Psychology ETDs

Publication Date

Fall 8-22-1975

Abstract

Three experiments examined the effects of part-to-whole transfer of organization in recall and recognition memory. The experiments modified the traditional part-to-whole transfer procedures in that subjects initially learned a list of perceptually grouped letter sequences and certain aspects of those sequences (letter elements and/or group structure) were part of larger sequences presented for second-list recall and recognition. The results of the first experiment provided clear support for an organizational interpretation of transfer effects in part-to-whole learning. Subjects in this experiment exhibited a facilitation in second-­list learning which was the result of prior exposure to perceptual groupings that were common to the first- and second-list sequences. No positive transfer resulted in the learning of second-list sequences that contained the first-list sequences in reorganized form.

The second experiment dealt with an investigation of part-to-whole transfer under conditions in which subjects were informed or uninformed of the inclusive relationship between the first- and second-list sequences. This experiment indicated a superiority in recall and recognition of letter sequences presented in second-list learning for informed experimental subjects relative to uninformed subjects, as well as a decrement in second-­list recall and recognition for the uninformed experimental subjects relative to the control group.

The third experiment was concerned with a procedure that equated the interitem associative strength between letter elements of the sequences presented for first-list learning, and the effects of this procedure upon performance in second-list learning. The results of this experiment provided substantial evidence against the frequency analysis of part/whole learning since this analysis would predict facilitation in memory for second-list sequences based upon prior exposure to letter elements that composed the first-list sequences and were common to both lists. As in Experiment I, the subjects in Experiment III did not benefit from prior learning of first-list sequences that were contained within larger sequences presented for second-list recall and recognition.

Degree Name

Psychology

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Department Name

Psychology

First Committee Member (Chair)

Henry C. Ellis

Second Committee Member

Thomas P. Friden

Third Committee Member

Carol Conrad

Fourth Committee Member

G. Robert Grice

Fifth Committee Member

John P. Gluck

Document Type

Dissertation

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