The Effects of Differences in Classification Style on Preschool Children's Memory

Abstract

BJORKLUND, DAVID F., and ZAKEN-GREENBERG, FLORA. The Effects of Differences in Classification Style on Preschool Children's Memory. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1981, 52, 888-894. Preschool children were given pictures to sort and recall. 1 group of subjects sorted the pictures into identical groupings on 2 consecutive trials prior to recall, whereas other subjects sorted the pictures only once. Children who sorted pictures primarily on the basis of category relations (e.g., animals, vehicles) were classified as taxonomic subjects, whereas children who sorted pictures primarily on the basis of complementary relations (e.g., things a cowboy uses, things found on a farm) were classified as nontaxonomic. Recall was significantly greater for taxonomic than for nontaxonomic subjects when children sorted the items only once prior to recall. This finding was attributed to the taxonomic categories resulting in a closer fit to children's long-term memory structures than the nontaxonomic groupings. In contrast, recall was significantly greater for the nontaxonomic than for the taxonomic subjects when recall was tested after subjects had sorted the items into identical groupings on 2 successive trials. This finding was attributed to a novelty effect for the nontaxonomic subjects, with the less familiar complementary groupings facilitating recall once items were sorted into stable groups.