When retrieval practice improves learning - characteristics of this testing effect and the influence of study material

重复检索以前学习过的材料不仅可以提高对检索到的材料的回忆，而且可以提高对随后学习的材料的学习和记忆。这种效应通常称为前向测试效应 (FTE)。虽然之前的工作已经证明了基本 FTE 的存在及其对不同环境和参与者群体的普遍性，但对于该效应的核心特征还没有太多了解。例如，目前尚不清楚 FTE 是否依赖于先前研究材料的检索实践，或者也可能由其他形式的检索活动产生。目前尚不清楚如果学习和测试之间的保留间隔延长，FTE 是否持久且仍然存在。然而，具体而言，尚不清楚 FTE 是否随材料而变化，以及是否可以使用不同的材料创建数量甚至质量上不同的 FTE。该项目及其 8 个实验系列的目标是为这些和其他开放研究问题提供答案。该项目还旨在提供理论贡献。目前流行的 FTE 解释声称改进的检索引起的学习材料语义组织是 FTE 的基础，与另一种解释形成鲜明对比，另一种解释预测不同材料之间质量不同的 FTE。对于该项目中解决的所有研究问题，这两种说法导致了不同的预测。因此，该项目将对这两个账户进行广泛的测试，并将极大地提高我们对调解 FTE 的认知机制的理解。在过去的十年中，测试效果受到文献和媒体的广泛关注，部分原因是 FTE 在教育领域具有巨大的应用潜力。通过提供 FTE 核心特征的第一张详细图片，该项目的结果将极大地促进这一潜力。

The repeated retrieval of previously studied material does not only improve recall of the retrieved material but also improves learning and memory of subsequently studied material. This effect is often termed the forward testing effect (FTE). While prior work has demonstrated the existence of the basic FTE and its generalizability to different settings and participant groups, there is not much knowledge yet about central characteristics of the effect. For instance, it is still far from clear whether the FTE depends on retrieval practice of the previously studied material or may also arise by other forms of retrieval activities. It is unclear whether the FTE is lasting and still present if the retention interval between learning and test is prolonged. In particular, however, it is unclear whether the FTE varies with material, and whether quantitatively or even qualitatively different FTEs can be created with different materials. It is the goal of this project and its series of 8 experiments to provide answers on these and other open research questions. The project also aims to provide a theoretical contribution. The currently favored explanation of the FTE, which claims that improved retrieval-induced semantic organization of the study material underlies the FTE, is contrasted with an alternative account, which predicts qualitatively different FTEs across different materials. For all research questions addressed in this project, the two accounts lead to different predictions. The project will thus lead to an extensive test of the two accounts and will drastically improve our understanding of the cognitive mechanisms mediating the FTE. During the past decade, testing effects have received a lot of attention in the literature and the media partly because considerable application potential of the FTE is seen within the educational context. By providing a first detailed picture of central characteristcs of the FTE, the results of this project will significantly contribute to this potential.