Free recall in Williams syndrome: is there a dissociation between short- and long-term memory?

Full Abstract

Two experiments used the free recall paradigm to investigate verbal memory abilities in Williams syndrome (WS)--a rare genetic disorder. In an earlier free recall study, Vicari et al. (1996a) reported that, unlike TD controls, children with WS showed a recency effect but failed to show a primacy effect. These authors interpreted their findings as evidence for a dissociation between relatively strong verbal short-term memory and relatively impaired verbal long-term memory. In Experiment 1 of the current study, children with WS and TD controls showed comparable improvements in performance with repeated testing of the same material, indicating similar long-term learning of the test items. Neither group showed evidence of primacy effects. However, the extent of primacy effects in free recall is known to depend on the rehearsal strategy that participants adopt. In Experiment 2, therefore, participants were encouraged to engage in overt cumulative rehearsal. This manipulation resulted in significant and comparable primacy effects in both groups, although neither group demonstrated a significant change in overall performance. There was therefore no evidence from either experiment for a dissociation between short- and long-term verbal memory in WS.

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Author information

Author/s: Brock, Jon (J); Brown, Gordon D A (GD); Boucher, Jill (J);

Affiliation: Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK. jon.brock(-atsign-)bristol.ac.uk

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior (Cortex), published in Italy. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2006-Apr; vol 42 (issue 3) : pp 366-75

Dates: Created 2006/06/14; Completed 2006/07/28; Revised 2006/11/15;

PMID: 16771042, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Male
Memory, Short-Term - physiology
Mental Recall - physiology
Practice (Psychology)
Reference Values
Verbal Learning - physiology
Williams Syndrome - physiopathology

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