This study separated participants into four different conditions based on a 2 (blocked or random study trials) x 2 (blocked or random test trials) between-subjects design. Using the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm the researcher investigated whether or not false memories were produced at the time of study or the time of test. According to the paradigm, participants who view a series of categorical words (mad, fear, hate, rage, temper) are thought to semantically associate critical lures (anger), as a part of the list presented, more frequently than participants who see a string of unrelated terms. The production of false memory is commonly accredited to the priming effect and the relationships among categorical terms. The current study explored whether manipulating blocked versus random word lists had an effect on false memory rates and further examined the conditions under which false memories are produced, in order to gain a better understanding of the phenomenon. Participants' responses were assessed based on their recall under either blocked or random conditions in both the study and test phases. Using measures of recognition and reaction time (RT), the results indicate that false memories are created primarily during original study and not during ยท the test of recognition. However, although the highest rates of false memories occurred during the blocked-study condition, the fastest reaction times for false memories were seen during blocked-test. These findings can contribute to the theoretical understanding of the origin of false memory. After comparing false memory rates and reaction times, concluding whether or not the mind exclusively produces these memories during the encoding process has yet to be determined.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ucf.edu/oai:stars.library.ucf.edu:honorstheses1990-2015-1667 |
| Date | 01 January 2007 |
| Creators | Williams, Melonie |
| Publisher | STARS |
| Source Sets | University of Central Florida |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | HIM 1990-2015 |
| Rights | Written permission granted by copyright holder to the University of Central Florida Libraries to digitize and distribute for nonprofit, educational purposes. |
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