability. The experiments used mnemonic devices, and various numbers of semantic contexts and orienting tasks. Encoding variability resulted in optimal recall performance when only one code for an…

A variant of the Peterson (1959) paradigm was used to investigate retrieval of single pairs of items varying in imagery value. Latency to respond showed that if one item was concrete, no differential retrieval speeds were found. This result supports an organizational view of imagery. (CHK)

Sixty subjects learned four different 16-word lists in four different conditions. Within each list, every word was repeated. The four conditions were defined by a 2 (whole vs. blocked presentation) by 2 (same order vs. random order repetition) factorial design. An unexpected final free recall followed the immediate free recall of the fourth list.…

This study examined recall and recognition memory for two types of lists: (1) random words; and (2) words related to a "script" about a daily activity, such as eating lunch. Results indicated that the organization of words to be learned determines emergent memory structures which affect recall and recognition performances. (Author/SJL)