Two experiments were conducted to examine whether children of different ages differ in their ability to reject associative false memories with the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm. Two different types of manipulations that are thought to facilitate false memory rejection in adults--slowing the presentation rate and issuing explicit…

Consonants and vowels have been shown to play different relative roles in different processes, including retrieving known words from pseudowords during adulthood or simultaneously learning two phonetically similar pseudowords during infancy or toddlerhood. The current study explores the extent to which French-speaking 3- to 5-year-olds exhibit a…

In this study, we examined the nature of infants' representations of newly encountered word forms. Using a word-object association task, we taught 14-month-olds novel three-syllable words differing in segments and stress patterns. At test, we manipulated the stress pattern of the word or the position of the stressed syllable in the word. Our…

The goal of this study was to investigate which working memory and long-term memory components predict vocabulary learning. We used a nonword learning paradigm in which 8- to 10-year-olds learned picture-nonword pairs. The nonwords varied in length (two vs. four syllables) and phonology (native sounding vs. including one Russian phoneme). Short,…

Successful reading instruction entails not only acquiring new words but also remembering them after training has finished and accessing their word-specific representations when they are encountered in new text. We report two studies demonstrating that acquisition, retention, and transfer of unfamiliar words were affected differentially by isolated…

Presents two studies which investigated the effects of social stimulation on infant's vocalization rates. Experiment I focused on response-contingent and response-independent social stimulation. Experiment II focused on continuous or omitted social stimulation. In both studies, social stimulation increased vocalization and the rate of responding…

Preschool children's ability to associate pairs of toys was studied under one of four experimental conditions. All three subject-involvement conditions produced better learning. (ST)

Comments on Needham's research of infant perception by focusing on the types of evidence needed to make inferences concerning infant cognition. Considers the history of scientific explanations of animal cognition as nearer to infant cognition, and the high level of creativity required in proposing and testing alternative explanations of infant…

Discusses Needham's findings by asserting that they extend understanding of infant perception by showing that the memory representations infants draw upon have bound together information about shape, color, and pattern. Considers the distinction between two senses of "recognition" and asks in which sense object recognition contributes to object…

Mental effort expended during the creation of sentence elaborations by fifth graders performing two simultaneous tasks was greater for inaccessible than accessible pairs. The difference was not observed when subjects were provided with pair members in sentences. (RH)

Reflects on Needham's findings on infants' object recognition and segregation. Examines the role for perceptual bias in explaining infant performance, places Needham's studies in historical perspective, and assesses their theoretical significance. Discusses the merits of positing different kinds of information sources for object segregation, and…

In two experiments, the use of mutual exclusivity in the naming of whole objects was examined in monolingual and bilingual 3- and 6-year-olds. Once an object has a known name, then via principles of mutual exclusivity it is often assumed that a new name given to the object must refer to some part, substance, or other property of the object.…

Considers reasons for infants' selective looking and information gathering. Discusses three general theoretical issues raised by studies of selective looking, related to type of information gathered, speed of processing time, and the effect of prior exposure on processing time. Considers these issues in relation to Needham's study of infant…

This study examined rapid orthographic learning following silent reading in third-grade children as a function of number of target nonword repetitions and test delay. In each of two test sessions at least 6 days apart, children read a series of short stories, with each story containing a different nonword repeated either four or eight times. In…

Ten boys and 10 girls ages 29-35 months, were tested individually on a memory task requiring free recall of two-item lists. No sex differences in response were noted. The mean number of correct responses and the mean number of correct pairs were higher for related items, and, in addition, the children frequently reported the last object they saw…