Browsing by Author "Kraemer, Kyle Rhoads"

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    How does memory self-efficacy affect source memory within a reality monitoring task?
    (University of Alabama Libraries, 2020) Kraemer, Kyle Rhoads; Black, Sheila R.; McDonough, Ian M.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
    The ability to correctly identify the source of a memory is of vital importance to a person’s everyday life. According to the source monitoring framework, memories do not contain source labels, and inferences about the source of a memory must be drawn from the quality of a memory itself. Thus, errors in source memory can occur either due to the quality of the memory in question or due to the inference drawn from characteristics of the memory trace. Recent research has shown the effects of beliefs and expectations on memory, including memory self-efficacy, or belief in one’s ability to succeed in memory tasks. However, the proposed mechanisms through which memory self-efficacy affects memory vary widely and have not been systematically investigated and compared. The current studies demonstrate that the correlation between self-efficacy and memory ability extends to reality monitoring tasks. However, they yield an overall lack of evidence that self-efficacy increases engagement with reality monitoring tasks during encoding. While some evidence suggests that memory self-efficacy shifts the characteristics used to draw reality monitoring inferences, the effects were relatively small, and the shifts in memory self-efficacy did not impact memory accuracy. These findings suggest investigation of other sources of the memory self-efficacy/performance relationship, such as metacognitive awareness. These results have implications for basic research in memory, as well as for practical applications of memory research, such as memory training interventions and eyewitness testimony.
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    Priming of landmarks during object-location tasks: effects on self-efficacy of older adults
    (University of Alabama Libraries, 2016) Kraemer, Kyle Rhoads; Black, Sheila R.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
    Computer-based training programs are a new way that many personal skills are being developed, maintained, or enhanced. However, in order for a computer-based training program to be effective, users must be highly motivated to complete the required tasks. One way to improve motivation for continuing tasks is through increasing self-efficacy, or a person’s perceived ability in an area. While older adults might greatly benefit from computer-based training programs for memory, low self-efficacy for both memory and computer use can be a barrier to motivation, limiting potential benefits. However, a person’s self-efficacy can be improved by experiencing success in a task. The current study investigated whether priming a landmark could be used to generate such success in an object-location memory task, ultimately enhancing older adults’ self-efficacy. Participants were 62 older adults and 59 younger adults who were shown a series of videos of virtual rooms and had to make memory judgments about where they had seen certain items in those rooms. Half of the participants were primed for spatial landmarks for specific objects in the virtual environment, while half were not. While many previously established effects were replicated, priming of landmarks did not significantly impact memory or self-efficacy. However, exploration of secondary analyses emphasized the importance of improving self-efficacy in older adults for these types of tasks. Specifically, self-efficacy in older adults was lower than younger adults, even after controlling for memory performance. Considerations of the importance of self-efficacy for memory performance and motivation in older adults are explored.