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Related Experiment Videos

Fill-in and infill errors in order memory.

Aimée M Surprenant1, Matthew R Kelley, Lisa A Farley

  • 1Purdue University, Department of Psychological Sciences, 703 Third Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2004, USA. aimee@psych.purdue.edu

Memory (Hove, England)
|June 15, 2005
PubMed
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This study investigated memory errors in recall tasks, finding that "fill-in" errors (recalling a preceding item) are twice as common as "infill" errors (recalling a succeeding item). Current memory models do not fully explain these findings.

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Human Memory Research

Background:

  • Memory models predict error patterns but lack sufficient empirical data for testing.
  • Understanding specific error types, like fill-in and infill errors, is crucial for refining memory theories.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To empirically investigate the relative frequencies of fill-in and infill errors in immediate serial recall tasks.
  • To compare the observed error patterns with predictions from existing memory models.

Main Methods:

  • Two experiments were conducted using immediate serial recall tasks.
  • Participants' error patterns were analyzed, specifically focusing on the sequence of recalled items following an initial intrusion error.

Main Results:

  • Both experiments demonstrated a higher frequency of fill-in errors compared to infill errors.

Related Experiment Videos

  • This 2:1 ratio of fill-in to infill errors was consistent across all list positions.

    • Conclusions:

    • Existing computational models of human memory do not adequately account for the observed prevalence of fill-in and infill errors.
    • Further theoretical development is needed to explain these specific memory error dynamics.