VERBAL RETENTION AS A FUNCTION OF INFORMATIVENESS AND DELAY OF INFORMATIVE FEEDBACK

Investigated the effect upon retention of 2 levels of informative-feedback (IF) delay and 2 forms of IF. 4 groups of 14 undergraduates were presented 38 multiple choice factual items, answered each question, and received IF either immediately or 24 hr. later. IF was the stem of the item with either (1) all 4 alternatives with the correct choice underlined, or (2) the correct choice only. The Ss were tested for retention immediately following IF and after a 7-day interval. Neither delay nor form of IF had an effect on immediate retention. 7 day retention was superior with delay when IF included both correct and incorrect alternatives. With the correct alternative only, delay had no effect. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1969 American Psychological Association.