Aging Effects on the Motivational Consequences of Unsuccessful Memory Recall
Abstract
The present thesis addressed whether experiences of failed recall for names of familiar faces could induce states of curiosity and drive memory benefits. Experiment 1 investigated whether older adults exhibit the same familiarity preference in information seeking, following an unsuccessful recall attempt for names of previously studied faces, as seen in younger adults. Experiment 2 considered whether acting on the curiosity induced by unsuccessful recall of names associated with familiar faces could provide benefits for the relearning of those names in both age groups. The older adults displayed a similar, if not more pronounced, positive relationship between familiarity and subsequent information seeking as was observed in the younger adults. Giving participants an opportunity to leverage their own curiosity to relearn the names of familiar faces following an unsuccessful recall attempt led to higher recall accuracy rates than exposure to names under conditions in which curiosity could not be acted upon.