The nature of the target designation process--which involves forming interassociated mental structures to allow retrieval of individual items of information--was studied. It was shown that visual imagery instructions improved target identification as well as word recognition but did not appear to affect the representational format. (Author/MH)

A few empirical studies of mnemonic techniques were conducted in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Then, until the 1960s, very little research was done on mnemonics. A revival of research interest in mnemonics, in the late 1960s, accompanied the general acceptability of cognitive processes as a legitimate area of research. Now we're back where we…

An internal cognitive variable--mental imagery representation--was studied using a set of three information-processing strategies under external stimulus visual display conditions for various learning levels. The copy strategy provided verbal and visual dual-coding and required formation of a vivid mental image. The relational strategy combined…

Argues that imagery can play an important part in a variety of academic subjects. Provides instructions concerning the method by which imagery can be used in such diverse fields as the development of social skills, the identification of interests and career areas, and creative productivity. (FL)

While mnemonic systems have been taught and used for hundreds of years, virtually all of the experimental research into such systems has been conducted since 1965. This paper describes four mnemonic systems, all of which rely heavily on visual imagery, and summarizes research conducted on the performance values of each system. The link system, the…

Examined is the effectiveness of three imagery learning strategies (copy, relational, and hierarchical) for acquiring different outcomes when individuals received visual instructional information varying in visual stimulus complexity. The hierarchical strategy was generally more effective in processing the different levels of information than the…

Undergraduate students using an imagery mnemonic mediating technique involving "keywords" to learn definitions of thirty unfamiliar words performed better on a 1-week delayed comprehension test, on at least half of the definitions, than those who read and copied definitions. Mnemonic mediating strategies worked better than nonmediating strategies…

This study explored the developmental changes in children's effective utilization of verbal versus pictorial stimuli in forming connections between stimulus and response elements in a paired-associate task. A total of 112 children (56 males and 56 females), half of them 4-year-olds and half 8-year-olds, were tested under eight conditions involving…

Research generally indicates that imagery facilitates children's learning on basic memory tasks, such as paired-associate learning. The role of imagery in prose recall is less well defined, however. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the construction of mental images on eight year old's ability to recall progressively…

A skilled cognitive theorist might help behaviorists resolve inconsistencies found from their experimentation with imaginal mnemonics in paired-associate and serial learning tasks. Iconic cognition which relegates verbal processes to short-term storage and output systems is inadequate to explain the verbal coding and elaboration processes…

Two content-independent learning strategies were evaluated to determine their effectiveness in facilitating learning on two types of information-processing tasks, spatial learning and concept learning. The network strategy used imagery with a peg-mnemonic and a hierarchical retrieval system, while the rote strategy elicited a stimulus-response…

This study was the first in a series of investigations designed to examine techniques purporting to enhance the effectiveness of human memory. The utility of a simple pegword mnemonic for Army enlisted personnel, representing three levels of general technical ability, was examined. Half of each ability group was instructed in use of a rhyme…