Three experiments examined the notion that children's primacy and recency in the probe-type pictorial memory task are related to the spatial distinctiveness of the "leftmost" and "rightmost" items presented. Data suggest that preschoolers and older children alike are able to code temporal order along with the corresponding…

The spatial and temporal components of a serial position recall task were experimentally manipulated in a study using kindergarten, first grade, and second grade children to determine the factors involved in the primacy effect. (BRT)

Results of two experiments suggested (1) that spatial cues serve as functional stimuli in the standard probe-type task, and (2) that the contextual uniqueness of the first item is probably responsible for the occurrence of primacy in young children. (Author/JMB)

The present study was designed to investigate the effects of stimulus presentation rate on recall and primacy-recency effects in children. Results indicated that the traditional interpretation of the primacy effect as reflecting long-term memory store may not be valid. (Author/SB)