TY - JOUR
T1 - Implicit Memory for Possible and Impossible Objects
T2 - Constraints on the Construction of Structural Descriptions
AU - Schacter, Daniel L.
AU - Cooper, Lynn A.
AU - Delaney, Suzanne M.
AU - Peterson, Mary A.
AU - Tharan, Mindy
PY - 1991/1
Y1 - 1991/1
N2 - Four experiments examined implicit memory or priming effects on an object decision task in which subjects decided whether structurally possible or impossible novel objects could exist in three-dimensional form. Results revealed equivalent levels of priming for possible objects after 1 vs. 4 5-s exposures to the same structural encoding task (Experiment 1) and when objects were studied with a single structural encoding task or 2 different structural encoding tasks (Experiment 3). Explicit memory, by contrast, was greatly affected by both manipulations. However, priming of possible objects was not observed when Ss were given only a single 1-s exposure to perform a structural encoding task (Experiment 2). No evidence for priming of impossible objects was observed in any of the 4 experiments. The data suggest that object decision priming depends on a presemantic structural description system that is distinct from episodic memory.
AB - Four experiments examined implicit memory or priming effects on an object decision task in which subjects decided whether structurally possible or impossible novel objects could exist in three-dimensional form. Results revealed equivalent levels of priming for possible objects after 1 vs. 4 5-s exposures to the same structural encoding task (Experiment 1) and when objects were studied with a single structural encoding task or 2 different structural encoding tasks (Experiment 3). Explicit memory, by contrast, was greatly affected by both manipulations. However, priming of possible objects was not observed when Ss were given only a single 1-s exposure to perform a structural encoding task (Experiment 2). No evidence for priming of impossible objects was observed in any of the 4 experiments. The data suggest that object decision priming depends on a presemantic structural description system that is distinct from episodic memory.
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U2 - 10.1037/0278-7393.17.1.3
DO - 10.1037/0278-7393.17.1.3
M3 - Article
C2 - 1826731
AN - SCOPUS:0025929887
SN - 0278-7393
VL - 17
SP - 3
EP - 19
JO - Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition
JF - Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition
IS - 1
ER -