Short-term retention of auditory sequences as a function of stimulus duration, intersimulus interval, and encoding technique.

Abstract

Two experiments test;d whether short-term recall for auditory digit sequences f efficient encoding techniques and increases in either rdigit interval. All three hypotheses received strong In addition, analysis of interactions between length and digit duration, interdigit interval, and encoding conclusions that longer digit durations and interdigit sed resistance to forgetting at longer retention intervals techniques improve recall regardless of the length of

Short-term retention of visual sequences as a function of stimulus duration and encoding technique.

“…In addition, Miscik et al found that digit duration interacted with retention interval in that the facilitatory effect of longer durations was greater at longer retention intervals than at shorter ones. Perhaps as Miscik et al suggested, extra rehearsal time associated with longer digit durations made these items more resistant to forgetting at longer retention intervals.Not surprisingly, Miscik et al (1972) also found that more efficient encoding techniques (chunking) improved short-term retention of auditorily presented digits. Somewhat less expected, however, was the finding that chunking the digits was consistently superior to not chunking them at all digit durations and at all retention intervals.…”

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An earlier study had concluded that (a) facilitation of short-term recall for auditory digit sequences by increases in digit duration were due to increased rehearsal time available under these conditions, and that this extra rehearsal time was more facilitative at longer rather than at shorter retention intervals; and (b) efficient encoding techniques improved recall regardless of retention interval length. The present study not only confirmed these conclusions for a situation where digit sequences received both a visual and an auditory encoding but also determined that the digit duration which is critical in terms of allowing significantly more rehearsal time is between .5 and 1 sec.Recent studies (Haber & Nathanson, 1969;Miscik, Smith, Hamm, Deffenbacher, & Brown, 1972 ;Sitterly, 1968) have shown that improvements in short-term retention of digit strings can be accomplished by increases in digit duration as well as interdigit interval, the latter effect having already been well established. In addition, Miscik et al found that digit duration interacted with retention interval in that the facilitatory effect of longer durations was greater at longer retention intervals than at shorter ones.

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“…Recent studies (Haber & Nathanson, 1969;Miscik, Smith, Hamm, Deffenbacher, & Brown, 1972 ;Sitterly, 1968) have shown that improvements in short-term retention of digit strings can be accomplished by increases in digit duration as well as interdigit interval, the latter effect having already been well established. In addition, Miscik et al found that digit duration interacted with retention interval in that the facilitatory effect of longer durations was greater at longer retention intervals than at shorter ones.…”

“…Somewhat less expected, however, was the finding that chunking the digits was consistently superior to not chunking them at all digit durations and at all retention intervals. These two results suggested that (a) facilitation of recall by longer durations apparently cannot be explained in terms of longer durations allowing more time for chunking to operate, as 5s were able to chunk effectively at even the briefest duration (.5 sec); and (6) chunking either increased resistance to forgetting during stimulus presentation or permitted more effective retrieval regardless of retention interval.The present experiment attempted to determine whether the Miscik et al (1972) findings also hold for a situation where digit strings receive a visual as well as an auditory encoding. Digit strings are presented visually with 5s required to group them aloud.…”

Increasing stimulus duration improves attention and memory performance in elderly with cognitive impairment

“… 10 In a study of 122 normal undergraduates, increased resistance to forgetting at longer retention intervals was found for auditory digit sequences at longer digit durations and inter-digit intervals. 11 A few studies have investigated the effect of increasing stimulus duration on perception (awareness of a sensory stimulus), in healthy individuals. 12 – 14 These studies have employed awareness scales and task accuracy measurements and have demonstrated that both improve as a function of stimulus duration.…”