Research article summary (published 30 Jul 2009):

Agenda-based regulation of study-time allocation: when agendas override item-based monitoring.

Full Abstract

Theories of self-regulated study assume that learners monitor item difficulty when making decisions about which items to select for study. To complement such theories, the authors propose an agenda-based regulation (ABR) model in which learners' study decisions are guided by an agenda that learners develop to prioritize items for study, given their goals and task constraints. Across 4 experiments, the authors orthogonally manipulated 1 task constraint-the reward structure of the task-with objective item difficulty, so that learners could use either item difficulty or potential reward in deciding how to allocate their study time. Learners studied items, were tested, and then selected half the items for restudy. As predicted by the ABR model, reward structure drove item selection more than did item difficulty, which demonstrates learners' agendas can override the effects of monitoring item difficulty in the allocation of study time.

Author information

Author/s: Ariel, Robert (R); Dunlosky, John (J); Bailey, Heather (H);

Affiliation: Psychology Department, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242, USA.

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: Journal of experimental psychology. General (J Exp Psychol Gen), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Aug; vol 138 (issue 3) : pp 432-47

Dates: Created 2009/08/05; Completed 2009/09/25;

PMID: 19653800, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 9/25/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Attention Choice Behavior Culture Decision Making Humans Memory, Short-Term

Memory, Short-Term Mental Recall Motivation Paired-Associate Learning Serial Learning Time Perception

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