Preschoolers' recall of repeated items exceeds the maximum predicted by encoding variability theories assuming independent encodings¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causal r1 · q2
Currency · newest study 1984 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Preschoolers' obtained recall of repeated items (.333) was reliably higher than the estimated maximum for two independent presentations (.259). → Thomas C. Toppino and William DiGeorge 1984

Evidence¶

Thomas C. Toppino and William DiGeorge 1984¶

Thomas C. Toppino and William DiGeorge. (1984). The spacing effect in free recall emerges with development. Memory & Cognition, 12(2), 118-122. https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=The+spacing+effect+in+free+recall+emerges+with+development+Memory+%26+Cognition+1984

q2 · i? · causal · r1

A theoretical analysis in the general discussion estimated the independent-encoding maximum from the once-presented recall proportion (P = .139, giving 2P - P² = .259) and found it "reliably lower than the obtained level of recall (.333)" (t = 2.31, p < .05), questioning encoding variability accounts.

"the estimated probability of re­calling one or both of two independent events was .259, which was reliably lower than the obtained level of recall (.333) for repeated items [t(17) = 2.31, p < .05]"

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Preschool children benefit from repetition in free recall, recalling repeated pictures better than once-presented ones — a broader claim this one bears on
• With constant judgment standards, the same-different orienting task at repetitions did not affect the within-list lag effect, arguing against inattention and encoding-variability explanations — related
• With incidental orienting tasks that focus processing on individual words and give no incentive to form associations, distributed presentations produce better free recall than massed presentations — related
• A rehearsal-based deficient-processing account cannot explain the developmental emergence of the spacing effect — related
• The TTST advantage persists when no further presentations follow the retrieval manipulation, ruling out encoding-effort strategies (Experiment 3) — related