L.L. Jacoby's (1991) process dissociation framework has been welcomed as a tool for differentiating controlled and automatic cognitive processes. Several variants of the original process dissociation measurement model are integrated in this article, and it is shown that the model ignores guessing and, hence, response bias. An extension of the original model is suggested that includes guessing parameters. The original model and the extended model are evaluated empirically. In 3 experiments using a yes-no recognition task, response bias was manipulated in various ways. The original model falsely attributes effects of response biases to either controlled or uncontrolled processes or to both. The extended model, in contrast, results in estimates of the contributions of controlled and uncontrolled memory processes that are relatively unaffected by response biases. The extended model is recommended as a measurement tool.
The success of many mnemonic techniques, such as the method of loci, is based on the use of specific well-known anchors, which are mentally combined with to-be-learned items and subsequently facilitate their retrieval. In our studies we intended to answer the question of whether the repeated application of the method of loci may result in proactive interference effects, as might be expected due to the applied association of items with the same loci each time the method is used. To this end, we manipulated list similarity in a typical proactive interference design and compared the method of loci with the link method and the rehearsal method, which do not involve the use of a specified set of anchors. Our results replicate those from other studies, which have shown that the use of a mnemonic technique leads to superior recall of list items compared to a simple rehearsal strategy. We were further able to show that the repeated learning of items from different categories results in moderate practice effects over three list-learning trials, whereas this effect is superimposed by an effect of proactive interference if different lists are composed of items from the same category. However, this effect of proactive interference was not increased for the method of loci, and we discuss this finding with regard to its practical implications.
This paper presents an extension of the process-dissociation procedure with wordstem completion, which makes possible the measurement of the stochastic relationship between consciously controlled and automatic processes. By means of an indirect wordstem completion test, the conditional probabilities of conscious remembering with and without automatic processes can be successfully determined. A multinomial model for the evaluation of this extended process-dissociation procedure is presented. This model makes the distinction between voluntary and involuntary conscious memory processes possible and has been applied to two experiments discussed in this paper. The results show that the assumption of stochastic independence is often violated, albeit not as strongly as predicted by the redundancy or exclusivity model variants. Two conscious processes were found, voluntary and involuntary conscious memory processes, each with a different probability of occurrence.
One of the most effective mnemonic techniques is the well-known method of loci. Learning and retention, especially of sequentially ordered information, is facilitated by this technique which involves mentally combining salient loci on a well-known path with the material to be learned. There are several variants of this technique that differ in the kind of path that is suggested to the user and it is implicitly assumed that these variants are comparable in effectiveness. The experiments reported in this study were designed to test this assumption. The data of two experiments show that participants who are instructed to generate and apply loci on a route to their work recall significantly more items in a memory test than participants who are instructed to generate and apply loci on a route in their house. These results have practical implications for the instruction and application of the method of loci.
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