SERIAL ORDER EFFECTS IN SHORT-TERM MEMORY

STUDIED SERIAL ORDER EFFECTS IN SHORT-TERM MEMORY (STM). THE MOST GENERAL FINDING WAS THE CONSPICUOUS OCCURRENCE OF THE U-SHAPED BOWED SERIAL POSITION CURVE. EVIDENCE SUGGESTED THAT THE PROBE TECHNIQUE WITH A RECALL PROBABILITY MEASURE SEVERELY UNDER-ESTIMATES THE MAGNITUDE OF PRIMACY EFFECTS IN STM BECAUSE OF CRITERION CHANGES AND LOSS OF CONTEXT EFFECTS. THE DATA DID NOT SEEM CONSISTENT WITH THE DISPLACEMENT MECHANISM POSTULATED TO ACCOUNT FOR SHORT-TERM FORGETTING. A COMPRESSION PROCESS WAS SUGGESTED INSTEAD. THE TIME INVARIANCE OF PAIRED ASSOCIATES AND FREE RECALL WAS NOT OBTAINED; INSTEAD, WITH LONGER LISTS THE INFORMATION PER ITEM DECREASED BUT THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF STORED INFORMATION SEEMED CONSTANT. (21 REF.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1968 American Psychological Association.