Research › Ageing, Memory & Cognition
A psychophysiological investigation of the von Restorff paradigm in children
STS Instructor Authored by Giuseppe A. Chiarenza
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Study at a glance
- Area
- Ageing, Memory & Cognition
- Study type
- Observational study
- Authors
- Fabiani M, Gratton G, Chiarenza GA, Donchin E
- Journal
- Journal of Psychophysiology
- Year
- 1990
- Participants
- 10
- Population
- Children
- Protocol
- event-related potentials (P300) during memory encoding
Key findings
- Standout (isolated) words were recalled better than matched ordinary words
- Standout words produced larger P300 responses
- Larger P300 at encoding predicted later recall of standout words
- Children may show a strong effect because they rely less on rehearsal strategies; small sample of 10
Fifth-grade children memorised word lists in which one word was sometimes made to stand out by printing it in a bigger font, while event-related potentials were recorded. As in adults, the standout words were remembered better, and they produced a bigger P300 brain response. Among standout words, those later recalled had produced larger P300s than those forgotten, supporting the idea that distinctive items get special encoding at the moment they are seen.