Imagery and long-term retention

Abstract

Long-term retention of high- and low-imagery nouns was assessed in incremental free recall, paired-associates learning, and cued and noncued recall of noun pairs. In each case imagery had a clear positive effect on long-term retention, and the effect could not be explained by differential acquisition of the material. Results of the experiments were also examined by analyzing subjective organization, and by comparing cued and noncued recall. Such results were interpreted as supporting an imagery-organization hypothesis which asserts that images aroused by discrete verbal items can be combined into complex, integrated images, the components of which provide effective cues for retrieving or redintegrating the remainder of the unit.