Individual differences in memory self-efficacy and learning ability
Amy Chen—Psychology
Faculty Mentor(s): Ashley Miller, Nash Unsworth
Session: Prerecorded Poster Presentation
Memory self-efficacy (MSE) is one’s evaluation of their memory abilities, which can be broken down into concurrent and global estimates . Concurrent MSE refers to perceived, current memory ability for a specific task, whereas global MSE refers to one’s perceived memory ability more generally, across various memory domains . The present study sought to extend prior work by examining how variation in MSE relates to learning ability on a delayed free recall (DFR) task . In three experiments, participants completed a DFR task, measures of working memory capacity (WMC), long-term memory (LTM) ability, and motivation . Experiment 1 measured global MSE (Lineweaver & Hertzog, 2010) upon completion of the DFR task . Experiment 2 measured concurrent MSE by asking participants to predict how many words they could remember for each list on the DFR task . Experiment 3 used a similar method as Experiment 2 but also administered a more standard concurrent MSE questionnaire (Berry, 1999) . Encoding strategy use on the DFR task was also measured . Results revealed global MSE was unrelated to learning ability . Concurrent MSE, however, was consistently associated with learning ability . Those who believed they were capable of remembering more items displayed better DFR accuracy . These individuals also had higher WMC, higher LTM ability, increased motivation, and used more effective encoding strategies . Critically, concurrent MSE continued to explain unique variance in DFR accuracy even when accounting for WMC, LTM, motivation, and effective strategy use . Collectively, these results suggest that one’s evaluation of their specific memory abilities is a critical component of successful learning .