Abstract
Two assumptions pertinent to isolation-effect studies were examined. Contrary to an assumption that the isolation effect is due to differential rehearsal of conspicuous items, instructions designed to distribute practice time across list items did not reduce the isolation effect. Prediction of equivalent total list recall for isolation and nonisolation conditions followed from an assumption that isolating a list item alters the distribution but not total amount of list rehearsal. Contrary to the latter assumption, total list recall was lower in isolation than in nonisolation conditions, except under instructions to distribute rehearsal time and with low-meaningful units.
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The present project was part of the senior author’s MA thesis
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Gibbons, D.E., Leicht, K.L. Effects of meaningfulness on the isolation effect. Psychon Sci 18, 353–354 (1970). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03332396
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03332396