Abstract
This experiment investigated the retention of word-position information, independent of item information, using a distractor STM paradigm. Triads of words, which formed a serial cognitive structure presumably in LTM, were presented to 192 Ss in natural or scrambled orders with serial-, backwards-, or free-recall instructions. Triads selected from different taxonomic classes were presented on the eight trials to ensure high item retention. Sine half of the Ss made no item errors at all, their responses were scored for retention of word-position information. There were few position errors with the natural ordered triads with either serial- or backswards-recall instructions. There was a build-up of position errors across trials for the scrambled order-serial recall group. The scrambled order-backwards recall group had a high rate of position errors beginning on Trial 1. With free-recall instructions, the scrambled triads were transposed frequently back to their natural serial order. These data are incompatible with features of some box models of memory.
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I wish to thank Mrs. Edith V. Sullivan for her assistance in collecting and analyzing the data and ’ Dr. Michael T. Turvey for his comments upon the ] the manuscript and for stimulating my interest in 1 short-term memory. This research was supported, by a grant from the University of Connecticut Research Foundation.
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Mosher, D.L. The interfering effect of serial cognitive structures in long-term memory on word-order in short-term memory. Psychon Sci 16, 317–319 (1969). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03332710
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03332710