Self-generated mnemonics for enhancing free recall performance in older learners.
The effectiveness of self-generated mnemonic strategies for free-recall list learning was examined in 94 older community-dwelling adults. Participants were presented with a list of 19 nouns and were given seven minutes to commit the list to memory with three minutes for recall. Performance was measured immediately following recall and after a 2-day delay. Forty-five percent of the participants reported using a specific organizational mnemonic encoding strategy to facilitate recall. At both immediate and delayed recall, those individuals who reported using a well-articulated mnemonic outperformed those reporting the use of repetition or making simple associations. The results suggest that many older adults can spontaneously generate specific elaborative encoding strategies and that pre-existing encoding skills should be assessed prior to remedial memory training for older adults.
Hill
R D
RD
Department of Educational Psychology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City 84112.
Allen
C
C
Gregory
K
K
D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001244:Association; D006801:Humans; D011939:Mental Recall; D008722:Methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D012647:Self-Assessment; D013997:Time Factors; D014706:Verbal Learning