Retrieval Theory Research Articles

A theory of repetition and retrieval in language production.

Repetition appears to be part of error correction and action preparation in all domains that involve producing an action sequence. The present work contends that the ubiquity of repetition is due to its role in resolving a problem inherent to planning and retrieval of action sequences: the Problem of Retrieval. Repetitions occur when the production to perform next is not activated enough to be executed. Repetitions are helpful in this situation because the repeated action sequence activates the likely continuation. We model a corpus of natural speech using a recurrent network, with words as units of production. We show that repeated material makes upcoming words more predictable, especially when more than one word is repeated. Speakers are argued to produce multiword repetitions by using backward associations to reactivate recently produced words. The existence of multiword repetitions means that speakers must decide where to reinitiate execution from. We show that production restarts from words that have seldom occurred in a predictive preceding-word context and have often occurred utterance-initially. These results are explained by competition between preceding-context and top-down cues over the course of language learning. The proposed theory improves on structural accounts of repetition disfluencies, and integrates repetition disfluencies in language production with repetitions observed in other domains of skilled action. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The link between entrepreneurial passion and tolerance for failure mediated by adaptive cognition

Emotion and cognition are fundamental for successful entrepreneurial efforts. Yet, the interplay between emotion and cognition and ultimately venture-level outcomes is not fully understood. This study sheds light on this relationship by investigating how entrepreneurial passion relates to adaptive cognition and ultimately to venture-level tolerance for failure. Drawing upon mood-dependent retrieval theory, we develop a mediation model in which adaptive cognition mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial passion and venture-level tolerance for failure. We test our hypotheses among a sample of 447 entrepreneurs in Germany. Our results suggest that adaptive cognition mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial passion for inventing and developing and venture-level tolerance for failure in an indirect-only manner. Overall, we contribute to mood-dependent retrieval theory by showing how emotion and cognition interact in an entrepreneurial context. We do so in a nuanced way considering three domains of entrepreneurial passion. Additionally, we investigate adaptive cognition as translating mechanism from entrepreneurial passion to venture-level tolerance for failure.

Study on the alignment error of complex modulation for focusing flattop beam shaping

The complex modulation is applied to indirectly generate a focusing flattop beam, which can modulate the amplitude and phase in the optical pupil combining with the phase retrieval theory. The simulation results show that this algorithm has good uniformity. However, the alignment errors of various components in the actual optical system have an impact on the beam uniformity, especially after the implementation of SLM (Spatial Light Modulator) error calibration, the beam uniformity still hardly meets the requirements. In this paper, the error source of the complex modulation beam shaping system is theoretically analyzed, while the Mixed Region Amplitude Freedom (MRAF) method is selected as a comparative reference in this research. It is found that the defocus aberration in the SLM illumination is the main aberration which has a special grid-facula, and the error source is proved through the actual experiment. Finally, then the correction is carried out, the complex modulation has better uniformity than MRAF.

On the grammaticality of morphosyntactically reduced remnants in Polish sluicing

Abstract This paper explores the grammaticality status of reduced sluicing remnants (i.e., remnants realized as NPs due to preposition drop) in Polish. We provide experimental evidence that reduced remnants are variously acceptable in a specific environment (where there is a prior explicit correspondent in the antecedent clause) and are as unacceptable as ungrammatical structures elsewhere. We interpret this pattern as reflecting elaboration effects (i.e., effects that the degree of elaboration of explicit correspondents has on the acceptability of reduced remnants) that follow from the cue-based retrieval theory of sentence processing. Our data support the option of treating reduced remnants as ungrammatical but sometimes acceptable and the option of treating them as grammatical but sometimes degraded, and we discuss how they fit into the current theories of clausal ellipsis.

Encoding interference effects support self-organized sentence processing

According to cue-based retrieval theories of sentence comprehension, establishing the syntactic dependency between a verb and the grammatical subject is susceptible to interference from other noun phrases in the sentence. At the verb, the subject must be retrieved from memory, but non-subject nouns that are similar on dimensions that are relevant to subject-verb agreement, like number marking, can make the retrieval more difficult. However, cue-based retrieval models fail to account for a class of interference effects, conventionally called “encoding interference,” that cannot be due to retrieval interference. In this paper, we implement a self-organized sentence processing model that provides a more parsimonious explanation of encoding interference effects than otherwise reasonable extensions that could be made to the cue-based retrieval approach. We first also present new behavioral evidence for encoding interference using a semantic similarity manipulation in two self-paced reading studies of subject-verb number agreement. The results of these experiments are more compatible with the self-organizing account. We argue that self-organization, which reduces all parsing to fallible feature match optimization and makes no a priori distinction between encoding and retrieval, can provide a unifying approach to similarity-based interference in sentence comprehension.

When trying to recall our past, all roads lead to Rome: More evidence for the multi-process retrieval theory of autobiographical memory.

In this study, we tested elements of the multi-process retrieval account of autobiographical memory, retrieval multiplicity, and retrieval selectivity. The retrieval multiplicity states that multiple different retrieval strategies are used to recall autobiographical memories, while the retrieval selectivity states that such retrieval strategies will vary in accord with the cuing environment. We tested these hypotheses across two experiments with the retrieve-aloud procedure. In the retrieve-aloud procedure, participants were required to verbalize their thoughts while attempting to retrieve personal memories in response to phrase cues (e.g., listening to music). Experiments 1 and 2 found support for the retrieval multiplicity by showing that participants used a variety of different retrieval processes (eight different processes in total), while Experiment 1 found support for the retrieval selectivity by showing that retrieval strategies varied across different cue types. The implications of the findings are discussed with respect to autobiographical memory, as well as semantic memory.

Fast, Nondestructive, and Broadband Dielectric Characterization for Polymer Sheets.

We propose a compact nearfield scheme for fast and broadband dielectric characterization in the microwave region. An open-type circular probe operated in the high-purity TE01 mode was developed, showing a strongly confined fringing field at the open end. This fringing field directly probed the freestanding sheet sample, and the overall reflection was measured. Without sample-loading processes, both of the system assembling time and the risk of sample damage can be significantly reduced. In addition, the nearfield measurement substantially simplifies the calibration and the retrieval theory, facilitating the development of easy-to-integrate and easy-to-calibrate dielectric characterization technique. The dielectric properties of more than ten polymers were characterized from 30 GHz to 40 GHz. We believe that this work fulfills the requirement of the fast diagnostic in the industrial manufactures and also provides valuable high-frequency dielectric information for the designs of 5G devices.

Neural correlates of successful emotional episodic encoding and retrieval: An SDM meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies

Episodic memory for emotional events is typically enhanced and engages additional brain mechanisms relative to episodic memory for neutral events. Many functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have probed the neural basis of this emotional enhancement effect on encoding processes, while relatively fewer studies have examined retrieval. Neuroimaging meta-analysis methods can summarize the brain regions associated with emotional episodic memory that are consistently activated across multiple studies. A previous ALE (Activation Likelihood Estimation) meta-analysis identified consistent activations associated with successful encoding of episodic emotional memory in the amygdala, hippocampus, and in multiple neocortical regions (Murty et al., 2010). However, since that study, meta-analysis methods have improved, and many new relevant neuroimaging studies have been published. Moreover, although qualitative reviews have summarized brain activations related to the successful retrieval of emotional episodic memory, no corresponding quantitative meta-analyses have yet been reported. Here we conducted neuroimaging meta-analyses of successful emotional memory encoding and rretrieval using Seed-based d Mapping (SDM). Relevant neuroimaging studies reporting whole-brain fMRI correlates of successful encoding and retrieval of emotional episodic memory were selected for analysis. For successful emotional memory encoding, SDM activations were found bilaterally in the medial temporal lobe (amygdala, hippocampus, entorhinal cortex, perirhinal cortex, and parahippocampal cortex), bilaterally in visual processing regions (middle temporal, gyrus, fusiform gyrus and occipital cortex) and bilaterally in the temporal pole, orbitofrontal cortex, insula, putamen, and the inferior and middle temporal gyri. In contrast to the prior meta-analysis, SDM activations were not observed in the inferior frontal gyrus or in parietal regions. For successful emotional episodic memory retrieval, SDM activations were observed in the medial temporal lobe (bilateral amygdala, left hippocampus, and left entorhinal cortex and perirhinal cortex), visual processing regions (bilateral occipital cortex and right middle temporal gyrus), prefrontal cortex (bilateral orbitofrontal cortex, bilateral inferior frontal gyrus, bilateral precentral gyrus, left middle frontal gyrus, right frontal pole) and other regions in the left hemisphere including the temporal pole, insula, putamen, angular gyrus, and parietal opercular cortex. Considerable overlap was observed between the encoding and retrieval meta-analysis maps in the medial temporal lobe (bilateral amygdala, left hippocampus, entorhinal, and perirhinal cortex), visual processing regions (bilateral occipital cortex, right middle temporal gyrus), and other regions including the left orbitofrontal cortex, left insula, left putamen, left pallidum, and left temporal pole. The current findings add to current understanding of the role of the amygdala, hippocampus, and neocortical regions in the successful encoding and retrieval of emotional episodic memory, clarify and provide an important summary of the current literature in this area, and have implications for current theories of emotional episodic memory encoding and retrieval.

Information Retrieval Method for Mixed Intrusion of Surveillance Network Based on Big Data

The current surveillance network intrusion information retrieval methods have problems such as low retrieval accuracy, high recall rate, and long retrieval time. Therefore, this paper proposes a hybrid intrusion information retrieval method for monitoring networks based on big data. The genetic algorithm is used to optimize the feature set, and the partial F test is introduced. The optimal subset is selected to form the optimal feature set and the redundant information elimination model is constructed to eliminate redundant information in the mixed intrusion information. Based on the information retrieval theory, the LDA model is used to build the feature set, and model the subject of the document, establish an intrusion information retrieval model, then complete the hybrid network intrusion information retrieval of the monitoring network under big data. The results show that the method proposed in this paper has higher retrieval accuracy, can effectively improve the retrieval efficiency of intrusion information and the average recall rate is about 24%, which is better than other methods.

Detection of near-surface defects in rails combining Green's function retrieval of ultrasonic diffuse fields and sign coherence factor imaging

A method combining Green's function retrieval theory and sign coherence factor (SCF) imaging is presented to detect near-surface defects in rails. The defects are close to the ultrasonic phased array and near-surface acoustic information of defects is obscured by the non-linear effects of the initial wave signal in directly acquired responses. To overcome this problem, cross-correlations of the diffuse field signals captured by the array transducer are performed to reconstruct the Green's function. SCF imaging is used to further improve the spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of near-surface defects in rails. Experiments are conducted on two rails containing two and four defects, respectively. The results show that these defects can be clearly identified when using the reconstructed Green's function. However, the images of near-surface defects are masked and cannot be distinguished when using directly captured signals and total focus imaging. The proposed method reduces the background noise and allows for effective imaging of near-surface defects in rails.

Effects of Parameter Selections on Soil Moisture Retrieval Using GNSS-IR

Soil moisture is an important geophysical quantity for evaluating soil conditions. Traditional measurement methods such as remote sensing and field measurements cannot meet the requirements with high spatial and temporal resolution. Soil moisture retrieval based on Global Navigation Satellite System– Interferometry and Reflectometry (GNSS-IR) can be applied on the existing GNSS networks to solve these problems and has the great potential to complement existing soil moisture monitoring networks. Parameters (satellite elevation ranges, priori reflector height, and signal frequency) play a very important role in soil moisture retrieval using GNSS-IR and different selections could have great influence on the results. Previous research often relied on experience in the parameter selections, which was not conducive to the application and promotion of the technology. This study aims to investigate the effects of soil moisture retrieval using GNSS-IR based on different parameter selections. After describing the basic theory of soil moisture retrieval, the influence of the satellite elevation ranges, the priori reflector height, and the chosen signal frequency are investigated with National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO) data and experimental data obtained in Nanjing, China. The results show that using data within an elevation range of [5°, 30°] and arc lengths greater than 20° can reduce the mean RMSE and MAE by 1%-31.5% and 2%-31%. The selection of the priori reflector height does not have a significant influence. L2 signals (compared to L1 signals) can improve the accuracy of soil moisture retrieval and can reduce the mean RMSE and MAE by 20.9% and 20.4%.

Interference patterns in subject-verb agreement and reflexives revisited: A large-sample study.

Cue-based retrieval theories in sentence processing predict two classes of interference effect: (i) Inhibitory interference is predicted when multiple items match a retrieval cue: cue-overloading leads to an overall slowdown in reading time; and (ii) Facilitatory interference arises when a retrieval target as well as a distractor only partially match the retrieval cues; this partial matching leads to an overall speedup in retrieval time. Inhibitory interference effects are widely observed, but facilitatory interference apparently has an exception: reflexives have been claimed to show no facilitatory interference effects. Because the claim is based on underpowered studies, we conducted a large-sample experiment that investigated both facilitatory and inhibitory interference. In contrast to previous studies, we find facilitatory interference effects in reflexives. We also present a quantitative evaluation of the cue-based retrieval model of Engelmann et al. (2019), with respect to the reflexives data. Data and code are available from: https://osf.io/reavs/.

An Effective Mixed Extracting Method for Electromagnetic Parameters of Periodically Loaded Substrate Integrated Waveguide Units and Its Applications

In this article, we propose an effective mixed extracting method for anisotropic constitutive parameters of periodically loaded substrate integrated waveguide (SIW). This method takes the advantage of both scattering parameters retrieval theory and the equivalent homogeneous medium dispersion analysis, which could accurately and effectively extract the equivalent constitutive parameters of the periodically loaded SIW. With this method, the corresponding constitutive parameters of the six typical patterns of periodically loaded SIW schemes are accurately extracted, verified, explained, and compared for their performance. It can be used to quantitatively predict the miniaturization potential of each unit cell and sequentially evaluate the performance as an integrated component. In addition, in terms of application, with the aid of equivalent parameters extracted by the proposed method, a slow-wave SIW evanescent mode filter centered at 12.64 GHz with a frequency bandwidth of 300 MHz is synthesized, fabricated, and measured. In the meanwhile, the theory of slow-wave evanescent mode filter is further consummated, by introducing the dual factors of enhanced permittivity and permeability, as well as analyzing respective advantages in filter synthesis. Measurements and simulation results show good agreement, which embodies the role of the method in guiding the design of actual microwave devices.

Script concordance test examinations: Student perception and study approaches

Introduction: Script concordance test questions (SCTs) are a style of question that has been developed based upon the script theory of information storage and retrieval. SCTs use script theory to examine a clinical reasoning construct purported to be different from that assessed by multiple-choice questions (MCQs). Evidence regarding the construct validity of SCT is somewhat limited, but generally supportive. Methods: This project involved a content-matched MCQ and SCT practice examination delivered to senior medical students (n = 211) from a single institution with an accompanying survey regarding educational consequences of SCT and MCQ examinations. Results: Students’ responses differed significantly between how they would prepare for an MCQ examination as compared to an SCT examination. These differences were present in a number of areas, including greater focus on textbooks and use of websites for MCQ examination preparation (p < 0.001). Students reported that for an SCT examination they would benefit most from in-person teaching from local consultants involved in the process of SCT generation. Students felt that they would also benefit from further instruction regarding key elements of SCT technique, and from opportunities to provide written explanations of their reasoning during the exam. Conclusions: The results suggest that SCTs have educational consequences different from MCQs. Further research into the educational consequences of SCTs, and how these consequences may differ from that of other methods of assessment, is warranted.

Testing the Retrieval Effort Theory

Abstract. Testing effect refers to the phenomenon that, relative to relearning, retrieval practice enhances delayed memory performance. In two experiments, this study tested the retrieval effort theory proposed to explain the enhancement effect of testing. In Experiment 1, participants learned English words with their corresponding Chinese definitions. Then they were tested on half of the encoded items and restudied the remaining half under three delays after encoding (0 min, 20 min, and 40 min). All participants took delayed memory tests 60 min after the end of the initial encoding phase. The result showed that testing conducted 20 min after encoding, but not immediately or 40 min after encoding, enhanced memory retention. In Experiment 2, feedback was provided to ensure more equitable exposure across the conditions, and then the final memory test was conducted 24 h after the end of learning. The result showed that testing enhanced memory retention across the three delay conditions, and that the size of the testing effect increased with the extension of the interval between initial learning and retrieval practice, thus providing support for the retrieval theory.

Improvement of Theory of Mind in Schizophrenia: A 15-Year Follow-Up Study

Neurocognitive and social cognitive deficits are a hallmark of schizophrenia. The purpose of the present study was to investigate long-term changes in theory of mind (ToM), executive functions, lexical retrieval, and speed of information processing/attention in schizophrenia. We followed-up 31 outpatients with schizophrenia and 31 healthy control subjects for 15 years. ToM was assessed with the Reading the Mind from the Eyes Test (RMET), whereas neurocognitive functions were measured with the verbal fluency (VF) task (executive functions and lexical retrieval) and with the Digit-Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) (speed of information processing/attention). Clinical symptoms and general functioning were rated with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and with the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale, respectively. At baseline assessment, patients with schizophrenia exhibited significant and generalized impairments on all measures. At follow-up, relative to the baseline, we observed marked improvements in ToM (RMET), stability in executive functions and lexical retrieval (VF), and a significant decline in psychomotor speed/attention (DSST) in schizophrenia. Clinical symptoms and psychosocial functions did not differ at baseline and at follow-up examinations (mild-to-moderate symptoms on the PANSS and moderate difficulty in social and occupational functions on the GAF). These results indicate that patients with schizophrenia with mild-to-moderate symptoms and functional deficits are characterized by improved ToM during over a decade.

Evidence for a retrieval over a sum counting theory of adults' simple addition.

Researchers have recently proposed that educated adults solve the simplest addition problems (e.g., 3 + 2) by an automatic counting procedure, challenging the long-held view that educated adults solve small additions by associative memory retrieval. We tested predications of a sum-counting model that assumes a procedure in which the 2 quantities represented by the operands are encoded and counted sequentially. Here, we presented the 2 operands sequentially (e.g., "3 +" first and then "2") and manipulated the preview time for the first operand (O1) and operator across 2 experiments (both n = 36); the O1 preview times were 1000 ms and 500 ms in Experiments 1 and 2, respectively. We measured response time (RT) from the presentation of the second operand (O2) and compared it with RT when both operands appeared simultaneously. Contrary to the sum-counting model, with sequential presentation, problems with the same O2 sizes (e.g., 3 + 2, 4 + 2) demonstrated significant RT differences across levels of O1, and the sum of the operands was a better RT predictor than O2 with both sequential and simultaneous displays. These results challenge a sum-counting model of the present data but are consistent with a memory retrieval theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Lamb waves topological imaging combining with Green’s function retrieval theory to detect near filed defects in isotropic plates**Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11674214 and 11874255).

A method of combining Green’s function retrieval theory and ultrasonic array imaging using Lamb waves is presented to solve near filed defects in thin aluminum plates. The defects are close to the ultrasonic phased array and satisfy the near field calculation formula. Near field acoustic information of defects is obscured by the nonlinear effects of initial wave signal in a directly acquired response using the full matrix capture mode. A reconstructed full matrix of inter-element responses is produced from cross-correlation of directly received ultrasonic signals between sensor pairs. This new matrix eliminates the nonlinear interference and restores the near-field defect information. The topological imaging method that was developed in recent ultrasonic inspection is used for displaying the scatterers. The experiments are conducted on both thin aluminum plates containing two and four defects, respectively. The results show that these defects are clearly identified when using a reconstructed full matrix. The spatial resolution is equal to about one wavelength of the selectively excited mode and the identifiable defect is about one fifth of the wavelength. However, in a conventional directly captured image, the images of defects overlap together and cannot be distinguished. The proposed method reduces the background noise and allows for effective topological imaging of near field defects.

Remembering or knowing how we felt: Depression and anxiety symptoms predict retrieval processes during emotional self-report.

Researchers and clinicians routinely rely on patients' retrospective emotional self-reports to guide diagnosis and treatment, despite evidence of impaired autobiographical memory and retrieval of emotional information in depression and anxiety. To clarify the nature and specificity of these impairments, we conducted two large online data collections (Study 1, N = 1,983; Study 2, N = 900) examining whether depression and/or anxiety symptoms would uniquely predict the use of self-reported episodic (i.e., remembering) and/or semantic (i.e., knowing) retrieval when rating one's positive and negative emotional experiences over different time frames. Participants were randomly assigned to one of six time frames (ranging from at this moment to last few years) and were asked to rate how intensely they felt each of four emotions, anxious, sad, calm, and happy, over that period. Following each rating, they were asked several follow-up prompts assessing their perceived reliance on episodic and/or semantic information to rate how they felt, using procedures adapted from the traditional "remember/know" paradigm (Tulving, 1985). Across both studies, depression and anxiety symptoms each uniquely predicted increased likelihood of remembering across emotion types, and decreased likelihood of knowing how one felt when rating positive emotion types. Implications for the theory and treatment of emotion-related memory disturbances in depression and anxiety, and for dual-process theories of memory retrieval more generally, are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

A General Theory of IR Evaluation Measures

Interval scales are assumed by several basic descriptive statistics, such as mean and variance, and by many statistical significance tests which are daily used in IR to compare systems. Unfortunately, so far, there has not been any systematic and formal study to discover the actual scale properties of IR measures. Therefore, in this paper, we develop a theory of Information Retrieval (IR) evaluation measures, based on the representational theory of measurements, to determine whether and when IR measures are interval scales. We found that common set-based retrieval measures—namely Precision, Recall, and F-measure—always are interval scales in the case of binary relevance while this happens also in the case of multi-graded relevance only when the relevance degrees themselves are on a ratio scale and we define a specific partial order among systems. In the case of rank-based retrieval measures—namely AP, gRBP, DCG, and ERR—only gRPB is an interval scale when we choose a specific value of the parameter $p$ and define a specific total order among systems while all the other IR measures are not interval scales. Besides the formal framework itself and the proof of the scale properties of several commonly used IR measures, the paper also defines some brand new set-based and rank-based IR evaluation measures which ensure to be interval scales.