Does visual recognition entail verifying an idea about what is perceived? This question was addressed in the three studies of this thesis. The main hypothesis underlying the investigation was that visual recognition is an active process involving hypothesis testing. Recognition of faces (Study 1), scenes (Study 2) and objects (Study 3) was investigated using eye movement registration as a window on the recognition process. In Study 1, a functional relationship between eye movements and face recognition was established. Restricting the eye movements reduced recognition performance. In addition, perceptual reinstatement as indicated by eye movement consistency across study and test was related to recollective experience at test. Specifically, explicit recollection was related to higher eye movement consistency than familiarity-based recognition and false rejections (Studies 1-2). Furthermore, valid expectations about a forthcoming stimulus scene produced eye movements which were more similar to those of an earlier study episode, compared to invalid expectations (Study 2). In Study 3 participants recognized fragmented objects embedded in nonsense fragments. Around 8 seconds prior to explicit recognition, participants began to fixate the object region rather than a similar control region in the stimulus pictures. Before participants’ indicated awareness of the object, they fixated it with an average of 9 consecutive fixations. Hence, participants were looking at the object as if they had recognized it before they became aware of its identity. Furthermore, prior object information affected eye movement sampling of the stimulus, suggesting that semantic memory was involved in guiding the eyes during object recognition even before the participants were aware of its presence. Collectively, the studies support the view that gaze control is instrumental to visual recognition performance and that visual recognition is an interactive process between memory representation and information sampling.

The subject of recollection of traumatic collective memories resulting from a single, unexpected event is still a new phenomenon in the trauma-related literature, especially in the context of exiled political refugees. The focus of this research is to explore the nexus between Chilean exiles' personal meanings of Pinochet's unexpected arrest and release in England, and the construction of group memories of traumatic life experiences triggered by these events. To access the individual and collective meaning experiences of the members of this community, this study used narrative inquiry. The participants created individual narratives of these events, and they shared them in a group format. Through sharing these experiences in a group setting, the participants created a "cultural group narrative." This embodied their individual and collective experiences, their lived experiences of exile, their adaptation to a new culture and their re-experiencing of traumatic memories and life events when hearing the news of Pinochet. Because the researcher is also Chilean and because Latin American culture is collective in nature, she played a dual role as both investigator and participant. This study has several implications for counselling practice, education and supervision. It provides further knowledge and understanding of the historical, political and cultural issues related to traumatic experiences in both individuals and groups, as well as further understanding of the events or situations that trigger the re-appearance of traumatic memories. The results of this research also provide important information for therapists working in the areas of cross-cultural counselling and the development and improvement of therapeutic approaches for dealing with traumatic memories among political refugees and immigrant populations. In a broader context, this study enhances the understanding of similar processes in other ethnic communities. Finally, this study contributes to the documentation of the collective trauma processes of the Chilean community in Vancouver, Canada.

Copy and recall drawings of the Rey Complex Figure obtained during the standard clinical testing of patients with well-localized epileptic foci before and after left frontal-, left temporal-, right temporal-lobe resection were re-scored blind as to lesion site using standard protocol (18 elements scored 0, 1/2, 1, or 2 based on whether they are drawn and placed correctly for a total out of 36). They were also scored for which, and how many, elements were missing, distorted, displaced, and/or repeated. Contrary to previous findings, no main effects of side or lobe or side-by-lobe interactions were found on copy and recall scores obtained either before or after surgery, and all patients' recall improved equally from pre-operative to follow-up testing. Furthermore, patients' lesion site could not be predicted on the basis of any single measure or across all measures of performance. While group differences had been found on the previously assigned scores, the between-group overlap was almost complete and the original scoring was not done blindly. These results suggest that, despite previous claims, the Rey Complex Figure, a widely-used measure of non-verbal memory, is not an effective tool for localizing neural disturbance in temporal- and frontal-lobe epilepsy patients.

Research supports the notion that weapons impair eyewitnesses' memory for visual information (weapon focus effect). Pickel and Betts (1999) found that the presence of a weapon can also interfere with witnesses' memory for auditory information. The primary objective of the current study was to replicate Pickel and Betts's (1999) findings, to extend their findings by implementing different methodological procedures, and to control for a confound associated with their study. A secondary goal was to further investigate the impact that arousal and novelty have on the weapon focus effect. Participants watched a videotape depicting a story about a man stalking a woman. The man approached the woman holding either a switchblade knife or a black ballpoint pen. The man's conversation varied so that it was either easy or difficult to comprehend. Participants then completed questionnaires assessing their arousal level, memory for visual and auditory information, and perceived unusualness of the object carried by the target. [n addition, they attempted to identify the target in a photo and audio lineup. Results indicate that the presence of a weapon does not affect memory for vocal characteristics or for semantic content of speech when the content of the message is rather simple. As the complexity of the message increases, however, a weapon will interfere with witnesses' memory for the content. Also, results support the hypothesis that the weapon focus effect occurs because the weapon is perceived to be unusual and that increased levels of arousal are not necessary to obtain the effect. Analyses revealed no significant effects or interactions related to witnesses' ability to identify the man in the photo or audio lineup. The results supported Pickel and Betts's (1999) conclusions, thus increasing our knowledge concerning the reliability of eyewitness testimony. / Department of Psychological Science

More and more news organizations are publishing on-line news via the World Wide Web. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of hypermedia and graphics in online news upon immediate recall and longer-term retention.Ninety-eight subjects read one of four versions of a news story presented through a World Wide Web browser. The four versions tested the story with and without the use of graphics and with and without the use of hypermedia in a 2x2 design. Subjects were tested with a 15-question fill-inthe-blank quiz immediately and after one week.Analysis of variance found no significant effectsthe use of graphics or hypermedia or the interaction of the two upon immediate recall. However, a significant effect for the use of graphics was found for retention after one week. / Department of Journalism

The current study investigated whether there were age-related differences in episodic feeling-of-knowing (FOK) accuracy and whether accuracy was influenced by when the FOK judgments were made. Younger and older participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions that manipulated the timing of the FOK in relation to cued-recall and recognition. Age-related differences in FOK accuracy were not reliable either when the FOK was immediate or when it was delayed. Moreover, FOK accuracy was above chance for both age groups. Remember/Know (RK) judgments correlated reliably with FOKs for unrecalled words for both age groups and did not vary by FOK timing. Verbal ability, but not education, health, or perceptual speed, correlated with FOK accuracy. These results suggest that rather than a general age-related deficit in episodic FOK accuracy, the presence of age-related differences in resolution might be influenced by individual differences in such factors as verbal ability and frontal functioning.

Typescript (photocopy) / Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1980. / Bibliography: leaves 263-269. / Microfiche. / xvi, 269 leaves, bound ill. 28 cm

Thesis (M. Ed.(Educational psychology))-University of Pretoria, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 88-96) Available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Newcastle, 1999. / Department of Psychology. Bibliography: leaves 228-262. Also available online.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Arizona, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 187-190).