Imagery and Related Mnemonic Processes

Imagery and Related Mnemonic Processes

Theories, Individual Differences, and Applications

Edited by

Mark A. McDaniel Michael Pressley

With 23 Illustrations

Springer-Verlag New York Berlin Heidelberg

London Paris Tokyo

Mark A. McDaniel Department of Psychology University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Imagery and related mnemonic processes.

Includes bibliographies and index. 1. Mnemonics. 2. Imagery (Psychology). 3. Individu­

ality. I. McDaniel, Mark A. II. Pressley, Michael. BF385.I42 1987 153.1'4 86-20432

© 1987 by Springer-Verlag New York Inc. Softcover reprint of the hardcover 15t Edition 1987

Michael Pressley Department of Psychology University of Western Ontario London, Ontario Canada N6A 5C2

All rights reserved. This work may not be translated or copied in whole or in part without the written permission of the publisher (Springer-Verlag, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10010, USA), except for brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis. Use in connection with any form of information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed is forbidden. The use of general descriptive names, trade names, trademarks, etc. in this publication, even if the former are not especially identified, is not to be taken as a sign that such names, as understood by the Trade Marks and Merchandise Marks Act, may accordingly be used freely by anyone.

Typeset by Publishers Service, Bozeman, Montana.

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ISBN-13: 978-1-4612-9111-4 e-ISBN: 978-1-4612-4676-3 001: 10.1007/978-1-4612-4676-3

Preface

Scientific work on mnemonics and imagery conducted in the 1960s and early 1970s was directed at testing enthusiastic claims of the efficacy of memory tech­niques developed by the ancient Greeks and further refined in the popular litera­ture by "professional" mnemonists. The early research on imagery and mnemonics confirmed many of these claims and also illuminated the limitations of some techniques (e.g., bizarre imagery). As such, these seminal studies clearly were valuable in providing a solid data base and, perhaps as important, making imagery and mnemonics acceptable research areas for experimental psycholo­gists and educators. After this initial surge of work, however, it seemed that sub­sequent contributions met with the attitude that "mnemonic techniques and imagery help memory, what else is new?" This attitude was not completely justi­fied, however, given the theoretical insights from the work of such imagery and mnemonics pioneers as Gorden Bower, Allan Paivio, and William Rohwer. In the 1980s this claim is completely unjustified. Research on mnemonics and imagery has grown in exciting ways.

Researchers are tapping the area's theoretical potential, both in terms of extending basic memory theories to account for the robust effects produced by mnemonic techniques and in terms of using explanations of mnemonic effects to understand basic memory processes. Individual differences in the use of imagery and mnemonic encoding activities are also being explored. This research has provided valuable information for basic memory theories (e.g., research on imagery in the blind has important implications for dual coding theory and issues of representation in general) and has offered fresh perspectives on deficiencies and possible interventions for many different populations (e.g., certain cultural, socioeconomic, and learning-disabled groups). Applications for mnemonics in the classroom and for people with memory deficits have been designed and evalu­ated. This work includes extending mnemonics use to prose material and to the acquisition of mathematical procedures and scientific formulas, training students in school to use particular mnemonic devices, and teaching brain-injured patients to use mnemonic techniques to overcome amnesia.

There is much new work of potential interest to a wide variety of specialists: experimental psychologists, educational psychologists, clinicians, and educators.

VI Preface

Because of the diverse appeal of imagery and mnemonics research, however, this work is dispersed among different types of journals, books, and convention presentations. Therefore, it seemed timely and appropriate to assemble some of this "new-look" work in mnemonics and imagery into one volume.

Consistent with the organization of research as outlined above, we divided the volume into three parts. The first section emphasizes theoretical perspectives, the second focuses on individual differences, and the third considers applica­tions. Nonetheless, the boundaries established by this segmentation are not always clear-cut, and consequently most contributions overlap with themes developed in other sections.

Ultimately, we hope that this volume will contribute to the understanding of imagery and mnemonics by providing an accessible information base for the diverse array of interested scholars and by stimulating further research. It is also our hope that this volume makes obvious that imagery and mnemonics theorists and researchers are making a great contribution to the understanding of human cognition.

Our editing of the book was facilitated by the help provided by the Springer­Verlag staff. The people at Springer provided a great deal of assistance and enthusiastic encouragement. Mark McDaniel's contribution was supported in part by the Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts, University of Notre Dame. Michael Pressley's participation was possible through a grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

Mark A. McDaniel Michael Pressley

Contents

Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v Contributors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix

Part I: Theoretical Perspectives

1 A Dual Coding Perspective on Encoding Processes ............. 5 James M. Clark and Allan Paivio

2 Mnemonic Devices and Memory Schemas .................... 34 Francis S. Bellezza

3 A Theoretical Account of Encoding and Retrieval Processes in the Use of Imagery-Based Mnemonic Techniques: The Special Case of the Keyword Method ..................... 56 Alain Desrochers and Ian Begg

4 Distinctiveness and the Mnemonic Benefits of Bizarre Imagery ... 78 Gilles 0. Einstein and Mark A. McDaniel

5 Bizarreness and the Imagery Multiprocess Model ............... 103 Keith A. Wollen and Matthew G. Margres

6 Yet Another Picture of Imagery: The Roles of Shared and Distinctive Information in Memory ...................... 129 R. Reed Hunt and Marc Marschark

7 Reversing the Picture Superiority Effect ...................... 151 Henry L. Roediger III and Mary Susan Weldon

Part II: Individual Differences

8 Individual Differences in the Control of Imagery Processing: Knowing How, Knowing When, and Knowing Self. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Albert N. Katz

viii Contents

9 Individual Imagery Differences and Prose Processing Michel Denis

10 Imagery and Memory in the Blind: A Review Carole H. Ernest

11 Development of Elaboration and Organization in Different Socioeconomic-Status and Ethnic Populations Susan Nakayama Siaw and Daniel W Kee

12 Elaborative Propensities During Adolescence: The Relationships Among Memory Knowledge,

204

218

239

Strategy Behavior, and Memory Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257 Trisha Beuhring and Daniel W Kee

13 The Development of Good Strategy Use: Imagery and Related Mnemonic Strategies ........................... 274 Michael Pressley, John G. Borkowski, and Carla J. Johnson

Part III Applications

14 The Efficacy of Imagery Mnemonics Following Brain Damage. . . . 303 John T. E. Richardson, Laird S. Cermak, Susan P. Blackford, and Margaret O'Connor

15 Special Educational Applications of Mnemonics James E. Turnure and John F. Lane

329

16 Mnemonic Instruction in Special Education .......... . . . . . . . . . 358 Margo A. Mastropieri, Thomas E. Scruggs, and Joel R. Levin

17 Explorations in Mnemonic Training. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377 Jack Snowman

18 Mnemonic Prose-Learning Strategies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392 Christine B. McCormick and Joel R. Levin

19 Process Mnemonics: Principles, Prospects, and Problems. . . . . . . . 407 Kenneth L. Higbee

20 The Role of Mnemonic Strategies in Study Effectiveness. . . . . . . . . 428 William D. Rohwer, Jr., and John W Thomas

Author Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451 Subject Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 465

Contributors

Ian Begg Department of Psychology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L854Kl

Francis S. Bellezza Department of Psychology, Porter Hall, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio 45701, USA

Trisha Beuhring University Personnel Department, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minne­sota 55104, USA

Susan P. Blackford Boston Veterans Administration Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02130, USA

John G. Borkowski Department of Psychology, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA

Laird S. Cermak Boston Veterans Administration Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02130, USA

James M. Clark Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C2

Michel Denis Centre D'Etudes de Psychologie Cognitive, Universite de Paris-Sud, Centre Scientifique d'Orsay, 91405 Orsay Cedex, Paris, France

Alain Desrochers School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada KIN 6N5

x Contributors

Gilles O. Einstein Department of Psychology, Furman University, Greenville, South Carolina 29613, USA

Carole H. Ernest Department of Psychology, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada K9J 7B8

Kenneth L. Higbee Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 84602, USA

R. Reed Hunt Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina 27412, USA

Carla J. Johnson Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C2

Albert N. Katz Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C2

Daniel W Kee Department of Psychology, California State University at Fullerton, Fullerton, California 92634, USA

John F. Lane Department of Educational Psychology, University of Minnesota, Min­neapolis, Minnesota 55455, USA

Joel R. Levin Department of Educational Psychology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA

Christine B. McCormick Department of Educational Psychology, University of South Carolina, Colum­bia, South Carolina 29208, USA

Mark A. McDaniel Department of Psychology, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA

Matthew G. Margres Department of Psychology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164, USA

Contributors XI

Marc Marschark Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina 27412, USA

Margo A. Mastropieri SCCE, Special Education, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907,

USA

Margaret O'Connor Boston University, School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA

Allan Paivio Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C2

Michael Pressley Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C2

John T. E. Richardson Department of Human Sciences, BruneI University, Uxbridge, Middlesex, United Kingdom UB8 3PH

Henry L. Roediger III Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA

William D. Rohwer, Jr. Department of Education, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720, USA

Thomas E. Scruggs SCCE, Special Education, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA

Susan Nakayama Siaw Department of Behavioral Science, California State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Pomona, California 91768, USA

Jack Snowman Department of Educational Psychology, Southern Illinois University, Carbon­dale, Illinois 62901, USA

John W. Thomas Far West Laboratory for Educational Research and Development, San Fran­cisco, California 94103, USA

xii Contributors

James E. Turnure Department of Educational Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minnea­polis, Minnesota 55455, USA

Mary Susan Weldon Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA

Keith A. Wollen Department of Psychology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164, USA