Disentangling the effect of event-based cues on children's time-based prospective memory performance

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Cognitive Neuroscience

Background:

• Previous research on time-based prospective memory often used event-based cues.
• The role of event-based cues in time-based prospective memory development is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how the availability of event-based cues affects time-based prospective memory in preschoolers.
• To examine the developmental trajectory of time-based prospective memory in young children.

Main Methods:

• A 2x2 within-participants design was used with 72 preschoolers (aged 3-5 years).
• Participants completed a time-based prospective memory task (ringing a bell after a 1-min sand timer) under four conditions: visible/hidden timer and single/dual task.
• The dual task involved picture naming.

Main Results:

• Children were more successful in ringing the bell on time when the timer was visible and when performing a single task.
• Performance improved with age across all conditions.
• Children were more likely to ring the bell before 2 minutes had elapsed in the visible-timer and single-task conditions.

Conclusions:

• The development of time-based prospective memory differs based on the presence or absence of event-based cues.
• Event-based cues may play a significant role in performance on traditional time-based prospective memory tasks.