Abstract
A levels-of-processing paradigm was used in assessing four different types of study strategy for their importance in picture recognition. Subjects were instructed to attend to colors, large forms, information from multiple sensory modalities, or specific details in studying the pictures. Subjects in a fifth group used any method they wished in order to remember the pictures. The results indicated that if subjects rely on only one strategy, attending to details is a superior strategy for remembering pictures. However, although subjects in the other processing conditions recognized fewer pictures, they were sufficiently accurate to suggest that information other than specific details can play a substantive role in picture memory.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Craik, F. I. M., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). Levels of processing: A framework for memory research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 11, 671–684.
Graefe, T. M., & Watkins, M. J. (1980). Picture rehearsal: An effect of selectively attending to pictures no longer in view. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory, 6, 156–162.
Hall, J. F. (1983). Recall versus recognition: A methodological note. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 9, 346–349.
Intraub, H. (1980). Presentation rate and the representation of briefly glimpsed pictures in memory. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory, 6, 1–12.
Loftus, G. R., & Bell, S. M. (1975). Two types of information in picture memory. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory, 1, 103–113.
Proctor, R. W. (1983). Recognition memory for pictures as a function of poststimulus interval: An empirical clarification of existing literature. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 9, 256–262.
Shepard, R. N. (1967). Recognition memory for words, sentences, and pictures. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 6, 156–163.
Stanny, C. J. (1981). Serial position effects in visual memory: The effects of repetition on item and order information. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Florida State University, Tallahassee.
Stanny, C. J., & Weaver, G. E. (1980). Directed attention and the recognition of pictures. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 15, 410–412.
Tversky, B., & Sherman, T. (1975). Picture memory improves with longer on time and off time. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory, 1, 114–118.
Watkins, M. J., & Graefe, T. M. (1981). Delayed rehearsal of pictures. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 20, 276–288.
Weaver, G. E. (1974). Effects of post-stimulus study time on the recognition of pictures. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 103, 799–801.
Weaver, G. E., & Stanny, C. J. (1978). Short-term retention of pictorial stimuli as assessed by a probe recognition technique. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory, 4, 55–65.
Weaver, G. E., & Stanny, C. J. (1984). The role of detail information in the recognition of complex pictorial stimuli. Journal of General Psychology, 111, 185–199.
Winer, B. J. (1971). Statistical principles in experimental design (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This research was reported at the annual meeting of the Southeastern Psychological Association, Atlanta, March 1981. The authors thank Howard Baker for suggestions on the processing tasks and Robert Stanny for helpful comments on the manuscript.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Stanny, C.J., Weaver, G.F. Effects of processing tasks on the recognition of pictures. Bull. Psychon. Soc. 23, 116–118 (1985). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03329798
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03329798