'Show me, don't tell me'; is this a good approach for rehabilitation?

To assess the possible memory advantages of the subject-performed task (SPT) and experimenter-performed task (EPT) encoding method in rehabilitation settings.

Controlled quasi-experimental trial.

University research laboratory and community setting.

Eighteen stroke survivors and 18 age-, education- and gender-matched controls.

Participants were instructed to study three lists of 20 action phrases (such as 'ring the bell') by either reading, performing or observing others perform the tasks for later memory assessment.

After the phrases had been studied, verbal and written memory tests were implemented and responses were recorded.

The memory performance of stroke survivors and control groups was significantly better under the SPT method (mean (SD) 7.95 (2.7)) and EPT method (mean (SD) 7.95 (2.5)) relative to the baseline verbal task method (mean (SD) 4.2 (1.9)), (P<0.001 ANOVA). Participants also remembered functional tasks better than clinical tasks (P<0.001 ANOVA).

Encoding by the SPT and EPT methods are significantly more effective than receiving verbal instructions. The SPT and EPT encoding methods show promise and therapists may be able to use them in the clinic to facilitate the memory performance of stroke survivors.