Enhancing free-recall rates of individuals with mental retardation.
Generative encoding contexts promote activation of multiple retrieval routes and have been shown to enhance free-recall rates of individuals without mental retardation. The present extension to individuals with mental retardation involved a comparison of two encoding conditions: (a) fade-in, initially presenting pictures out of focus then slowly fading them into focus, and (b) fade-out, presenting pictures clearly then slowly blurring them. Results indicated that free-recall rates were greater for the fade-in items for the individuals with mental retardation and CA-matched comparisons, but not for the MA-matched group. These findings demonstrate the utility of a generative encoding context that does not involve verbal instruction for individuals with and without mental retardation.
Carlin
M T
MT
Shriver Center of the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Waltham, 02452, USA. michael.carlin@umassmed.edu
Soraci
S A
SA
Dennis
N A
NA
Chechile
N A
NA
Loiselle
R C
RC
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D003463:Cues; D004495:Education of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D010470:Perceptual Masking