Memory & Cognition最新文献

The present study examined the influence of motivation on measures of cognitive ability within the domains of attention control, primary memory, secondary memory, and fluid intelligence. Three tasks measuring each respective domain were administered, allowing for latent-variable analyses of the cognitive constructs. Half of participants (n = 322) were assigned to an experimental condition in which they received trial-by-trial and/or block-by-block feedback about their performance in addition to normative information regarding their performance. The other half (n = 322) were assigned to a 'no feedback' condition. The constructs were differentially sensitive to the between-subjects manipulation, with all three attention control tasks showing significantly better performance with feedback, and two of the three secondary memory tasks showing performance improvements with feedback. None of the primary memory or fluid intelligence tasks were affected by feedback. Individual differences in self-reported motivation were only weakly correlated with performance in all four domains. We discuss the implications for these results for the testing of cognitive theories using individual differences, high- versus low-stakes testing, and the role of motivation in cognitive assessment.

How letter position and identity information in strings is processed has been of great importance for visual word recognition and understanding discrimination between similar words. Position and identity are often not a one-to-one mapping, because in most words at least one letter is repeated, occurring in multiple positions. Whether and how multiple correspondences between identity and position affect reading is not yet clear as repeated letter effects occur inconsistently. Here, we investigated this issue with stimuli constructed from words with repetitions (e.g., REJECTS). We manipulated the presence of different identity information by inserting or deleting repeated (e.g., rejectcs or rjects) or unique letters (e.g., rejectas or rejecs), either as primes for the base words in lexical decision (Experiment 1) or the same-different task (Experiment 3), or as nonword foils in lexical decision (Experiment 2). The deletion of a repeated letter resulted in shorter response times than the deletion of a unique letter, but only in the primed lexical decision task. In contrast, the insertion of a repeated letter resulted in shorter response times than the insertion of a unique letter, but only for the primed same-different and the unprimed lexical decision tasks. Repetition effects were also observed in the accuracy for the nonword foil rejection for both insertions and deletions. These findings provide further evidence for differential processing between repeated and unique letters, while also showing that absent expected repetitions and present redundant repetitions affect processing according to the task, suggesting task idiosyncrasies in the demands, mechanisms or representations involved.

Prediction errors arising from contextual violations play a fundamental role in learning and memory, yet their effects remain controversial. While some research suggests prediction errors enhance memory for incongruent information, other evidence shows that schema-congruent events are better remembered. This study investigates how contextual congruency during encoding affects both recognition memory and retrieval of fine-grained perceptual details. Using object-scene pairings, we examined whether predictions based on memory schemas differentially influence the encoding of congruent versus incongruent information. The Mnemonic Similarity Task (MST) was adapted to incorporate naturalistic scene contexts. Participants viewed indoor scenes with contextually congruent or incongruent objects during encoding, then classified single objects as "old" (previously encountered at the encoding phase), "similar" (objects perceptually similar to previously encountered), or "new". Memory was assessed using the Corrected Recognition score (REC) for recognition accuracy, the Lure Discrimination Index (LDI) for fine-grained perceptual detail retrieval and discrimination, and the Rate of Correct Scores (RCS) for processing efficiency. Contextually congruent objects yielded significantly higher recognition accuracy and processing efficiency compared to incongruent objects. However, no congruency advantage was found for the retrieval of fine-grained perceptual details, with equivalent performance across conditions. These findings suggest that predictions based on memory schemas enhance encoding and retrieval of general item information, facilitating recognition and reducing cognitive demands. In contrast, encoding of fine-grained perceptual details appears unaffected by contextual congruency. These differential effects between recognition and retrieval of perceptual details offer important insights into how predictions influence distinct aspects of memory encoding.

In the numerical Stroop task, two digits that vary in both numerical and physical size appear, and participants need to identify which digit has the larger numerical value. Typically, slower responses occur when numerical difference between the digits is small. This finding is known as the distance effect. Slower responses are also noted when numerical and physical sizes are incongruent, known as the size-congruency effect. Additionally, at larger distances, the interfering dimension affects performance less. Furthermore, the size-congruency effect is diminished when the previous trial is incongruent rather than congruent, known as the Gratton effect. The Gratton effect can be explained by several theories, some of which relate to the notion of cognitive control. Based on this idea, the current study investigated whether manipulating task targets through the distance between the numbers influences the appearance of the adaptive control effect, as reflected in the Gratton effect. It examines if the distance in the current trial affects the appearance of the Gratton effect. Both Experiment 1 and Experiment 2 showed that in different settings of the numerical Stroop task, numerical distance influenced the appearance of the Gratton effect, with a more pronounced Gratton effect observed for smaller distances compared with larger ones. This suggests that affecting the task's targets when comparing the two numbers, as indicated by numerical distance, impacted the effect of previous conflicts, with this effect decreasing as comparing the two numbers became easier. These findings are further discussed in the context of cognitive control and numerical processing.

In free recall, semantic associations between studied items lead to clustering of those items. In prior work, the impact of these associations on recall has been assessed using measures that are independent of participant data. For example, the semantic similarity of lemon and banana can be estimated using a distributional semantic model (e.g., latent semantic analysis) and these estimates can be used to derive semantic clustering scores. We show that instead of using pre-existing estimates of semantic similarity, it is possible to estimate semantic similarity from the data itself. In one experiment, participants study categorized word lists that are either presented randomly or blocked (arranged by category). Using established and novel analyses, we find that temporal and semantic associations interact, but that semantic associations exert a predictable influence on recall order. We use this insight to develop a model for estimating pairwise similarity and a semantic network from free recall data. The estimated networks show high correspondence with both the category structure and a distributional semantic model (word2vec). Compared to word2vec, our model made more accurate predictions of clustering in free recall after controlling for temporal similarity, underscoring that similarity measures from different sources reflect different aspects of semantic information. We further validate the model using a large, pre-existing dataset (PEERS) of uncategorized free recall lists. The work presents a novel methodology that has many potential applications in the study of both episodic and semantic memory.

Previous research indicates that couples can experience 'collaborative facilitation', overcoming the typical memory inhibition seen in other groups. However, there are a range of potential mechanisms for this effect, and the role of personalised and distinctive cue content in facilitating recall has not been directly tested. We aimed to examine how cues provided by a romantic partner are similar or different to those provided by a stranger. Across two experiments involving a word list recall task, we compared the qualities and effectiveness of self-generated, partner-generated, and stranger-generated cues. Results showed that partner-generated cues were more idiosyncratic and personalized than those from strangers, resembling self-generated cues. In Experiment 1, we found that partner-generated cues were significantly more effective than stranger-generated cues in supporting recall performance. In Experiment 2, the perceived source of the cues influenced their effectiveness, highlighting the interplay of content and context. These findings suggest that the cues that couples provide for each other can enhance memory performance, offering personalised cue content as a potential mechanism for the theorised benefits of transactive memory systems in established groups.

This article focuses on the last 25 years of the 20^th century when Larry Jacoby had an extraordinary influence in the areas of attention and memory. During a short 3-year period between 1977 and 1980, four benchmark papers in cognitive psychology documented qualitative distinctions between automatic and attention demanding processes. These studies reflected the zeitgeist for Jacoby's early work extending this distinction to memory. Jacoby developed ingenious experimental paradigms to distinguish automatic and attentional processes and boldly explored unconscious influences, when most experimental psychologists were avoiding using such an introspective term. Although this work was powerful, it did not afford a way of quantifying conscious and unconscious contributions to performance, which ultimately led to Jacoby's process dissociation procedure (PDP). Strong assumptions (such as independence of the two processes) were necessary and these have generated controversy in the field. Although there are limitations, the PDP has been remarkably generative in not only understanding the relation between attention and memory but also has been widely extended to other domains within psychology. The present article attempts to capture the energy and enthusiasm in the field during this period in history, which continues to serve as foundational for work in cognitive science and neuroscience.

Predictable words are processed more quickly than unpredictable words during reading, but how this predictability effect is modulated by working memory (WM) limitations is unclear. Two preregistered experiments tested whether the availability of visuospatial WM resources affects reading measures that are sensitive to predictability (gaze duration and skipping probability in Experiment 1, and self-paced reading time in Experiment 2) in native English speakers. The analyses of all measures revealed main effects of predictability and WM load. Their interaction was significant in Experiment 2 but not in Experiment 1. A follow-up analysis on relative reading times in Experiment 2 revealed main effects of predictability and WM load but no interaction between the two, replicating Experiment 1. The apparent interaction in Experiment 2 was likely due to the WM load speeding the overall reading times and masking the predictability effect. Taken together, these findings demonstrate a robust effect of predictability under a cognitively demanding task and suggest that visuospatial WM resources are not necessary for computing probabilities of upcoming words during reading.

Semantic fluency tasks require participants to recall as many items as possible from a category (e.g., animals) within a fixed time. These tasks are known to produce heavy-tailed distributions of interresponse times (IRTs), a pattern also found in natural foraging. The present study examined whether long IRTs arise specifically at category transitions. Across three experiments, participants completed fluency tasks that varied in scope: recalling items from a single semantic category (animals), from two categories (animals and vegetables), or from letter-based categories (words beginning with S or T). IRTs were modeled against normal, lognormal, and power-law distributions, and transitions were identified using both behavioral ratings and algorithmic similarity measures. Results showed that lognormal distributions consistently provided the best fit at group and individual levels, confirming the heavy-tailed nature of memory search. The longest IRTs appeared immediately after, rather than during, a category switch, suggesting a brief adjustment period when participants begin exploring a new cluster of items. These findings support the view that memory retrieval operates according to principles of optimal foraging, highlighting shared dynamics across spatial, semantic, and abstract domains.

Crossing a spatial boundary, such as a doorway, often signals the ending of one episode and the beginning of another, segmenting ongoing experience into events. When conducted in real environments, this 'doorway effect' differentially affects memory for objects encountered within and between events. The evidence for this occurring in immersive virtual reality (VR) environments is mixed. The present study investigated the 'doorway effect' in a VR environment and also examined how event memory is affected when segmentation processes are disrupted by interference tasks. Ninety participants explored a five-room VR building containing interactable objects. During exploration, some participants were presented with virtual distractor tasks that required either visuospatial working memory or simple rapid-reaction responses. These tasks occurred either at doorways or in the middle of rooms. Later recall for the temporal order and contextual location of objects was examined and compared with controls, who explored the building without any distractions. The results showed that a doorway effect was evident in the control, no-distractor condition. The visuospatial distractor task impaired memory for objects, but only when it occurred in the middle of a room, possibly because it separated the representation of the encapsulating room into different events. When this task was performed in the doorway, however, its effects overlapped with, and did not add to, the spatial boundary effect. Together these findings show that both spatial boundaries and spatial distractor tasks can segment memory for experience in an immersive VR environment.