Question

You are conducting a study of memory. in your study you give the participants a list of words where some of the words begin with "bla" such as "blank", "bladder", "bland", etc. when you ask them to recall the words from the list you supply them with a word stem "bl" before you have them recall the word list. what type of memory test are you conducting

Answer 1

A cued recall test is being conducted in which participants are given 'bl' as a prompt to recall words. Semantic processing has been found to be most effective for memory retention, and tasks like the three-word recall test demonstrate how memory is tested and affected in real-world conditions.

Step-by-step explanation:

The type of memory test being conducted in the study where participants are asked to recall words beginning with 'bla' after being given the stem 'bl' is known as a cued recall test. This method of memory testing is a way to assess the ability to retrieve information with the help of cues or prompts. The experiment you're referring to illustrates the use of cued recall in conjunction with different levels of encoding verbal information: visual, acoustic, and semantic. Craik and Tulving observed that the depth of processing affects memory retrieval; semantic processing, which involves the meaning of words, generally results in better memory retention.

Memory assessments can utilize various tasks, like the three-word recall, reciting months in reverse, spelling words backwards, and number sequences. These tasks challenge different aspects of memory, including short-term and working memory. Remembering, or the ability to recall information without cues, and recognition, or the ability to identify previously encountered information, are both important measures in memory tests. Relearning is another form of memory retrieval where previously learned information is reacquired more quickly than it was initially learned.

The study provided useful insights into how creating meaningful connections, such as through context or mnemonic devices, can significantly enhance memory retention. Mnemonic devices like acronyms, acrostics, and jingles can be powerful tools for improving memory recall. The three-word recall test, in various applications, demonstrates how memory can be tested and also the potential real-world implications of memory loss, as seen in medical conditions like the case involving Hodgkin's lymphoma.