Word Frequency Effects in Immediate Serial Recall of Pure and Mixed Lists: Tests of the Associative Link Hypothesis.

Author(s):  
Jean Saint-Aubin ◽  
Jacinthe LeBlanc
Author(s):  
Charles Hulme ◽  
Steven Roodenrys ◽  
Richard Schweickert ◽  
Gordon D. A. Brown ◽  
Sarah Martin ◽  
...  

2009 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 850-865 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonie M. Miller ◽  
Steven Roodenrys

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew HC Mak ◽  
Yaling Hsiao ◽  
Kate Nation

In four experiments, we tested whether immediate serial recall is influenced by a word’s degree centrality, an index of lexical connectivity. Words of high degree centrality are associated with more words in free association norms than those of low degree centrality. Experiment 1 reanalysed four existing datasets (collected for other purposes) to explore the effect of degree centrality in scrambled wordlists. Results indicated that high-degree (vs. low-degree) words are advantaged across all serial positions, independently of other variables including word frequency. Experiment 2 replicated this finding using an expanded stimulus set. Experiment 3 used pure lists with each list containing high- or low-degree words only. Once again, high-degree words were better recalled across all serial positions, and this could not be explained by other psycholinguistic variables. Experiment 4 used alternating lists, within which high- and low-degree words alternated. High-degree words were no longer advantaged overall. Instead, recall of low-degree words was facilitated when neighboured by high-degree words. We conclude that degree centrality is a distinct variable that affects serial recall and consider its influence both as an item-level characteristic that reflects how accessible a word is and as an inter-item property that captures how well associative links can be formed between words.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew HC Mak ◽  
Yaling Hsiao ◽  
Kate Nation

In four experiments, we tested whether immediate serial recall is influenced by a word’s degree centrality, an index of lexical connectivity. Words of high degree centrality are associated with more words in free association norms than those of low degree centrality. Experiment 1 reanalysed four existing datasets (collected for other purposes) to explore the effect of degree centrality in scrambled wordlists. Results indicated that high-degree (vs. low-degree) words are advantaged across all serial positions, independently of other variables including word frequency. Experiment 2 replicated this finding using an expanded stimulus set. Experiment 3 used pure lists with each list containing high- or low-degree words only. Once again, high-degree words were better recalled across all serial positions, and this could not be explained by other psycholinguistic variables. Experiment 4 used alternating lists, within which high- and low-degree words alternated. High-degree words were no longer advantaged overall. Instead, recall of low-degree words was facilitated when neighboured by high-degree words. We conclude that degree centrality is a distinct variable that affects serial recall and consider its influence both as an item-level characteristic that reflects how accessible a word is and as an inter-item property that captures how well associative links can be formed between words.


2020 ◽  
Vol 228 (4) ◽  
pp. 254-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro S. Mendes ◽  
Karlos Luna ◽  
Pedro B. Albuquerque

Abstract. The present study tested if word frequency effects on judgments of learning (JOLs) are exclusively due to beliefs or if the direct experience with the items also plays a role. Across four experiments, participants read prompts about the frequency of the words (high/low), which could be congruent/incongruent with the words’ actual frequency. They made pre-study JOLs (except Experiment 1b), immediate JOLs, and completed a recall test. If experience drives the effect, JOLs should be based on actual word frequency rather than the prompts. Results showed higher pre-study JOLs for prompts of high frequency, but higher immediate JOLs for high-frequency words regardless of the prompt, suggesting an effect of direct experience with the words. In Experiments 2 and 3, we manipulated participants’ beliefs, finding a small effect of beliefs on JOLs. We conclude that, regarding word frequency, direct experience with the items seems more relevant than beliefs when making immediate JOLs.


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