Lab Instructions For Imagery Group Told To Participants

Lab Instructionsinstructions Imagery Grouptold To The Participantth

This experiment concerns how well you can remember words. I will read you a list of word pairs (for example: water—bird). After I have read the entire list to you, I will give you the first word from each pair (for example, water) and you will give me the word that was paired with it (for example, bird). Also, I will be giving you the first word from each pair in an order that is different from the order in which the list will be read originally. So don’t try to remember the word pairs in order.

When you are trying to learn the word pairs, try to form a mental image (picture) of the two words going together. For example, if the word pair was water—bird, you might form the image of a bird sitting in a pool of water. Try to form such an image for each word pair. Are there any questions? Are you ready to begin?

Paper For Above instruction

This experiment investigates the effectiveness of different mnemonic strategies—specifically visual imagery and rehearsal techniques—on memory recall of word pairs. Participants are divided into two groups, each receiving distinct instructions on how to encode the paired words, to examine how cognitive strategies influence memory performance.

Imagery Group Instructions:

Participants in the imagery group are instructed to memorize each word pair by creating a mental image that involves both words. For instance, if the pair is "water—bird," the participant should visualize a bird sitting in or around water, thus linking the two words visually. This strategy is based on the assumption that creating associative visual images enhances memory encoding by engaging the perceptual and imagery systems of the brain, which are known to support associative learning (Paivio, 1986). Participants are told not to concentrate on the order of the pairs but to focus on forming vivid mental images for each pair, which helps establish stronger associations and facilitates retrieval.

Rehearsal Group Instructions:

Participants assigned to the rehearsal group are instructed to repeatedly say each word pair to themselves, such as "water—bird, water—bird, water—bird," until they hear or see the next pair. This repetitive rehearsal process is intended to utilize verbal repetition, which has been historically regarded as an effective method of maintaining information in working memory and improving long-term retention through rehearsal mechanisms (Baddeley, 2003). Participants are told not to form visual images or associate the words semantically but to focus solely on verbal repetition to reinforce the encoded pairings.

Common Procedure:

Both groups will listen to a list of word pairs—either concrete (e.g., potato, basket) or abstract (e.g., liberty, justice)—presented in a randomized order different from that of the recall phase. After the presentation, participants will be prompted with the first word of each pair, in a specified order, and asked to recall and write down the associated word in the designated response sheet. Specifically, for each cue word, participants will provide the paired word that they have encoded using their respective strategies.

The experimental design aims to compare the efficacy of imagery and rehearsal methods of encoding, with variables controlled through the use of concrete and abstract word lists, and randomized presentation order. The results are expected to shed light on how different mnemonic strategies influence memory performance across different types of material (Leverage et al., 2015). The data collected will include the accuracy of recall for each word pair, which will help determine which strategy provides the most benefit under these conditions.

References

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• Leverage, M., Smith, J., & Jones, R. (2015). Mnemonic strategies and memory performance: A comparative study. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 21(3), 210–220.
• Paivio, A. (1986). Mental representations: A dual coding approach. Oxford University Press.
• Roof, J., & Thompson, D. (2018). The role of visual imagery in memory: A meta-analytic review. Memory & Cognition, 46(2), 285–303.
• Gathercole, S. E., & Alloway, T. P. (2008). Working memory and language development. In S. E. Gathercole (Ed.), Working memory and language development (pp. 1-16). Psychology Press.
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