Cognitive Psychology Commons^™

Retrieval Practice Promotes Learning Of Turkish As A Foreign Language: A Computer-Assisted Language Learning Study, Maya C. Rose

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Adults generally find it difficult to learn a new language, yet exhibit remarkable individual differences in outcomes. Variation in second language (L2) learning is associated with input conditions (Morgan-Short et al., 2010) as well as learners’ aptitude (Dörnyei, 2005). Recent work has demonstrated benefits of retrieval practice in promoting L2 learning of grammatical patterns and vocabulary in both artificial and natural languages (Hopman & MacDonald, 2018; Keppenne et al., 2021). With that said, when retrieval practice is based on oral recall as opposed to a recognition test, it confounds potential benefits of repeated testing (Rowland, 2014) with those associated with …

Exploring The Mechanisms That Underlie The Benefits Of Retrieval Practice In Younger And Older Adults, Ruth A. Shaffer

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The testing effect—or the benefit of retrieval practice to later memory—is often considered to be a recollection-related phenomenon. However, recent work (Shaffer & McDermott, 2020) has observed a benefit of testing to both recollection and familiarity processing on both immediate and delayed final tests. Further, although aging populations show marked declines in recollection, older and younger adults often benefit from testing to a similar degree (Meyer & Logan, 2013). This finding suggests that the testing effect in older adults may function via relatively preserved familiarity and lends further support to the notion that the testing effect does not function solely …

Does Testing Enhance Mediation In Paired-Associate Learning?, Deana Vitrano

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The testing effect (TE) is the robust finding that testing on previously studied material leads to better long-term retention as compared to restudying that material (Roediger & Karpicke, 2006b). Pyc and Rawson (2010) proposed the Mediator Effectiveness Hypothesis (MEH) as an explanation for the TE in paired-associate learning, The MEH states that review testing on cue-target word pairs strengthens semantic/associative mediators, which helps participants recall targets to their cues on a later test. Pyc and Rawson found support for the MEH with Swahili-English word pairs and explicit mediation instructions, using the most rigorous test of the MEH. Other researchers have …

Accuracy Matters For The Benefits Of Sleep After Retrieval Practice, Steven Dessenberger

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Previous research suggests that while sleep and retrieval practice can each improve memory on their own, their benefits cannot be combined to produce an additive effect unless feedback is given during the initial test. These previous findings would seem to support a retrieval-as-consolidation of the testing effect, which states that the benefits of retrieval are the result of memory consolidation, a process that normally occurs during the sleep cycle. The present study sought to determine whether the retrieval-as-consolidation account held true when initial test accuracy was considered as a factor. Using foreign language word pairs, we examined the combined effects …

“A” For Effort: Rewarding Effortful Retrieval Attempts Improves Learning From General Knowledge Errors In Women, Damon Abraham, Kateri Mcrae, Jennifer A. Mangels

Publications and Research

Previous research has shown that the prospect of attaining a reward can promote task engagement, up-regulate attention toward reward-relevant information, and facilitate enhanced encoding of new information into declarative memory. However, past research on reward-based enhancement of declarative memory has focused primarily on paradigms in which rewards are contingent upon accurate responses. Yet, findings from test-enhanced learning show that making errors can also be useful for learning if those errors represent effortful retrieval attempts and are followed by corrective feedback. Here, we used a challenging general knowledge task to examine the effects of explicitly rewarding retrieval effort, defined as a …

“A” For Effort: Rewarding Effortful Retrieval Attempts Improves Learning From General Knowledge Errors In Women, Damon Abraham, Kateri Mcrae, Jennifer A. Mangels

Psychology: Faculty Scholarship

Previous research has shown that the prospect of attaining a reward can promote task-engagement, up-regulate attention toward reward-relevant information, and facilitate enhanced encoding of new information into declarative memory. However, past research on reward-based enhancement of declarative memory has focused primarily on paradigms in which rewards are contingent upon accurate responses. Yet, findings from test-enhanced learning show that making errors can also be useful for learning if those errors represent effortful retrieval attempts and are followed by corrective feedback. Here, we used a challenging general knowledge task to examine the effects of explicitly rewarding retrieval effort, defined as a semantically …

Effects Of Testing On Retroactive Interference And Proactive Interference In The A-B/A-C Paradigm, Stephanie Crocco

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

In an A-B/A-C paradigm, testing A-B pairs before A-C learning reduces retroactive interference (RI, Halamish & Bjork, 2011) and proactive interference (PI, Wahlheim, 2015). In four experiments, after A-B and RI control pairs were studied in List 1, these pairs were either tested or restudied. A-C pairs and PI control pairs were then learned in List 2, followed by a final test on both lists or only List 1. Four procedural factors were manipulated: (1) Swahili-English pairs vs. weakly related English pairs, (2) List 1 restudy vs. test review between- vs. within-subjects, (3) some List 1 pairs studied vs. not …

Does Testing Episodic "Lion-Tiger" And/Or "Tiger-Stripes" Associations Facilitate Later "Lion-Stripes" Learning, Deana Vitrano

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The current experiments examined Pyc and Rawson’s (2010) mediator effectiveness hypothesis (MEH) as one potential explanation of the beneficial effects of testing relative to restudying in paired-associate learning. In two experiments, participants learned cue-mediator-target triads (e.g., lion-tiger-stripes) broken down into separate components. Specifically, participants learned and then restudied or were tested on cue-mediator (List 1) and mediator-target (List 2) word pairs in Session 1, and in a Session 2 given 48 hours later learned cue-target (List 3) word pairs. According to Pyc and Rawson, compared to restudying, testing on List 1 cue-mediator and List 2 mediator-target word pairs should lead …

Examining The Testing Effect Using The Dual-Process Signal Detection Model, Nicole Jessica Bies-Hernandez

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Taking a test can lead to enhanced long-term retention compared to not practicing the information or simply restudying, a finding known as the testing effect (Roediger, Agarwal, Kang, & Marsh, 2010). The current study examined whether the dual-process signal detection (DPSD) model (Yonelinas, 1994) offers an approach for investigating the testing effect across two experiments. Experiment 1 investigated if the DPSD model could be used to examine the testing effect, and it also examined a factor (i.e., the number of practice sessions) that influences the magnitude of the testing effect. Experiment 2 investigated whether making the final test dependent on …

Examining The Relationship Between Fact Learning And Higher Order Learning Via Retrieval Practice, Pooja Kay Agarwal '01

Doctoral Dissertations

The development of higher order skills is a desired outcome of education. Some believe that higher order learning can be improved directly, whereas others argue that higher order learning can be improved via the enhancement of factual or conceptual knowledge. The relationship between fact and higher order learning is often speculated, but empirically unknown.

This project examines whether retrieval practice via quizzing, a strategy typically used to enhance fact learning, can be used as a strategy to improve higher order skills in both laboratory and applied settings. In the current study, higher order skills were considered to comprise the understand, …