Memory formation and recall are greatly
influenced by how items of information relate to each other. In the case of
words, different words that have related categorical meanings are often easier
to remember as a unit. For example, in a list of words that include spinach,
cabbage, and lettuce, recalling any one of these words will assist in recall of
the other two, because they have a related meaning of green vegetables. They
are "semantically clustered."
Several studies have shown that when
people are asked to memorize a list of words and recall them in any order, they
tend to recall words that are related. For example, in a list that contains animal
names, flowers, grocery items, and historical events, a person who recalls
"cat" is also likely to recall the "dog" item that was in
the list. This happens because we all have a tendency to organize things by
groups. Few of us capitalize on the power of this approach with a deliberate
strategy to do so.
In a study of whether semantic
clustering helps older people to remember, a comparison was made between 132
younger subjects (ages 18-30) and 120 older ones (60-84). In the experiment subjects
were asked to memorize two lists of words, one with words presented one at a
time and the other all at once so that subjects could see what words might
reasonably be clustered. For the whole-list presentation, subjects were
instructed on how they might use clustering.
When the groups were instructed to
use semantic clustering on the second list of words, both groups showed clear
and comparable improvement in recalling words presented in a whole list, as
opposed to presentation one at a time. The beneficial effect was reflected in
faster recall responses and in working memory capacity.
Bottom line: to remember a list of
items, try to group similar items in your mind. Try it with your grocery list
next time you go to the grocery store.
Sources:
Manning, J. R., and Kahana, M. J.
(2012). Interpreting semantic clustering effects in free recall. Memory.
doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2012.683010.
Kuhlmann, B. G., and D. R. Touron.
(2016) Aging and memory improvement through semantic clustering: The role of
list-presentation format. Psychology of Aging. 31(7): 771-785.
