Interpreting semantic clustering effects in free recall

Although ageing is known to affect memory, the precise nature of its effect on retrieval and encoding processes is not well understood. Here, we examine the effect of ageing on the free recall of word lists, in which the semantic structure of word sequences was manipulated from unrelated words to pairs of associated words with various separations (between pair members) within the sequence. We find that ageing is associated with reduced total recall, especially for sequences with associated words. Furthermore, we find that the degree of semantic clustering (controlled for chance clustering) shows an age effect and that it interacts with the distance between the words within a pair. The results are consistent with the view that age effects in memory are mediated both by retrieval and by encoding processes associated with frontal control and working memory.

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Organizational Changes in the Memory of Young Children

Perceptual and Motor Skills ◽

10.2466/pms.1978.46.3.735 ◽

1978 ◽

Vol 46 (3) ◽

pp. 735-742 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Joseph A. Wingard ◽

James P. Buchanan ◽

Angela Burnell

Keyword(s):

Free Recall ◽

Recall Task ◽

Developmental Changes ◽

Organizational Changes ◽

Organizational Strategies ◽

Color Category ◽

Semantic Clustering ◽

Semantic Categories ◽

Color Categories ◽

Item Presentation

A set of 25 pictures of common objects classifiable either perceptually on the basis of five color categories or semantically on the basis of five categories of meaning were presented in a recall task to 4- and 5-yr.-old children. In one condition the items were presented sequentially, and in a second condition they were viewed simultaneously. Following free recall, half of the subjects received memory prompts based on the color categories and half received prompts based on the semantic categories. Four-yr.-olds displayed more color category clustering in free recall than 5-yr.-olds, but remembered fewer items with and without the aid of memory prompts. Five-yr.-olds showed a trend toward greater semantic clustering than 4-yr.-olds. Finally, more semantic clustering was observed following sequential than simultaneous item presentation, and semantic memory prompts evoked greater recall than color prompts. Developmental changes in organizational strategies were discussed.

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Free recall by deaf and hearing children: Semantic clustering and recall in trained and untrained groups

Journal of Experimental Child Psychology ◽

10.1016/0022-0965(79)90063-8 ◽

1979 ◽

Vol 27 (1) ◽

pp. 105-119 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Lynn S Liben

Keyword(s):

Free Recall ◽

Semantic Clustering ◽

Hearing Children

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A-185 Are Undergraduate Students Able to Effectively Utilize Learning Strategies?

Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology ◽

10.1093/arclin/acaa068.185 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 35 (6) ◽

pp. 980-980

Author(s):

Henry J ◽

Romano-Morris J ◽

Lazar M

Keyword(s):

Free Recall ◽

Learning Strategies ◽

High School Teachers ◽

Undergraduate Students ◽

Control Group ◽

Inclusion Criteria ◽

School Teachers ◽

Semantic Clustering ◽

Positive Correlations ◽

Experimental Group

Abstract Objective Professors generally use less structured and organized methods of teaching than high school teachers, even though undergraduate brains are still developing, making the transition more difficult. The purpose of this study was to see whether undergraduate students could use explicitly taught methods of organization to remember more words on free recall trials of the CVLT-II. Method Inclusion criteria: undergraduate students enrolled at Widener University, between the ages of 18–24. Participants included 34 undergraduate students recruited via mass email. The groups had 18 women and 16 men aged 18–22 (M = 20.32, SD = 1.15). They were randomized evenly in two groups: a control group (standardized instructions) and an experimental group (explicit semantic clustering instruction). Variables used were semantic clustering, immediate and delayed free recall. Results There were strong positive correlations between semantic clustering and number of words recalled at the immediate (r = .76, p < .0005) and delayed free recall trials (r = .7, p < .0005) for both groups. The experimental group (M = 3.94, SD = 3.21) used more semantic clustering than the control group (M = 2.13, SD = 2.35); t(32) = −1.87, p = .04 (one-tailed) (Cohen’s d = .64). However, the experimental group did not freely recall significantly more words than the control group at either of the free recalls (immediate = t(32) = −.636, p = .26; delay = t(32) = −1.086, p = .14). Conclusion This may indicate that although undergraduate students can learn helpful strategies, they may not necessarily be able to implement taught strategies effectively.

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Sex Differences in Semantic Clustering in Free Recall of Words and Pictures

Perceptual and Motor Skills ◽

10.2466/pms.1985.61.1.231 ◽

1985 ◽

Vol 61 (1) ◽

pp. 231-235 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Mark A. Lewis ◽

Jeanne Ellis Ormrod

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Free Recall ◽

Semantic Clustering

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Die Entwicklung des strategischen Gedächtnisses im Laufe der Grundschulzeit

Zeitschrift für Entwicklungspsychologie und Pädagogische Psychologie ◽

10.1026/0049-8637.41.1.1 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 41 (1) ◽

pp. 1-11 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Michael Hünnerkopf ◽

Veronika Kron-Sperl ◽

Wolfgang Schneider

Keyword(s):

Free Recall ◽

Serial Learning

Zusammenfassung. Es werden Ergebnisse der Würzburger Längsschnittstudie dargestellt, in der der Entwicklungsverlauf des strategischen Gedächtnisses vom letzten Kindergartenjahr bis zum Ende der vierten Klasse in halbjährigem Abstand untersucht wurde. Für eine Stichprobe von ca. 100 Kindern konnte das in der Münchner LOGIK-Studie gefundene Muster des sprunghaften Strategieerwerbs für die Sortierstrategie bestätigt werden, während sich bei der Wiederholungsstrategie kein bedeutsamer Unterschied in der Art des Strategieerwerbs zeigte. Der kombinierte Gebrauch von Sortier- und Wiederholungsstrategie brachte Vorteile bei der Abrufleistung der Sort-Recall-Aufgabe, nicht aber der Serial Learning-Free-Recall-Aufgabe. Für zukünftige Forschungsarbeiten wird der Einsatz einer Aufgabe zur Untersuchung der Strategieentwicklung empfohlen.

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Limitations to the Spacing Effect

Experimental Psychology (formerly Zeitschrift für Experimentelle Psychologie) ◽

10.1027/1618-3169.52.4.257 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 52 (4) ◽

pp. 257-263 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Peter P. J. L. Verkoeijen ◽

Remy M. J. P. Rikers ◽

Henk G. Schmidt

Keyword(s):

Free Recall ◽

Phase Retrieval ◽

Incidental Learning ◽

Factor Model ◽

Recall Performance ◽

Spacing Effect ◽

Word List ◽

Intentional Learning ◽

Study Phase ◽

Learning Condition

Abstract. The spacing effect refers to the finding that memory for repeated items improves when the interrepetition interval increases. To explain the spacing effect in free-recall tasks, a two-factor model has been put forward that combines mechanisms of contextual variability and study-phase retrieval (e.g., Raaijmakers, 2003 ; Verkoeijen, Rikers, & Schmidt, 2004 ). An important, yet untested, implication of this model is that free recall of repetitions should follow an inverted u-shaped relationship with interrepetition spacing. To demonstrate the suggested relationship an experiment was conducted. Participants studied a word list, consisting of items repeated at different interrepetition intervals, either under incidental or under intentional learning instructions. Subsequently, participants received a free-recall test. The results revealed an inverted u-shaped relationship between free recall and interrepetition spacing in both the incidental-learning condition and the intentional-learning condition. Moreover, for intentionally learned repetitions, the maximum free-recall performance was located at a longer interrepetition interval than for incidentally learned repetitions. These findings are interpreted in terms of the two-factor model of spacing effects in free-recall tasks.

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Articulatory Rehearsal Is More Than Refreshing Memory Traces

Experimental Psychology (formerly Zeitschrift für Experimentelle Psychologie) ◽

10.1027/1618-3169/a000179 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 60 (2) ◽

pp. 131-139 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ryoji Nishiyama ◽

Jun Ukita

Keyword(s):

Free Recall ◽

Recall Performance ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Verbal Information ◽

Free Recall Task ◽

Study Item ◽

Phonological Representations ◽

Memory Traces ◽

Short Period ◽

Serial Position Curves

This study examined whether additional articulatory rehearsal induced temporary durability of phonological representations, using a 10-s delayed nonword free recall task. Three experiments demonstrated that cumulative rehearsal between the offset of the last study item and the start of the filled delay (Experiments 1 and 3) and a fixed rehearsal of the immediate item during the subsequent interstimulus interval (Experiments 2 and 3) improved free recall performance. These results suggest that an additional rehearsal helps to stabilize phonological representations for a short period. Furthermore, the analyses of serial position curves suggested that the frequency of the articulation affected the durability of the phonological representation. The significance of these findings as clues of the mechanism maintaining verbal information (i.e., verbal working memory) is discussed.

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