The purpose of this study was to explore bizarreness, a type of imagery, as a proposed phenomenon involved in recall by reviewing the salient literature and to empirically investigate whether this mnemonic device did indeed enhance memory. A corollary aim was to gain a greater understanding of the degree and the conditions under which this mnemonic influenced the retrieval and storage of information. No consistent picture has emerged as to the effectiveness of bizarreness as a mnemonic device. Some studies have found claims that bizarreness enhanced recall to be either grossly overestimated or nonexistent, while others have argued for the extensive mnemonic benefits of bizarreness and have supported a "strong version" of the distinctiveness framework. Still yet another group of studies have found mnemonic value from bizarreness, but only under certain conditions. These studies have ranged from acknowledging the "bizarreness context effect" or BCE as minimal and highly conditional to viewing bizarreness as an active agent in increasing recall to a great degree across a variety of conditions. Other investigations have fallen between these two more extreme positions. The vast majority of these studies also have supported the distinctiveness theory for understanding the role of bizarreness in the enhancement of retrieval and storage of information. Specifically, a "restricted version" of this theory has proven especially tenable in accounting for the bulk of empirical findings. Therefore, this present study has addressed the following problems: Does bizarreness really work as a mnemonic device? If so, what conditions facilitate or inhibit a "bizarreness context effect" and to what degree? A sample of sixty high school seniors enrolled in college-bound English classes served as participants. Twelve additional students were selected for a pre and posttest, focusing on free recall of names. Materials consisted of a slide projector and screen, slides of English Romantic Era poets, answer sheets, and distractor task exercises. Participants were presented slides of these poets for instructional, immediate recall, and delayed recall conditions. Two independent variables served to examine the effects of bizarreness on the retrieval and storage of information. These were imagery type (bizarre versus common) and trial condition (immediate and delayed). The dependent measure was the number of English Romantic Era poets recalled by the high school sample. The design used was a mixed list with a minimally cued, noninteracting recall condition. A 2 x 2 repeated measures ANOVA design was utilized to analyze the sample data. Preliminary pre and post free recall tests revealed no statistically significant differences in students' recall of names among poets. The findings also indicated that null hypotheses twoand three were rejected. Statistically significant differences were found for both hypotheses at the .05 level. A simple effects analysis was performed on hypothesis two to clarify the significant group by trial ordinal interaction. A planned comparison was conducted on the statistically significant effect (imagery type) for hypothesis three to further understand these differences. Although no statistically significant group by trial interaction was found for hypothesis one, there was a statistically significant main effect for groups. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

326 leaves / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Psychology, 1969

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Psychology, 1969.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Florida, 1994. / Description based on print version record. Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 224-237).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1983. / Typescript. Vita. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 110-113).

Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 2005. Graduate Programme in Interdisciplinary Studies. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 132-136). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url%5Fver=Z39.88-2004&res%5Fdat=xri:pqdiss &rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:MR11911

Memory for names and faces is especially unpredictable. We have all experienced the embarrassment of failing to remember an individual’s name despite meeting them only minutes before. Many theories have been suggested to explain these frustrating moments (Burton & Bruce, 1993; O’Mahony & Newell, 2012). However, despite value of these theories, many neglect to explain how to improve name–face memory. Mnemonic devices are powerful memory aids that improve encoding and subsequent memory recall (McCabe et al., 2013). Given the effectiveness of mnemonics, name–face memory recall may be improved with a novel mnemonic device. Previous research by Patel (M.Sc.) at McMaster University investigated one such mnemonic device: the house bunny effect (HBE). The HBE combines elements of the bizarreness effect (Cox & Wollen, 1981) and the production effect (Quinlan & Taylor, 2013) and predicts that repeating an individual’s name in a bizarre voice at the time of encoding (i.e., when meeting a new individual) improves name–face recall. However, contrary to this prediction, bizarre name production did not improve name–face memory recall compared to a normal voice production control. More importantly, a non-statistically significant trend in the opposite direction was observed—bizarre name production at the time of encoding hindered name–face memory recall (Patel, 2020). Given this finding, we present two studies: an online conceptual replication of the HBE and a study that further elucidates the mechanisms behind the HBE. The results of these two studies will help determine how name–face memory is influenced by bizarre name production at the time of encoding (i.e., the HBE mnemonic). / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2003. / Advisor: Dr. Colleen M. Kelley, Florida State University, College of Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Psychology. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Aug. 23, 2004). Includes bibliographical references.

This study examined the effects of analyzing task demands on children's selection and spontaneous transfer of effective memory strategies. Two learning tasks and a transfer task were used. One hundred and eight children in grades 3 and 5 were randomly assigned to one of the three conditions, Control, Simple Instruction (SI), and Elaborated Instruction (EI). No strategy was taught to subjects in the Control condition. Subjects in the SI and EI conditions were instructed to use appropriate memory strategies for the learning task. In addition, subjects in the EI condition also received task-specific strategies information prior to the transfer task. Their application of the memory strategies to the transfer task was examined. Results indicated that the main effect of grade was significant for the categorical word-list task but not for the paired-associate task at both learning and transfer phases. In general, subjects in the two experimental conditions (SI and EI) performed better than the subjects in the Control condition, and that the EI subjects out performed the SI subjects. Transfer of the strategies occurred mainly in the EI condition which included the task-specific information. In other words, the more task-specific information subjects received concerning the memory strategies, the more likely they would transfer the strategies appropriately to new learning situations. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis interrogates my own memory in order to illustrate its fragmented and unstable nature. I revisit a specific childhood memory and attempt to recreate it visually through the creation of jewellery pieces. However, the unattainability of a consistent memory becomes increasingly evident in the process of its externalization. My work thus speaks of the unravelling of memory, as well as the piecing together and imagining of a new memory. This thesis and my practical work are an exploration of this ambivalent nature of memory. Even though memory is concerned with the past, it is also about the present as our memories can also be manipulated by present prejudices. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis ondersoek my eie geheue met die doel om die onstabiele en gefragmenteerde aard daarvan uit te wys. Ek verwys na ‘n spesifieke herinnering van my kinderdae en poog om dit visueel uit te beeld deur die maak van juweelstukke. Die onbekombaarheid van ‘n konstante geheue word egter al hoe duideliker wanneer ek my herinneringe visueel probeer uitbeeld. My werk demonstreer die ontrafeling van my herinnering en die konstruksie en verbeelding van ‘n nuwe herinnering. Hierdie tesis en my praktiese werk dui op die ondersoek van die wispilturige aard van die geheue. Hoewel herinneringe en die geheue te make het met die verlede, het dit egter ook te make met die hede, aangesien die hede ons herinneringe van die verlede kan manipuleer om aktuele behoeftes te bevredig.