Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
instructed to write down as much of the story as they could remember. After another
delay of 5 min, learners were given a second free recall test, on which they were
either reminded of the perspective they had been given at reading or instructed to
adopt the alternative perspective. Learners who were instructed to switch perspec-
tive for the second test recalled more information important to the new perspective
than did learners who were instructed to keep the same perspective (see also Surber,
1983).
Reinstating the context of learning is another strategy that can enhance retrieval.
In a study by Smith (1979), learners studied a word list in one room and were later
tested either in the same room or a different one. Being tested in the original room
yielded higher free recall performance than did being tested in the different one,
demonstrating the effect of environmental context (Bjork & Richardson-Klavehn,
1989). Interestingly, Smith also found that instructing learners to mentally reinstate
the original room enhanced performance to the same extent as actually testing them
in the original room.
In addition to reinstatement of context, retrieval can also be improved by rein-
statement of processing. Recall the principle of transfer-appropriate processing,
reviewed earlier. Just as performance is enhanced when learners employ an encod-
ing strategy appropriate for a particular test, performance should also be enhanced
when learners employ retrieval strategies consistent with the way information was
encoded. This is borne out in a study by Fisher and Craik (1977). Learners were
presented with single words that were each preceded by one of three orienting ques-
tions: whether the target word rhymed with a particular other word, whether the
target word fit into a particular category, or whether the target word fit into a par-
ticular sentence. Learners were then given a cued recall test in which each target
word was cued by either the same type of question used for that word at encoding or
one of the two alternative question types. For each of the three encoding conditions,
performance was highest when the retrieval cue was of the same type as that used
at encoding. These results, considered alongside those from Morris et al. (1977),
demonstrate that instructing subjects on compatible means by which to encode and
retrieve studied information can have a big effect on performance, suggesting that
choosing a learning strategy to match the upcoming task, or a retrieval strategy
that matches the prior learning, is an effective means of enhancing performance. It
remains to be seen whether learners can do so effectively in the absence of direct
instruction.
Finally, we consider an applied example of improving metacognitive control at
retrieval via direct instruction. The cognitive interview (Fisher & Geiselman, 1992)
is a technique for questioning eyewitnesses to crimes that has been found effective
in increasing the amount and accuracy of recalled information (Geiselman et al.,
1984). It incorporates a number of effective retrieval strategies, including reinstat-
ing physical and mental context, minimizing distractions, encouraging multiple and
extensive retrieval attempts, and requesting retrieval in multiple temporal orders and
from multiple perspectives.
