Abstract
Following practice lists for recall and recognition, a third list was given for which half the third- and sixth-grade children expected a recall test and half a recognition test. All children then were given a recall test followed by a recognition test. Recall by sixth graders was better when a recall rather than a recognition test was expected. Test expectancy did not affect the recall of third graders, nor did it apparently affect recognition at either grade level. Self-reports indicate greater preexperimental understanding of task difficulty differences at Grade 6. At Grade 6, but not at Grade 3, reports of rehearsal of items in blocks (rather than single-item repetition) were more frequent when a recall test was expected and reports of image production were more frequent when a recognition test was expected.
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This research was supported by Research Grant 5RO1 HD 07311-02 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Thanks are due the school officials, teachers, and students of Haven Middle School and Martin Luther King Jr. Laboratory School in Evanston whose cooperation made this research possible.
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Hall, J.W., Miskiewicz, R. & Gaymurray, C. Effects of test expectancy (recall vs. recognition) on children’s recall and recognition. Bull. Psychon. Soc. 10, 425–428 (1977). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03329380
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03329380