Memory for size relations and selective interference

Abstract

Memory for ordinal size information was studied in two experiments using a selective interference paradigm. Subjects were to learn five-term series either with verbal stimuli or with pictorial stimuli which were presented pairwise in ascending size order. They were tested with a comparative judgement task. Study and test modality were always congruent. The series were learned and tested in a control condition (without interference), concurrently with articulatory suppression, and concurrently with hand movement (tapping). In addition, task difficulty was varied. There was a clear increase in error rates under articulatory suppression with pictures as well as with words as stimuli. However, tapping increased the error rates only with pictures as stimuli, not with words. These findings were independent of task difficulty. The results are discussed in the context of working memory theory.