ABSTRACTS:  TALKS

 

1

Selective directed forgetting (9:00 - 9:25)
Peter F. Delaney, Emily R. Waldum and Namrata Godbole
University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Abstract:  In list-method directed forgetting, people study some material and then are instructed to forget it. People can do this, but they are not usually able to forget only some of the material when instructed to do so after the fact; they forget it all, or none of it. We present several experiments showing that people can forget selectively, so long as there is (a) enough interference between the learned materials, and (b) an attempt to keep track of the two sets of material separately during study. Experiment 1 used textual materials, while Experiment 2 used categorized word lists. We suggest possible mechanisms that could produce this effect.

2

Assessing symbol comprehension for teratogen warnings (9:25 - 9:50)
Christopher B. Mayhorn
North Carolina State University

Abstract:  I describe efforts to refine the design of recently developed teratogen warning symbols and examine their interpretation by different populations (e.g., those with low health literacy, adolescents, and non-fluent English speakers). At least two viable alternative symbols were identified by the current work. Alternative symbols identified as most successful in an earlier study (Goldsworthy and Kaplan, 2006b) were further refined through the use of multiple focus groups and expert review. Six symbols emerged as potential candidates to replace the current symbol. A nationally distributed field trial (n = 700) examined these six alternate teratogen warnings in addition to the symbol presently in use. Two symbols consistently elicited the most accurate responses in terms of message interpretation, target audience, intended action, and perceived consequences of ignoring the warning. Several results varied by participant characteristics. Understanding how members of diverse subpulations might interact with these warnings should be informative to healthcare professionals.

3

Applied cognitive psychology: Visual learning in the botany classroom (9:50 - 10:15)
 Bruce K. Kirchoff
 University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Abstract:  Woody Plants of the Southeastern United States: A Field Botany Course on CD helps users become visual experts in species recognition. Unlike novices, experts are able to quickly recognize patterns. This allows chess masters to recognize chess configurations, and botanists to identify species from a glimpse out the window of a moving vehicle. The program helps students rapidly achieve this mastery by adapting techniques from the visual processing literature to the task of species recognition. The program is designed to promote holistic processing, the visual processing mode used by experts. It is the only program we know of that allows the student to learn in the same visual mode used by experts. Most programs require students to learn plant characters analytically. This analytical training must be overcome as the student becomes an expert at identifying plants in the field. Classroom testing of the program has shown it to be more effective than traditional study methods in teaching species recognition.

4

Bias in number line estimation (10:35 - 11:00)
Dale J. Cohen and Daryn Blanc-Goldhammer
University of North Carolina Wilmington

Abstract:  The number line task is often used to assess children and adults’ underlying representation of integers. Traditional bounded number line tasks, however, have limitations that can lead to misinterpretation. Here we present a new task, an unbounded number line task that overcomes these limitations. In Experiment 1, we show that adults use a biased proportion estimation strategy to complete the traditional bounded number line task. In Experiment 2, we show that adults use dead reckoning integer estimation strategy in our unbounded number line task. Participants revealed a positively accelerating numerical bias in both tasks, but showed scalar variance only in the unbounded number line task. We conclude that the unbounded number line task is a more pure measure of integer representation and using these results, we present a preliminary description of adults’ underlying representation of integers.

5

KEYNOTE ADDRESS ~ Individual differences in concept learning: Tendencies to focus on exemplars versus abstraction (11:00 - 12:00)
Mark S. McDaniel
Washington University

Abstract:  An important part of classroom learning involves understanding general concepts derived from a set of exemplars. However, I suggest that not everyone approaches concept learning in the same way. Specifically, I propose that during training, some learners focus on acquiring the particular exemplars and responses associated with those exemplars, wheras other learners attempt to abstract underlying regularities. These latter people I term "abstractors." Whether a person focuses on exemplars or is an abstractor might be a relatively stable characteristic of different learners. I report laboratory experiments demonstrating that people who were a priori identified as abstractors (through a method called function-learning extrapolation profiling) were more likely to transfer their knowledge to new exemplars in several kinds of concept learning tasks. I also present a classroom study suggesting that these individual differences are related to course performance.

6

Alzheimer’s disease and memory-monitoring anosognosia: Alzheimer’s patients show a monitoring deficit that is greater than their accuracy deficit (1:30 - 1:55)
Chad Dodson
University of Virginia

Abstract:  Although the memory deficit from Alzheimer’s disease is clear, what is not clear is the extent to which AD patients are aware of their memory deficit. Are AD patients sufficiently aware of their memory deficits that they can accurately monitor and assess the likely accuracy of their memories? Groups of AD patients and older controls provided confidence ratings in order to judge the likely accuracy of recognition judgments and source judgments about who spoke something earlier. AD patients were strikingly unaware of the accuracy of their memories. Even when AD patients were given extra exposure to the encoding material so that their recognition performance and source identification performance was comparable to that of an older control group, AD patients were unable with confidence ratings to distinguish between correct and incorrect responses.

7

Does executive attention mediate the relationship between working memory capacity and fluid intelligence? (1:55 - 2:20)
Thomas S. Reddick
Georgia Institute of Technology

Abstract:  Abundant correlational research suggests that working memory capacity (WMC) is strongly related to fluid intelligence. Experimental studies have consistently shown a link between WMC and executive attention. However, relatively few studies have addressed whether executive attention mediates the WMC and fluid intelligence relationship. We administered multiple measures of WMC, executive attention, and fluid intelligence to a diverse sample of 586 young adults. Correlations and confirmatory factor analyses revealed that all of the cognitive abilities were strongly interrelated. Critically, structural equation modeling and mediation analyses indicated that executive attention partially mediated the relationship between WMC and fluid intelligence. The results suggest that individual differences in the ability to control attention are an important aspect of variation in higher-order cognition and reasoning.

8

Context effects on tempo preference for familiar songs (2:20 - 2:45)
Matthew A. Rashotte and Douglas Wedell
University of South Carolina

Abstract:  Three experiments explored the degree to which familiar musical samples are subject to two types of context effects: contrast on tempo judgments and assimilative shifts of pleasantness judgments. In Experiments 1 and 2, participants listened to different tempo samples of the same Beatles song, with tempo manipulated while holding the pitch constant to create fast and slow tempo contexts. Consistent with contextual contrast, tempo was judged faster for target clips in the slow versus fast tempo context. Consistent with assimilation of ideals, a slower tempo was preferred in the slow versus fast tempo context. In Experiment 3, generalization of effects was gauged by having participants listen to four different Beatles songs, with context manipulated for only one of the songs. Differential generalization supported the hypothesis that different processes may underlie these two contextual effects. The powerful influence of context in music is discussed.

9

Revisiting McGeoch and McDonald (1931): Similarity and retroactive interference 80 years later (2:45 - 3:10)
Nathan A. Foster and Lili Sahakyan
University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Abstract: In a seminal article by McGeoch and McDonald (1931), retroactive interference (RI) increased when the similarity between the original learning and the interpolated learning increased – an effect that is widely cited in textbooks on memory. We re-examined this effect using free recall as well as using ordered recall to approximate the anticipation method used by McGeoch and McDonald. We kept the target list constant, and manipulated whether the second list contained items that were similar to the target list or unrelated to it. In Experiment 1, similar items were bidirectionally associated to the target list based on free association norms (e.g., salt-pepper). In Experiment 2, similar items were the synonyms of the target list (e.g., rich-wealthy). Results across both experiments yielded consistent findings, suggesting that similarity affects RI differently depending on how memory is tested.

10

The effect of color on cognitive performance: A first look at Mehta & Zhu (2009) (3:30 - 3:55)
Kenneth M. Steele
Appalachian State University

Abstract: “Color Psychology” is defined as the influence of color on psychological functioning. Mehta and Zhu (2009, Science, 323, 1226-1229) reported several studies that demonstrated effects of red and blue on a series of cognitive tasks. Red was hypothesized to induce a state of avoidance motivation which was predicted to improve performance on a detail-oriented task. Blue was hypothesized to induce a state of approach motivation which was predicted to increase use of risky, creative strategies in problem-solving tasks. The current study replicated the procedure of their Study 1a (with 172 ASU students) to determine whether the same results would be obtained. Background colors and anagrams were as specified by Mehta and Zhu. The hypothesized color by word-type interaction was not obtained. Additional concerns about the study will be discussed.

11

Ironic effects of monitoring for misinformation in popular history films (3:55 - 4:20)
Sharda Umanath, Andrew C. Butler, and Elizabeth J. Marsh
Duke University

Abstract: Many history educators use popular films as teaching aids in the classroom, but sometimes these films contain major historical inaccuracies. One common classroom exercise is for students to attempt to identify these inaccuracies in the film. We investigated whether such a monitoring task is an effective method for reducing the acquisition of false knowledge. In two experiments, subjects studied texts about various historical topics and watched clips from corresponding popular films. Each clip depicted a piece of information that was consistent with the corresponding text and a piece of information that contradicted the text (i.e., misinformation). Half the subjects received instructions to monitor for inaccuracies in the films. One week later, they took a test on the historical texts. Relative to only studying the texts, watching the film clips increased correct recall of information from the texts that was accurately depicted in the films, but it also increased (false) recall of misinformation from the films.  Monitoring instructions had the ironic effect of increasing subjects’ acquisition of misinformation. However, when they were given feedback about the inaccuracies in the films, the acquisition of misinformation was substantially reduced.

12

Atypical performance on the Stroop color-word task among college undergraduates: Implications for reading proficiency and academic outcomes (3:20 - 4:45)
Sara C. Wrenn and Alan Goble
Bennett College

Abstract: Decades of research indicate that robust Stroop interference effects are ubiquitous among literate populations, while reduced or lacking interference effects are associated with effortful reading and poor comprehension (MacLeod, 1991). The present study attempts to verify the existence of atypical Stroop performance among college students, and to explore the relationship between Stroop color-word task performance and measures of reading proficiency and academic outcomes. Undergraduate students taking entry-level psychology courses completed the Stroop color-word task and gave consent for the researchers to access their scores on the ACCUPLACER English test and their GPAs. Preliminary group-level analyses showed no significant Stroop interference effect; t(20) = 1.51, p = .15; 50% of participants failed to display typical interference in response to incongruent color-word stimuli. Additional analyses will examine the relationship between task performance, ACCUPLACER scores, and GPA. Results will be discussed in light of the implications and limitations of the present study.