Publications by authors named "S A Soraci"

The aha effect is a memory advantage for initially ambiguous stimuli (e.g., "The notes were sour because the seam split.

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Memory for scene changes that were identified immediately (passive encoding) or following systematic and effortful search (generative encoding) was compared across groups differing in age and intelligence. In the context of flicker methodology, generative search for the changing object involved selection and rejection of multiple potential solutions prior to identification of the correct object. Such "incorrect guesses" were designed to serve as effective retrieval cues during free recall.

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The self-choice effect refers to the fact that self-chosen items are remembered better than experimenter-assigned items (Takahashi, 1991). The present study investigated the hypothesis that (a) response choice involves relational processing as activation of both target and context items, and (b) such activated context items are effective as potential retrieval cues for recall of target items. In the experiment, participants chose (choice condition) or were assigned (force condition) a target to remember for each trial.

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Encoding manipulations (e.g., levels of processing) that facilitate retention often result in greater numbers of false memories, a pattern referred to as the more is less effect (M.

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Abilities of individuals with and without mental retardation to search for and detect salient changes to naturalistic scenes were investigated using the flicker paradigm. Located in areas of central or marginal interest, changes involved an object's color, shape, or presence. Individuals with mental retardation required more time to detect changes of all types, and the magnitude of the group difference was more pronounced for marginal-interest changes.

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