Actual Memory Research Articles

Memory compromise at extended delays in people with new-onset epilepsy.

Memory is one of the most sensitive markers of cognitive compromise in people with new-onset epilepsy. Nonetheless, around half of these cases score within the normal range on standard memory testing. Here we explore whether memory retention at a 1-week delay reveals otherwise undetected memory compromise in such individuals, and how it relates to subjective memory complaints and mood. Using a prospective design, 38 adults with new-onset epilepsy underwent baseline memory screening via telephone using an abbreviated Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT). Psychological screening occurred via online questionnaires. One week later, without forewarning, participants completed three follow-up memory tasks. Of particular focus, we explored longer-term memory performances and forgetting trajectories in those individuals (n = 23) who demonstrated normal memory performances (scores >10th percentile) at baseline (30-min delay). Outcomes were compared to 32 healthy controls, matched for age, sex, and education. As a group, people with epilepsy performed worse than controls on all memory measures, with 44 percent impaired at baseline testing. Of those unimpaired at baseline, the rate and volume of information loss over 1 week was significantly greater than for controls. Contextual memory performance at 1 week was also significantly poorer for people with epilepsy. At the individual level, the prevalence of impaired forgetting was not significantly different between patients and controls. Subjective memory complaints were not related to any objective tests but were strongly related to self-reported mood and anxiety symptoms. People with new-onset epilepsy show reduced memory at short and extended intervals. For those showing normal memory at baseline, information does appear to be forgotten more quickly than in healthy controls, though the effect is not large. The findings indicate that while extended delay memory testing is not essential in all new epilepsy cases, it could provide useful information for particular individuals. Memory problems are common in people with epilepsy shortly after seizure onset, however, many individuals still show normal memory performances on standard neuropsychological testing. Through testing memory at an extended timepoint (1 week), our study found that on average, these individuals showed a slightly quicker rate of forgetting over a 1-week period than people without a brain condition. Self-reported memory complaints in people with new epilepsy were unrelated to their actual memory skills on testing at short and long timepoints but were rather linked to lower mood and quality of life.

Mixed in a World of Truth and Lies: List Composition Moderates the Effects of a Lie Fabrication Manipulation on Memory and Metamemory.

Research has shown that list composition moderates the effects of encoding manipulations on memory performance; differential memory performance is observed at distinct levels of the independent variable in mixed lists, but not in pure lists. The current study aims to investigate the effect of list composition on predicted and actual memory performance using a semantic lie fabrication manipulation. In Experiment 1, participants either told the truth or fabricated a lie in response to a set of general knowledge questions in a mixed-list design, made memory predictions for each response, and received a free recall test. Experiments 2A and 2B compared the effect of list composition by employing mixed and pure lists, respectively. The results showed that the lie fabrication led to a metacognitive illusion in mixed lists by inducing a crossed double dissociation between memory and metamemory. Participants produced higher memory performance and lower memory predictions for lies than the truth. In contrast, predicted and actual memory performance were similar for truth and lies in pure lists. These findings contribute to the existing body of knowledge on list composition and have implications for situations where individuals need to maintain and remember their fabricated lies.

Bridging the Gap Between Metamemory and Attitude Formation: Judgments of Learning Predict Evaluative Conditioning Effects Above and Beyond Memory

Evaluative Conditioning (EC), the change in liking towards a neutral stimulus due to its pairing with a positive/negative unconditioned stimulus, is a central effect in attitude formation. Current research emphasizes the role of explicit memory in EC. However, human memory is no passive information-storage device, but people actively monitor and control their own memory processes. In the present research, we examined whether people can monitor their memory processes in attitude formation via EC and let participants predict whether they will remember the stimulus pairings in the future (judgments of learning, JOLs). In seven preregistered experiments, judgments of learning predicted actual memory of stimulus pairings above chance, showing that people can indeed monitor their memory in EC. Higher JOLs were also associated with stronger EC effects. Surprisingly, actual memory explained this effect only to a small degree. Following a Brunswikian perspective, we identified several variables contributing to the correlation between JOLs and the EC effect, such as the extremity of the unconditioned stimuli, the fit between conditioned and unconditioned stimuli, and the feeling of processing ease, which all correlated with higher JOLs and stronger EC effects. Further experiments showed the robustness of these effects across different boundary conditions, such as whether judgments and memory tests target the valence or the identity of the stimuli. Our results attest to the role of metamemory in attitude formation via EC, whereby expecting that one will remember a stimulus predicts actual memory but also the size of the EC effect over and above actual memory. By integrating two previously unrelated research areas, our studies provide important theoretical insights into both attitude formation and metamemory.

WOPE: A write-optimized and parallel-efficient B[formula omitted]-tree for persistent memory

Emerging Persistent Memory (PM) usually has the serious drawback of expensive write activities. Thus, existing PM-oriented B+-trees mainly concentrate on alleviating the write overhead (i.e., reducing PM writes and flush instructions). Unfortunately, due to the improper data organization in the sorted leaf node, existing solutions cause massive data migration when data inserting or node splitting occurs. In this paper, we propose a write-optimized PM-oriented B+-tree with aligned flush and selective migration, called WPB+-tree, to solve the above problems. WPB+-tree first adopts a buffer-assisted mechanism that temporarily stores the newly inserted data to reduce the overhead of entry shifts. Second, WPB+-tree employs a selective migration of node entries scheme to achieve less than half of the data migration when a node is split. Moreover, existing PM-oriented B+-trees usually employ a coarse-grained lock to avoid thread conflicts, which can severely degrade the concurrency efficiency. Thus, we further propose a fine-grained lock technique for WPB+-tree, namely, parallel-efficient WPB+-tree (WOPE), to improve the concurrency efficiency. We implement the proposed WPB+-tree and WOPE on Linux and conduct extensive evaluations with actual persistent memory, where WOPE achieves 23.5%, 30.7%, and 15.3% of performance improvement (insert, read, and scan) over the straightforward solutions (i.e., SSB-Tree, Fast&Fair, and wB+tree), and 10.1% of performance improvement over WPB+-tree, on average.

Elucidating the underlying components of metacognitive systematic bias in the human dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and inferior parietal cortex

Metacognitive systematic bias impairs human learning efficiency, which is characterized by the inconsistency between predicted and actual memory performance. However, the underlying mechanism of metacognitive systematic bias remains unclear in existing studies. In this study, we utilized judgments of learning task in human participants to compare the neural mechanism difference in metacognitive systematic bias. Participants encoded words in fMRI sessions that would be tested later. Immediately after encoding each item, participants predicted how likely they would remember it. Multivariate analyses on fMRI data demonstrated that working memory and uncertainty decisions are represented in patterns of neural activity in metacognitive systematic bias. The available information participants used led to overestimated bias and underestimated bias. Effective connectivity analyses further indicate that information about the metacognitive systematic bias is represented in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and inferior parietal cortex. Different neural patterns were found underlying overestimated bias and underestimated bias. Specifically, connectivity regions with the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and supramarginal gyrus form overestimated bias, while less regional connectivity forms underestimated bias. These findings provide a mechanistic account for the construction of metacognitive systematic bias.

Predicting the memorability of scene pictures: Improved accuracy through one's own experience.

There are conflicting findings regarding the accuracy of metamemory for scene pictures. Judgements of stimulus memorability in general (memorability judgements [MJs]) have been reported to be unpredictive of actual image memorability. However, other studies have found that judgements of learning (JOLs)-predictions of one's own later memory performance for recently studied items-are moderately predictive of people's own actual recognition memory for pictures. The current study directly compared the relative accuracy and cue basis of JOLs and MJs for scene pictures. In Experiments 1 and 2, participants completed an MJ task and a JOL task in counterbalanced order. In the MJ task, they judged the general memorability of each picture. In the JOL task, they studied pictures and made JOLs during a learning phase, followed by a recognition memory test. Results showed that MJs were predictive of general scene memorability and relied on the same cues as JOLs, but MJ accuracy considerably improved after the JOL task. Experiment 3 demonstrated that prior learning experiences drove this increase in MJ accuracy. This work demonstrates that people can predict not only their own future memory performance for scene pictures with moderate accuracy but also the general memorability of scene pictures. In addition, experiences with one's own learning and memory support the ability to assess scene memorability in general. This research contributes to our understanding of the basis and accuracy of different metamemory judgements.

Memory-dependent derivative grey Bernoulli model and its application in electricity generation forecast

PurposeThis paper aims to develop a novel grey Bernoulli model with memory characteristics, which is designed to dynamically choose the optimal memory kernel function and the length of memory dependence period, ultimately enhancing the model's predictive accuracy.Design/methodology/approachThis paper enhances the traditional grey Bernoulli model by introducing memory-dependent derivatives, resulting in a novel memory-dependent derivative grey model. Additionally, fractional-order accumulation is employed for preprocessing the original data. The length of the memory dependence period for memory-dependent derivatives is determined through grey correlation analysis. Furthermore, the whale optimization algorithm is utilized to optimize the cumulative order, power index and memory kernel function index of the model, enabling adaptability to diverse scenarios.FindingsThe selection of appropriate memory kernel functions and memory dependency lengths will improve model prediction performance. The model can adaptively select the memory kernel function and memory dependence length, and the performance of the model is better than other comparison models.Research limitations/implicationsThe model presented in this article has some limitations. The grey model is itself suitable for small sample data, and memory-dependent derivatives mainly consider the memory effect on a fixed length. Therefore, this model is mainly applicable to data prediction with short-term memory effect and has certain limitations on time series of long-term memory.Practical implicationsIn practical systems, memory effects typically exhibit a decaying pattern, which is effectively characterized by the memory kernel function. The model in this study skillfully determines the appropriate kernel functions and memory dependency lengths to capture these memory effects, enhancing its alignment with real-world scenarios.Originality/valueBased on the memory-dependent derivative method, a memory-dependent derivative grey Bernoulli model that more accurately reflects the actual memory effect is constructed and applied to power generation forecasting in China, South Korea and India.

2 Untangling Subjective and Objective Memory in Aging: The Effects of Strategy Use and Gender Differences on Associative Memory Performance

Objective:In normative aging, there is a decline in associative memory that appears to relate to self-reported everyday use of general memory strategies (Guerrero et al., 2021). Self-reported general strategy use is also strongly associated with self-reported memory abilities (Frankenmolen et al., 2017), which, in turn, are weakly associated with objective memory performance (Crumley et al., 2014). Associative memory abilities and strategy use appear to differ by gender, with women outperforming men and using more memory strategies (Hertzog et al., 2019). In this study, we examine how actual performance and self-reported use of specific strategies on an associative memory task relate to each other and to general, everyday strategy use, and whether these differ by gender.Participants and Methods:An international sample of older adults (N = 566, 53% female, aged 60-80) were administered a demographic questionnaire and online tasks, including 1. the Multifactorial Memory Questionnaire (MMQ) which measures self-reported memory ability, satisfaction, and everyday strategy use (Troyer & Rich, 2018); and 2. the Face-Name Task which measures associative memory (Troyer et al., 2011). Participants were also asked about specific strategies that were used to complete the Face-Name Task.Results:On the Face-Name Task, participants who reported using more strategies performed better (F(3, 562) = 6.51, p < 0.001, n2 = 0.03), with those who reported using three or four strategies performing best (p < .05). There was a significant difference in performance based on the type of strategy used (p(2, 563) = 11.36, p < 0.001, n2 = 0.04), with individuals who relied on a “past experiences/knowledge” strategy performing best (p < .01). Women (M = 0.79, SD = 0.19) outperformed men (M = 0.71, SD = 0.20), f(545) = -4.64, p < 0.001, d = -0.39. No gender differences were found in the number (X2(3, N = 564) = 2.06, p = 0.561) or type (x2(2, N = 564) = 5.49, p = 0.064) of strategies used on the Face-Name Task. Only participants who reported using no strategies on the Face-Name Task had lower scores on the MMQ everyday strategy use subscale (p < .05). A multiple-regression model was used to investigate the relative contributions of the number of strategies used on the Face-Name Task, MMQ everyday strategy subscale score, gender, age, education, and psychological distress to Face-Name Task performance. The only significant predictors in the model were gender (B = 0.08, t(555) = 4.55, p < 0.001) and use of two or more strategies (B = 0.07, f(555) = 2.82, p = 0.005).Conclusions:Reports of greater self-initiated strategy use, and use of a semantic strategy in particular, related to better performance on an associative memory test in older adults. Self-initiated, task-specific strategy use also related to everyday strategy use. The findings extend past work on gender differences to show that women outperform men on an associative memory task but that this is unlikely to be due to self-reported differences in strategy use. The results suggest that self-reported strategy use predicts actual associative memory performance and should be considered in clinical practice.

11 The Psychometric Characteristics of a Novel Metamemory Questionnaire for Children

Objective:Metamemory is a component of metacognition that includes both the knowledge of factors that affect memory (i.e., declarative metamemory) and knowledge and application of factors in one's own learning and recall performance (i.e., procedural metamemory; Kreutzer et al., 1975). Previous researchers have examined children's metamemory through interviews and found that metamemory abilities are positively associated with age and performance on memory measures (see Godfrey et al., 2022 for review). However, there is not yet a standardized measure to evaluate children's metamemory. The current study aimed to examine the psychometric characteristics of a declarative metamemory questionnaire, the Measure of Metamemory (MoM-10), for children ages 6-12 years old. Based on previous research, we hypothesized that performance on the MoM-10 would not be associated with sex but would be positively associated with age and learning and memory performance.Participants and Methods:A total of 75 English-speaking typically developing children between the ages of 6 to 12 years old were recruited for the current study (M age=9.1+1.92; females 49%). Participants completed the MoM-10 which assessed declarative metamemory via 10 multiple choice questions (accuracy score of 0 or 1 points per question) and required participants to provide an explanation for their multiple-choice answer (explanation score of 0, 1, or 2 points per question). The metamemory questionnaire provided two outcome variables: an Accuracy score of 10 possible points, and an Explanation score of 20 possible points. Additionally, participants completed a 3-trial pictorial learning/memory task which provided an Immediate Recall score and Delayed Recall score.Results:As hypothesized, there were no sex differences on the MoM-10 Accuracy scores (t(73)=0.71, p=0.48) or Explanation scores (t(73)=-73, p=0.47). Consistent with our hypothesis, age was significantly associated with Accuracy (r=0.31, p<0.01) and Explanation scores (r=0.79, p<0.001). Internal consistency of the MOM-10 was moderate for the Explanation score (Cronbach's alpha=0.68) and low for the Accuracy score (KR-20=0.54). Lastly, after controlling for age, participants' MoM-10 Accuracy score was significantly associated with Immediate Recall (r=0.32, p<0.01) on the learning/memory task and the Explanation scores were significantly associated with the Immediate Recall (r=0.36, p<0.01) and Delayed Recall scores (r=0.32, p<0.01) on the learning/memory task.Conclusions:The current study presents an initial review of psychometric properties of a metamemory questionnaire for children ages 6 to 12 years old. Additionally, as hypothesized, these results suggest the MOM-10 performance is significantly positively associated with participants' age and immediate and delayed recall performance on a pictorial learning/memory task. These associations provide lines of evidence for convergent validity given the expected maturation of metamemory with both age and with improvements in actual memory performance. However, based on the low internal consistency of the accuracy scores, further refinement will be explored including possibly rephrasing questions from the current item set or perhaps excluding current items in future use of the scale.

Memory accuracy, suggestibility and credibility in investigative interviews with native and non-native eyewitnesses.

Legal practitioners sometimes obtain eyewitness testimonies from non-native language speakers, yet few studies examine the effects of language in investigative interviews. Here, we investigate how testifying in a non-native vs. native language affects memory accuracy, susceptibility to suggestions, and witnesses perceived credibility. After viewing a mock-crime film, participants in Study 1 (N = 121) testified through (1) free recall, (2) cued recall and (3) the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scales adapted to the crime scenario used in the present study either in their native (Swedish) or a non-native (English) language. They also rated their confidence in their memories, self-perceived credibility and cognitive effort. Native and non-native witnesses did not differ in memory accuracy, susceptibility to suggestions, self-rated credibility or cognitive effort. Non-native (vs. native) speakers did however report lower confidence in their memories. In Study 2, another group of participants (N = 202) were presented with the testimonies from Study 1, and judged witnesses’ credibility. Non-native witnesses were judged as less credible than native speakers. Thus, while the lower confidence exhibited by non-native eyewitnesses did not correspond to their actual memory accuracy, it influenced observers’ judgments of their performance. The results provide important knowledge for legal practices when evaluating the reliability of testimonies from non-native vs. native speaking eyewitnesses.

Objects’ perceived meaningfulness predicts both subjective memorability judgments and actual memory performance

ABSTRACT Memorability studies have revealed a limitation in our ability to accurately judge which images are memorable. Conversely, metacognitive research suggests that individuals can utilize cues to reliably assess their memory performance. Here, we investigated two important stimulus cues potentially underlying subjective memorability, and their relation to actual memory performance. Participants encoded 200 real-world object images while providing Judgements of Learning (JOLs), in which they estimated the likelihood of remembering each image. Subsequently, they completed an old/new memory recognition test on these stimuli. All stimuli were priorly rated by an independent group of participants for their perceived meaningfulness and visual complexity. Results indicated that participants' metacognitive judgements exhibited a relatively good resolution, allowing them to distinguish well-remembered from less-remembered images. Furthermore, analyses conducted at the image level demonstrated that JOLs significantly predicted memory performance, with the meaningfulness of the images emerging as a crucial factor associated with JOLs of both participants and their actual memory performance. The visual complexity factor was correlated only with the actual memory performance. Collectively, these findings suggest that memory performance is closely associated with the meaning of objects. Critically, individuals possess a subjective sense of images' memorability, which is at least partially mediated by perceived meaningfulness.

Metacognitive Illusions: A Positivity Effect in Judgments of Learning for Older but Not Younger Adults

The positivity effect for metacognitive judgments (judgments of learning, JOLs) of emotional words in recognition memory was shown in older adults, in contrast to younger adults, who typically displayed the emotional salience effect. This is compatible with the socioemotional selection theory, which suggests the presence of a positive stimulus bias in older adults' cognitive processes. This study examined whether the positivity effect and age-related differences could be extended to a picture study to determine whether the positivity effect in older adults is robust in the metacognitive domain. Younger and older adults studied negative, positive, and neutral pictures, followed by JOLs and then a recognition test that asked participants to judge whether the picture was shown in the studying stage or not. Age-related differences were found not only in recognition memory performance for emotional pictures but also in JOLs and their accuracy. Younger adults showed an emotional salience effect for both memory performance and JOLs. Older adults' JOLs showed a positivity effect, but their actual memory performance was influenced by emotion, and this inconsistency between metacognitive judgments and memory performance is a metacognitive illusion. These findings support the cross-material replicability of a positivity bias in older adults in the metacognitive domain and suggest that we should be cautioned about the detrimental effects of this metacognitive illusion in older adults. It illustrates an age difference in the effect of emotion on individual metacognitive monitoring ability.

Online dating through lies: the effects of lie fabrication for personal semantic information on predicted and actual memory performance*

ABSTRACT Research shows that people lie on online dating sites often but might fail to remember this information subsequently. This study investigated participants’ predicted and actual memory performance for personal semantic information after telling the truth versus a lie in two experiments in a setup similar to online dating sites. In Experiment 1, participants responded to open-ended questions either truthfully or fabricated lies in a within-subjects design, followed by predictions for remembering their responses. Subsequently, they recalled their responses through free-recall. Using the same design, Experiment 2 also manipulated the type of retrieval task by using a free- or cued-recall test. The results showed that participants consistently had higher memory predictions for truthful than deceptive responses. However, the actual memory performance did not always produce similar results to their predictions. The results suggest that the difficulties during lie fabrication, measured through response latencies, partially mediated the relationship between lying and memory predictions. The study has important applied implications for lying about personal semantic information in online dating contexts.

Imagining the Jubilee: Modern Jewish Utopias from the Inception of Zionism to the Existential Turn

The commandment to observe the Jubilee year, which appears in the final chapters of Leviticus, is a multifaceted riddle. The Talmud claims that observance of the Jubilee ceased with the expulsion of the Israelite tribes 2,700 years ago, implying a complete lack of oral traditions on the subject. However, despite its absence from Jewish practice and actual memory, the Jubilee played a central role in Jewish utopian thought on ownership, property, and the relationship with the Land of Israel. The rise of modern Zionism witnessed a flowering of utopian thinking inspired by the Jubilee. Herzl, Jabotinsky, and other Zionist thinkers offered modern interpretations of the Jubilee, intended to serve as the foundation of the model society they aimed to create. In recent decades, discussion of the Jubilee has become a battleground between liberal and conservative thinkers, who have attempted to frame the commandment as a mechanism of social and economic reform or as a means to strengthen private ownership respectively. This article addresses modern interpretations of the Jubilee from the early Zionist writers to the present, exploring the various ways in which Jubilee utopias have been employed as a source of inspiration for a newly constructed social and economic ethos. Following this analysis, I offer a new, existential interpretation of the Jubilee for the 21st century. I suggest a reading of the act of return to ancestral land every fifty years in the context of the global and virtual era, specifically drawing on the process described by Zygmunt Bauman (1998) as the great war of independence for space.

Preoperative Factors Predict Memory Decline After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting or Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in an Epidemiological Cohort of Older Adults.

Background Durable memory decline may occur in older adults after surgical (coronary artery bypass grafting [CABG]) or nonsurgical (percutaneous coronary intervention) coronary revascularization. However, it is unknown whether individual memory risk can be predicted. We reanalyzed an epidemiological cohort of older adults to predict memory decline at ≈1 year after revascularization. Methods and Results We studied Health and Retirement Study participants who underwent CABG or percutaneous coronary intervention at age ≥65 years between 1998 and 2015 and participated in ≥1 biennial postprocedure assessment. Using a memory score based on direct and proxy cognitive tests, we identified participants whose actual postprocedure memory score was 1-2 ("mild") or >2 ("major") SDs below expected postprocedure performance. We modeled probability of memory decline using logistic regression on preoperatively known factors and evaluated model discrimination and calibration. A total of 1390 participants (551 CABG, 839 percutaneous coronary intervention) underwent CABG/percutaneous coronary intervention at 75±6 years old; 40% were women. The cohort was 83% non-Hispanic White, 8.4% non-Hispanic Black, 6.4% Hispanic ethnicity, and 1.7% from other groups masked by the HRS (Health and Retirement Study) to preserve participant confidentiality. At a median of 1.1 (interquartile range, 0.6-1.6) years after procedure, 267 (19%) had mild memory decline and 88 (6.3%) had major memory decline. Factors predicting memory decline included older age, frailty, and off-pump CABG; obesity was protective. The optimism-corrected area under the receiver operator characteristic curve was 0.73 (95% CI, 0.71-0.77). A cutoff of 50% probability of memory decline identified 14% of the cohort as high risk, and was 94% specific and 30% sensitive for late memory decline. Conclusions Preoperative factors can be used to predict late memory decline after coronary revascularization in an epidemiological cohort with high specificity.

Cooking through perceptual disfluencies: The effects of auditory and visual distortions on predicted and actual memory performance.

The current study investigated the joint contribution of visual and auditory disfluencies, or distortions, to actual and predicted memory performance with naturalistic, multi-modal materials through three experiments. In Experiments 1 and 2, participants watched food recipe clips containing visual and auditory information that were either fully intact or else distorted in one or both of the two modalities. They were asked to remember these for a later memory test and made memory predictions after each clip. Participants produced lower memory predictions for distorted auditory and visual information than intact ones. However, these perceptual distortions revealed no actual memory differences across encoding conditions, expanding the metacognitive illusion of perceptual disfluency for static, single-word materials to naturalistic, dynamic, multi-modal materials. Experiment 3 provided naïve participants with a hypothetical scenario about the experimental paradigm used in Experiment 1, revealing lower memory predictions for distorted than intact information in both modalities. Theoretically, these results imply that both in-the-moment experiences and a priori beliefs may contribute to the perceptual disfluency illusion. From an applied perspective, the study suggests that when audio-visual distortions occur, individuals might use this information to predict their memory performance, even when it does not factor into actual memory performance.

ARTISTS AND CULTURAL WORKERS AND THE LEGACY OF KGB IN THE ACTUAL PUBLIC DISCUSSION LANDSCAPE IN LATVIA

The purpose of this paper is to examine how myths, narratives and biases referring to the recent history are born and developed in nowadays Latvia, supported by the analysis of the case study of the legacy of KGB and its actualization in the public discussion landscape focusing on the relationship of KGB and artists and cultural workers. One of the main criteria for narrowing the research subject to regarding only the relationship between representatives of the fields of arts and culture and KGB is that those particular relationship cases have caused the most heated discussions in mass media and general public, mostly due to the undeniable public ‘visibility’ of the aforementioned professionals as well as due to personal in-depth connection of society members with art products, artists and cultural workers via artistic preferences, engagement with cultural processes, individual contribution to profes- sional and amateur arts, emotional links, memories etc. Another important aspect to be considered is the strong connectedness of arts and culture with the state apparatus, as throughout history arts and cultural production has served as a propaganda tool, putting forward regime ideology and granting a certain kind of ‘power legitimization’ as supported by entertainment industry. In order to get a deeper insight into the formation of the myths, narratives and biases referring to the relationship between artists and cultural workers in nowadays Latvia, the authors of the study have combined empiric data analysis based on the research project by the Government Commission for KGB Research at the University of Latvia, the purpose of which was to prepare KGB card files for public access on the website of the National Archives of Latvia, and qualitative media and public discussion narrative analysis, focusing on how certain aspects referring to Soviet legacy in general and specifically to cooperation between artists and cultural sector workers and KGB have been framed and portrayed in actual social memory representations.

Value-directed remembering in first-episode schizophrenia.

Memory deficits in individuals with schizophrenia are well-established, but less is known about how schizophrenia affects metacognitive processes such as metamemory. We investigated metamemory ability using the value-directed remembering task, which assesses the degree to which participants use value cues to guide their learning of a list of items (i.e., their memory selectivity). Participants were patients undergoing treatment following a recent first episode of schizophrenia (n = 20) and demographically comparable healthy controls (n = 18). Participants viewed six lists of 24 words where each word was paired with either a low value (1-3 points) or a high value (10-12 points), and they were instructed to maximize their score on free recall tests given after each list. After the final free recall test, participants completed a recognition test where they gave remember/know judgments. On tests of free recall, patients showed reduced memory selectivity relative to healthy controls. On the recognition test, patients failed to show an effect of value on recognition of nonrecalled words, in contrast to healthy controls, who showed a significant value effect that was characterized by greater "remember" judgments. Patients initially overestimated their memory capacity but were able to adjust their estimates to be more accurate based on task experience. Patients' self-reports of memory selectivity were unrelated to their actual memory selectivity. Patients with first-episode schizophrenia had substantial impairments on the value-directed remembering task, but areas of preserved metamemory ability were also observed. These findings have potential implications for cognitive training interventions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

The Associations between Self-Deception, Depressive Mood, and Attachment Dimensions with Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count

This study aims to examine the relationships between depressive mood, self-deception, and attachment dimensions by using language style of individuals. Participants (N=41) were asked complete an implicit association task, Beck depression scale, experiences in close relation scale. Besides, they were also asked to write down a passage, in which they should have intentionally produced an obvious lie for themselves. Finally, they were asked to report their memory related to the school life. Following previous studies on language style of lying linguistic components were excluded using Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count. Analyses yielded that there was no significant differences in language style for both actual memory notes and intentionally lying conditions for people with low depressive mood (e.g., t-first-person singular (38)=.69, ns). However, there were significant differences between actual memory notes and lying conditions for participants with high depressive mood (e.g., t-first-person plural (38)=3.69, p<.01), signifying that people with depressive mood did not show lying tendency in their actual memory notes, however, this was not the case for people with lower levels of depressive moods. Results of this study confirmed the idea that depressive mood may shadow defence mechanisms like self-deception and people with higher levels of depressive mood would perform lower levels of self-deception. This tendency could also be observed at linguistic dimensions they produced.

Remedying the Metamemory Expectancy Illusion in Source Monitoring: Are there Effects on Restudy Choices and Source Memory?

Metamemory monitoring, study behavior, and memory are presumably causally connected. When people misjudge their memory, their study behavior should be biased accordingly. Remedying metamemory illusions should debias study behavior and improve memory. One metamemory illusion concerns source memory, a critical aspect of episodic memory. People predict better source memory for items that originated from an expected source (e.g., toothbrush in a bathroom) rather than an unexpected source (e.g., shampoo in a kitchen), whereas actual source memory shows the opposite: an inconsistency effect. This expectancy illusion biases restudy choices: Participants restudy more unexpected than expected source–item pairs. The authors tested the causal relationships between metamemory and source memory with a delay and a source-retrieval attempt between study and metamemory judgment to remedy the expectancy illusion and debias restudy choices. Debiased restudy choices should enhance source memory for expected items, thereby reducing the inconsistency effect. Two groups studied expected and unexpected source–item pairs. They made metamemory judgments and restudy choices immediately at study or after delay, restudied the selected pairs, and completed a source-monitoring test. After immediate judgments, participants predicted better source memory for expected pairs and selected more unexpected pairs for restudy. After delayed judgments, participants predicted a null effect of expectancy on source memory and selected equal numbers of expected and unexpected pairs. Thus, the expectancy illusion was partially remedied and restudy choices were debiased. Nevertheless, source memory was only weakly affected. The results challenge the presumed causal relationships between metamemory monitoring, study behavior, and source memory.