Verbal learning processes and mechanisms

Verbal Learning

This is a guideline and template and is NOT to be used as a turn-in paper.

The verbal learning concept contains both the written and spoken word. Verbal learning is normally linked with the memorization and retention of a series of related words in order to depict fundamental elements of associative learning. But this method of learning involves more than just the memorization of words.

Many stimuli, such as pictures, odors, locations, etc. can be studied. The types of mental events that occur in verbal learning studies go beyond passive memorization, as learners can play a very active role in manipulating experimental stimuli (Minnesota State University Moorhead, n.d.).

Herman Ebbinghaus is known for his early work on verbal learning. Many of his methods are still popular and continue to be used in verbal learning research today.

Three Verbal Learning Techniques

Serial Verbal Learning -- remembering words in order. This involves having participants reviewing a list of items or words that are presented one at a time, and remembering the items or words according to the original order that they appeared in the list.

Serial verbal learning also includes serial position effect. Being able to recall items or words from a list is strongly influenced by the order that they were listed on the page. So there is a better recall result if the item was listed first (primacy effect) or with-in the last few (recency effect) items on the list. Items that appear in the middle are not remembered as well.

Paired associate learning (PA) -- items are presented in pairs or relate two words jointly. This involves having 2 items (a stimulus and response item) paired as stimuli (e.g., BOAT-

CHAIR). When the items pairs are committed to memory, the presentation of the first word (the stimulus word) should evoke the second word (the response word). So presenting BOAT should elicit a response of CHAIR (Minnesota State University Moorhead, n.d.).

Certain difficulties can arise in PA learning. If the items used as stimulus words in a PA task are too similar, discrimination ability decreases, leading to errors in recall. Another difficulty may occur with learning of response items, i.e. meaningful responses are learned easier than non-meaningful responses (Minnesota State University Moorhead, n.d.).

Free recall learning -- retain as much information and recall it regardless of its order. This method is unstructured; learners can remember words in any order they would like. Although dissimilar from serial learning, free recall learning will also illustrate a serial position effect comparable to that obtained with serial learning.

The more an item is rehearsed, the greater tendency the item will be able to be recalled. Organizing information into a meaningful system will also help the recall ability. An example of this would be categorical clustering -- breaking down a large group of specific words into several smaller groups organized by similarity, such as colors, size, animals, plants, etc.