Recognizing what matters: Value improves recognition by selectively enhancing recollection

Joseph P. Hennessee, Alan D. Castel, Barbara J. Knowlton
2017 Journal of Memory and Language  
We examined the effects of value on recognition by assessing its contribution to recollection and familiarity. In three experiments, participants studied English words, each associated with a pointvalue they would earn for correct recognition, with the goal of maximizing their score. In Experiment 1, participants provided Remember/Know judgments. In Experiment 2 participants indicated whether items were recollected or if not, their degree of familiarity along a 6-point scale. In Experiment 3,
more » ... cognition of words was accompanied by a test of memory for incidental details. Across all experiments, participants were more likely to recognize items with higher pointvalue. Furthermore, value appeared to primarily enhance recollection, as effects on familiarity were small and not consistent across experiments. Recollection of high-value items appears to be accompanied by fewer incidental details, suggesting that value increases focus on items at the expense of irrelevant information. In everyday life, we are bombarded with a wealth of information, and selectivity is necessary for efficient learning. For example, when studying for a test, a student typically has more course material available to them than they can possibly remember. To optimize test performance, they need to selectively learn the information that is the most important and most likely to be on the test, often at the expense of less important information. Time constraints, item difficulty, and the value of the material, often determine what is selected for learning (Ariel, Dunlosky, & Bailey, 2009) . Much research has illustrated that value enhances the learning and recall of short free-recall and cued-recall word lists (Ariel et al., 2009; Castel, Benjamin, Craik, &Watkins, 2002; Castel et al., 2013) . To examine valueselective learning, Castel et al. (2002) established the Value-Directed Remembering (VDR) design, wherein participants learn words associated with point-values, and earn those points for correct recall. These point-values were used to simulate some information being more important than other information. They found that although young adults can recall more
doi:10.1016/j.jml.2016.12.004 pmid:28827894 pmcid:PMC5562370 fatcat:cstgg4e53rboroffcvwf3ipycy