Final answer:
The correct answer is option d. The word-stem completion task is the testing method that mainly targets implicit memory. This task involves participants completing word beginnings without conscious recollection of learning experiences, contrasting with explicit memory tasks which require conscious recall.
Step-by-step explanation:
Among the testing methods given, word-stem completion mainly targets implicit memory rather than explicit memory. Implicit memories, which include procedural, priming, and emotional conditioning, are long-term memories outside of our consciousness. In a word-stem completion task, participants are presented with the beginning of a word (e.g., 'flo-') and must come up with a word that fits (e.g., 'flower').
This method does not require explicit recollection of previous learning experiences and is, therefore, a measure of implicit memory. Contrastingly, recognition tasks, sentence verification tasks, and recall tasks are more related to explicit memory, where the individual must consciously retrieve and state information.
Explicit memory can be tested with tasks like the three-word recall test or by asking patients to recite the months of the year in reverse order. These tasks require conscious recollection and thus tap into the explicit memory system. When comparing implicit and explicit memory, it's crucial to understand that explicit memory involves conscious recall, whereas implicit memory influences behavior unconsciously.