Mnemonics are strategies that can enhance learning and memory of course material. An online survey examined psychology students’ metacognitive awareness and self-reported behaviors regarding mnemonics. Results showed that most participants could define mnemonics, but only a minority could describe the cognitive mechanisms involved. Participants were more familiar with some mnemonics (acronyms and acrostics) compared to others (pegword); further, the most common sources of mnemonics were those created by the students themselves and those provided by the instructors. Usefulness of mnemonics was rated at a moderate level compared to other common study strategies. Finally, the ratings for mnemonics were positive and correlated with independent measures of metacognition as well as psychology course experience. Findings are discussed in the context of increasing mnemonics in psychology education.
BalchW. R. (2001). Study tips: How helpful do introductory psychology students find them?Teaching of Psychology, 28, 272–274. doi:10.1207/S15328023TOP2804_09
2.
BalchW. R. (2005). Elaborations of introductory psychology terms: Effects on test performance and subjective ratings. Teaching of Psychology, 32, 29–34.
3.
BeggI.VinskiE.FrankovichL.HolgateB. (1991). Generating makes words memorable, but so does effective reading. Memory & Cognition, 19, 487–497. doi:10.3758/BF03199571
4.
BellezzaF. S. (1996). Mnemonic methods to enhance storage and retrieval. In BjorkE. L.,BjorkR. A. (Eds.), Memory (pp. 345–380). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
5.
BjorkR. A. (1994). Memory and metamemory considerations in the training of human beings. In MetcalfeJ.ShimamuraA. (Eds.), Metacognition: Knowing about knowing (pp. 185–205). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Retrieved fromhttp://bjorklab.psych.ucla.edu
6.
BloomC. M.LamkinD. M. (2006). The Olympian struggle to remember the cranial nerves: Mnemonics and student success. Teaching of Psychology, 33, 128–129. Retrieved fromhttp://teachpsych.org/top/index.php
7.
CarlsonL.ZimmerJ.GloverJ. (1981). First-letter mnemonics: Dam (Don't Aid Memory). The Journal of General Psychology, 104, 287–292. Retrieved from PsycINFO.
8.
CarneyR. N.LevinJ. R. (1998). Coming to terms with the keyword method in introductory psychology: A neuromnemonic example. Teaching of Psychology, 25, 132–134. doi:10.1207/s15328023top2502_15
9.
CarneyR. N.LevinJ. R. (2008). Conquering mnemonophobia, with help from three practical measures of memory and application. Teaching of Psychology, 35, 176–183. doi:10.1080/00986280802186151
10.
CarneyR. N.LevinJ. R.LevinM. E. (1994). Enhancing the psychology of memory by enhancing memory of psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 21, 171–174. doi:10.1207/s15328023top2103_12
11.
CraikF.LockhartR. (1972). Levels of processing: A framework for memory research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 11, 671–684. doi:10.1016/S0022-5371(72)80001-X
12.
DuncanT. G.McKeachieW. J. (2005). The making of the motivated strategies for learning questionnaire. Educational Psychologist, 40, 117–128. doi:10.1207/s15326985ep4002_6
13.
FlemingV. M. (2002). Improving students' exam performance by introducing study strategies and goal setting. Teaching of Psychology, 29, 115–119. doi:10.1207/S15328023TOP2902_07
14.
KarpickeJ. D.ButlerA.RoedigerH. L.III. (2009). Metacognitive strategies in student learning: Do students practise retrieval when they study on their own?Memory, 17, 471–479. doi:10.1080/09658210802647009
15.
KornellN.BjorkR. A. (2007). The promise and perils of self-regulated study. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 14, 219–224. doi:10.3758/BF03194055
16.
KornellN.BjorkR. A. (2008). Learning concepts and categories: Is spacing the “enemy of induction”?Psychological Science, 19, 585–592. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02127.x
17.
KornellN.SonL. K. (2009). Learners’ choices and beliefs about self-testing. Memory, 17, 493–501. doi:10.1080/09658210902832915
18.
LakinJ. L.GieslerR. B.MorrisK. A.VosmikJ. R. (2007). HOMER as an acronym for the scientific method. Teaching of Psychology, 34, 94–96. Retrieved from PsycINFO
19.
McCabeJ. (2011). Metacognitive awareness of learning strategies in undergraduates. Memory & Cognition, 39, 462–476. doi:10.3758/s13421-010-0035-2
20.
McCabeJ. A. (in preparation). Learning the brain in Introductory Psychology: Examining the generation effect for mnemonics and examples. Manuscript in preparation.
21.
PintrichP. R.SmithD. A. F.GarciaT.McKeachieW. J. (1991). A manual for the use of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ). Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan, National Center for Research to Improve Postsecondary Teaching and Learning.
22.
PintrichP. R.SmithD. A. F.GarciaT.McKeachieW. J. (1993). Reliability and predictive validity of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ). Educational and Psychological Measurement, 53, 801–813. doi:10.1177/0013164493053003024
23.
PressleyM.MullallyJ. (1984). Alternative research paradigms in the analysis of mnemonics. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 9, 48–60. doi:10.1016/0361-476X(84)90007-9
RogersT. B.KuiperN. A.KirkerW. S. (1977). Self-reference and the encoding of personal information. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 35, 677–688. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.35.9.677
26.
SaberJ. L.JohnsonR. D. (2008). Don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater: Verbal repetition, mnemonics, and active learning. Journal of Marketing Education, 30, 207–216. doi:10.1177/0273475308324630
27.
ShimamuraA. P. (1984). A guide for teaching mnemonic skills. Teaching of Psychology, 11, 162–166. Retrieved from PsycINFO
28.
SlameckaN. J.GrafP. (1978). The generation effect: Delineation of a phenomenon. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory, 4, 592–604. doi:10.1037/0278-7393.4.6.592
29.
SolerM. J.RuizJ. C. (1996). The spontaneous use of memory aids at different educational levels. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 10, 41–51. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199602)10:1<41:: AID-ACP361>3.0.CO;2-1
30.
SperlingR. A.HowardB. C.StaleyR.DuBoisN. (2004). Metacognition and self-regulated learning constructs. Educational Research and Evaluation, 10, 117–139. doi:10.1076/edre.10.2.117.27905
31.
StalderD. R. (2005). Learning and motivational benefits of acronym use in introductory psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 32, 222–228. doi:10.1207/s15328023top3204_3
32.
StalderD. R., & Olson (2011). T for two: Using mnemonics to teach statistics. Teaching of Psychology, 38, 247–250. Retrieved from PsycINFO
33.
SusserJ. A.McCabeJ. (2013). From the lab to the dorm room: Metacognitive awareness and use of spaced study. Instructional Science, 41(2), 345–363. doi: 10.1007/s11251-012-9231-8
34.
TuckmanB. W. (2003). The effect of learning and motivation strategies training on college students' achievement. Journal of College Student Development, 44, 430–437. doi:10.1353/csd.20030034
35.
VanVoorhisC. R. W. (2002). Stat jingles: To sing or not to sing. Teaching of Psychology, 29, 249–250. Retrieved from PsycINFO
