Conventional experimental research in mental imagery and visualization presents conflicting findings. Naturalistic inquiry offers an alternative approach for the study of mental imagery and problem solving. Paulo Freire, for example, used a naturalistic approach that emphasized active involvement in learning. Imagery can play an important role in…

The effects of rate repetition, self-generated visualization, and supplied visuals on the memorization of concrete noun-word pairs were investigated using 27 gifted children in grades four to six. The hypothesis that self-generated imagery techniques would be superior to supplied visuals was not supported. (Author/PN)

In two studies, sixth graders (Study 1) and fourth graders (Study 2) listened to or read a text. Some students were asked to imagine pictures of the material. Oral presentation of the material produced better results than written-only forms. Fourth graders benefited more from mental imagery than did sixth graders. (Author/JJD)

A study investigated the effects of induced mental imagery upon the comprehension of oral versus written discourse for above and below average readers. A secondary purpose of the study was to determine, through a follow-up interview, the students' ability to induce mental imagery. Sixty-three sixth grade students with above or below average…

A paired-associate memory task with pictures and words as items was used to categorize fourth graders into four learner types (high/low picture x high/low word performance). Poor paired-associate learners profited more than did good paired-associate learners from picture aids on the prose task. (Author/BW)

Sixth graders from a semirural midwestern community were randomly assigned to one of four different learning strategies--imagery, overt repetition, covert repetition, and control. Results showed that imagery instructions facilitated learning performance; overt repetition interfered with performance; and covert repetition was similar to the control…

The effects of imagery instructions on fifth-graders with differing abilities were examined through within-class analysis and analysis in which class effects were allowed to have influence. In the latter analysis there were significant Aptitude X Treatment interactions with subscores derived from paired-associate tasks. Interactions were…

Starting with laboratory research on the suppression of visualization in reading, this study investigates effects of treatments (reading vs. listening and pictures vs. no pictures, in a 2x2 design) and aptitudes on the learning of verbal and spatial types of content. Approximately 100 fifth grade pupils were given a battery of four ability tests,…

To examine the role of phonetic code in memory, a study investigated the use of phonetic recoding strategies in fifth and sixth graders identified as good and poor readers. Subjects--120 students with IQ scores in the average range--were divided evenly between both grades. Thirty subjects from each grade who scored above the 50th percentile on the…

Maintains that research indicates that age is the primary factor influencing aesthetic response. Reports on a study of aesthetic preferences among 24 students at ages 8, 10, and 12. Finds that response style was a more significant factor than age. (CFR)