Distinctiveness refers to the memorial benefit of processing unique or item-specific features of a memory set relative to a non-distinctive control. Traditional distinctiveness effects are accounted for based on qualitative differences in how distinctive items are encoded at the time of study. This thesis project aims to evaluate whether a different species of distinctiveness—statistical distinctiveness—may provide a separate contribution to memory beyond traditional encoding-based processes. Statistical distinctiveness refers to the relative frequency with which a specific memory item or set is processed. The current study evaluated statistical distinctiveness through a series of mixed groups in which DRM lists were studied using two of the following three tasks to promote either shallow (“E” identification), neutral (reading silently), or deep/distinctive (pleasantness ratings) levels-of-processing followed by a final recognition test. Participants studied lists in which these tasks were used frequently (80% of lists), equally (50% of lists), or infrequently (20% of lists) which were further compared to a set of pure groups in which all lists were studied using a single task. No recognition advantage was found when tasks were completed infrequently versus frequently. Rather, recognition was greatest for the deep/distinctive task—a pattern consistent with encoding but not statistical distinctiveness.
","abstract_html":"<p>Distinctiveness refers to the memorial benefit of processing unique or item-specific features of a memory set relative to a non-distinctive control. Traditional distinctiveness effects are accounted for based on qualitative differences in how distinctive items are encoded at the time of study. This thesis project aims to evaluate whether a different species of distinctiveness—statistical distinctiveness—may provide a separate contribution to memory beyond traditional encoding-based processes. Statistical distinctiveness refers to the relative frequency with which a specific memory item or set is processed. The current study evaluated statistical distinctiveness through a series of <em>mixed groups</em> in which DRM lists were studied using two of the following three tasks to promote either shallow (“E” identification), neutral (reading silently), or deep/distinctive (pleasantness ratings) levels-of-processing followed by a final recognition test. Participants studied lists in which these tasks were used frequently (80% of lists), equally (50% of lists), or infrequently (20% of lists) which were further compared to a set of <em>pure groups</em> in which all lists were studied using a single task. No recognition advantage was found when tasks were completed infrequently versus frequently. Rather, recognition was greatest for the deep/distinctive task—a pattern consistent with encoding but not statistical distinctiveness.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Gretz, Matthew Robert"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts (MA)","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Mark J. Huff","Lucas Keefer","Alan Hajnal"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2019,"date_issued":"2019-08-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2019-08-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:12Z","subjects":["distinctiveness","memory","levels-of-processing","encoding distinctiveness","statistical distinctiveness","personality","Cognitive Psychology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/676","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Mark J. Huff","Lucas Keefer","Alan Hajnal"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Gretz, Matthew Robert"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2019-06-21T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Masters Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["distinctiveness","memory","levels-of-processing","encoding distinctiveness","statistical distinctiveness","personality","Cognitive Psychology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/676"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Distinctiveness refers to the memorial benefit of processing unique or item-specific features of a memory set relative to a non-distinctive control. Traditional distinctiveness effects are accounted for based on qualitative differences in how distinctive items are encoded at the time of study. This thesis project aims to evaluate whether a different species of distinctiveness—statistical distinctiveness—may provide a separate contribution to memory beyond traditional encoding-based processes. Statistical distinctiveness refers to the relative frequency with which a specific memory item or set is processed. The current study evaluated statistical distinctiveness through a series of mixed groups in which DRM lists were studied using two of the following three tasks to promote either shallow (“E” identification), neutral (reading silently), or deep/distinctive (pleasantness ratings) levels-of-processing followed by a final recognition test. Participants studied lists in which these tasks were used frequently (80% of lists), equally (50% of lists), or infrequently (20% of lists) which were further compared to a set of pure groups in which all lists were studied using a single task. No recognition advantage was found when tasks were completed infrequently versus frequently. Rather, recognition was greatest for the deep/distinctive task—a pattern consistent with encoding but not statistical distinctiveness.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Multiple Species of Distinctiveness in Memory: Separating Task Distinctiveness from Statistical Distinctiveness"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Mark J. Huff","Lucas Keefer","Alan Hajnal"],"dc:creator":["Gretz, Matthew Robert"],"dc:date.available":["2019-06-21T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Distinctiveness refers to the memorial benefit of processing unique or item-specific features of a memory set relative to a non-distinctive control. Traditional distinctiveness effects are accounted for based on qualitative differences in how distinctive items are encoded at the time of study. This thesis project aims to evaluate whether a different species of distinctiveness—statistical distinctiveness—may provide a separate contribution to memory beyond traditional encoding-based processes. Statistical distinctiveness refers to the relative frequency with which a specific memory item or set is processed. The current study evaluated statistical distinctiveness through a series of mixed groups in which DRM lists were studied using two of the following three tasks to promote either shallow (“E” identification), neutral (reading silently), or deep/distinctive (pleasantness ratings) levels-of-processing followed by a final recognition test. Participants studied lists in which these tasks were used frequently (80% of lists), equally (50% of lists), or infrequently (20% of lists) which were further compared to a set of pure groups in which all lists were studied using a single task. No recognition advantage was found when tasks were completed infrequently versus frequently. Rather, recognition was greatest for the deep/distinctive task—a pattern consistent with encoding but not statistical distinctiveness.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/676"],"dc:subject":["distinctiveness","memory","levels-of-processing","encoding distinctiveness","statistical distinctiveness","personality","Cognitive Psychology"],"dc:title":["Multiple Species of Distinctiveness in Memory: Separating Task Distinctiveness from Statistical Distinctiveness"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts (MA)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:12Z"}