Modality effect in false recognition: Evidence from Chinese characters

• Published in: International journal of psychology 2010-02, Vol.45 (1), p.4-11
• Main Authors: Mao, Wei Bin, Yang, Zhi Liang, Wang, Lin Song
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Attention; Characters; China; chinese characters; Cross-Cultural Comparison; Discrimination (Psychology); DRM paradigm; Encoding; false memory; False recall; Female; Graphemes; Humans; Language; Male; modality effect; Pattern Recognition, Visual; Reading; Recognition (Psychology); Repression, Psychology; Semantics; Speech Perception; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0020-7594; 1464-066X
• DOI: 10.1080/00207590902757641

Using the Deese/Roediger‐McDermott (DRM) false memory method, Smith and Hunt (1998) first reported the modality effect on false memory and showed that false recall from DRM lists was lower following visual study than following auditory study, which led to numerous studies on the mechanism of modality effect on false memory and provided many competing explanations. In the present experiment, the authors tested the modality effect in false recognition by using a blocked presentation condition and a random presentation condition. The present experiment found a modality effect different from the results of the previous research; namely, false recognition was shown to be greater following visual study than following auditory study, especially in the blocked presentation condition rather than in the random presentation condition. The authors argued that this reversed modality effect may be due to different encoding and processing characteristics between Chinese characters and English words. Compared with English words, visual graphemes of critical lures in Chinese lists are likely to be activated and encoded in participants' minds, thus it is more difficult for participants to discriminate later inner graphemes from those items presented in visual modality. Hence visual presentation could lead to more false recognition than auditory presentation in Chinese lists. The results in the present experiment demonstrated that semantic activation occurring during the encoding and retrieve phases played an important role in modality effect in false recognition, and our findings might be explained by the activation‐monitoring account. Utilisant la méthode de fausse mémoire de Deese/Roediger‐McDermott (DRM), Smith et Hunt (1998) ont d'abord rendu compte de l'effet de modalité sur la fausse mémoire et ils ont montré que le faux rappel à partir des listes de DRM était plus faible suivant une étude visuelle plutôt qu'une étude auditive. Ceci a mené à plusieurs études sur le mécanisme de l'effet de modalité sur la fausse mémoire, lesquelles ont fourni plusieurs explications concurrentes. Dans la présente expérience, les auteurs ont testé l'effet de modalité dans la fausse reconnaissance en utilisant une condition de présentation fixe et une condition de présentation aléatoire. Cette expérience a révélé un effet de modalité différent des résultats obtenus dans les recherches antérieures. En effet, la fausse reconnaissance était plus élevée suivant une étude visuelle plutôt qu'un