How does repetition affect memory? Evidence from judgments of recency.
Four experiments were done to investigate the effects of repetition on judgment of recency (JOR). Experiment 1 showed that repetition can make an item seem either more recent or less recent than a nonrepeated item, depending on presentation spacing. Experiments 2-4 showed that subjects are able to judge the recency of a repeated item's first presentation or of its second presentation with a high degree of independence, especially if they report that the item occurred twice. The data are more consistent with an independent-trace explanation of JOR and repetition than with a cumulative-strength account, but neither hypothesis explains how repetition can make an item seem less recent. It is proposed that the findings as a whole can be better explained by a hypothesis based on recursive reminding.
Hintzman
Douglas L
DL
University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon 97403, USA. hintzman@uoregon.edu
D001288:Attention; D006801:Humans; D007600:Judgment; D011939:Mental Recall; D011214:Practice, Psychological; D011930:Reaction Time; D021641:Recognition, Psychology; D012691:Serial Learning; D014706:Verbal Learning