Applied Cognitive Psychology最新文献

Prospective memory is the ability to execute delayed intentions at the appropriate moment. Mindfulness meditation serves as a training modality to enhance attentional control and foster a flexible, self-regulated attentional state, which can significantly enhance prospective memory performance through refined attentional control. The study aimed to investigate the effects of mindfulness meditation on prospective memory and its underlying processing mechanisms under different attentional loads. In the present study, a total of 109 participants were enrolled in a 2 (groups: mindfulness meditation group, control group) × 2 (attentional load: low load, high load) between-subjects design. The results indicated that mindfulness meditation enhances prospective memory performance primarily by improving the prospective component. This positive effect manifests significantly under the low attentional load condition. The findings suggest that mindfulness meditation primarily enhances prospective memory in scenarios with lower attentional demands.

Quickly recognizing distress and drowning is an essential skill for lifeguards. Unfortunately, it is unclear to what extent visual behavior contributes to the ability of a lifeguard to detect hazardous aquatic situations. Twenty-four non-lifeguards and twenty-four beach lifeguards watched two 15-min clips filmed from the perspective of a beach lifeguard. Participants were instructed to press the spacebar if they would undertake an action, and call out why they reacted. No difference in the number of reactions or average fixation duration was found between groups. However, lifeguards looked ‘deeper’ in the sea than non-lifeguards, had a higher variation in gaze location in the horizontal plane, and a lower variation in the vertical plane. For both lifeguards and non-lifeguards, average fixation duration in the 5 s prior to a reaction was longer than the overall average fixation duration. Overall, results show experiential differences in visual behavior between lifeguards and non-lifeguards.

Our article ‘Lost in the mall? Interrogating judgements of false memory’ (Andrews and Brewin 2024) was the first to reanalyse transcripts from the false memory implantation paradigm and throw light on the nature of investigator-based judgements of false memory. Commentaries on our report include several misrepresentations of what we did as well as some misconceptions about our methods, results, and conclusions. After addressing these, we discuss persistent concerns about the reliability, validity and generalisability of the paradigm and about the tendency for the results of false memory research to be exaggerated. These exaggerations sometimes later appear in expert witness reports and influence court deliberations.

This study examines whether exploring a novel environment in virtual reality enhances verbal episodic memory as a function of level of processing during encoding. Thirty-four participants completed three sessions. In the first, they familiarized themselves with a virtual environment. In the second and third sessions, they explored either the same (familiar) or a different (novel) environment before completing an episodic memory task. The task required participants to encode words under deep or shallow conditions and then complete free recall and recognition memory tests. Results showed that recall and recognition were better with deep encoding compared to shallow encoding. Recall was better in the second session for deep encoding, regardless of novelty. For shallow encoding, recall was better after exploring the novel environment, but only if it occurred in the third session. Recognition memory was unaffected by novelty. These findings suggest that environmental novelty benefits weak memories, but under specific conditions.

Numerous studies have shown cognitive benefits when children engage in activities in natural environments (NE). These benefits may stem from the restorative qualities of nature, which help reduce stress and replenish attentional capacities. According to embodied cognition theories, cognitive processes are shaped by our interactions with the environment. Given that NE facilitate interactions, we investigated whether cognitive benefits are driven by NE characteristics or sensorimotor interactions. Eighty-nine second-grade students participated in activities under three experimental conditions: sensorimotor activities in NE, non-sensorimotor activities in NE, and sensorimotor activities in built environments. Selective attention, categorization, recognition, short-term retention, and affect were assessed pre- and post-intervention. Results showed significant benefits of sensorimotor activities on short-term retention and selective attention, especially in NE. This suggests that sensorimotor experiences support cognitive processes and that NE provides an optimal context for such interactions, enhancing cognitive benefits.

The use of active comprehension strategies that encourage students to explain what they have read can improve students' comprehension of complex scientific texts. Most research has focused on either strategies that are engaged during reading (online) or those used after reading (offline)—often ignoring potential interactions that might occur in authentic learning. This study used a 2 (online: think-aloud, self-explain) × 3 (offline: reread, free recall, explanatory retrieval) design with a 7-day delayed comprehension test to examine how explanatory prompts might affect comprehension. Analyses from this Stage 2 Registered Report revealed a main effect of online condition, but no main effect offline condition. This was qualified by an interaction such that retrieval of any kind supported the comprehension benefits of self-explanation. These findings highlight the importance of considering how comprehension strategies interact and the conditions under which they are most effective.