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Disentangling exposure- and retrieval-based mechanisms of word–image associative learning through repeated recognition practice

Poster Session A - Saturday, March 7, 2026, 3:00 – 5:00 pm PST, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballroom
Also presenting in Data Blitz Session 1 - Saturday, March 7, 2026, 10:30 am – 12:00 pm PST, Salon ABC.

Janvi Subramanyan¹ (), Paul J. Reber¹; ¹Northwestern University

Repeated practice enhances explicit memory, a strategy well-known as rote learning but which has not been incorporated into neuroscience-based models of memory within the medial temporal lobe. Practice administered through forced-choice recognition memory tests allows for several learning opportunities: exposure to the item and answer choices, reactivating previously acquired knowledge for response selection, and receiving feedback about accuracy. Here, we examined memory performance for 40 novel molecule image-name associations over 12 cycles of four-alternative forced-choice (4AFC) recognition practice (60 minutes). In a first study (n=28), performance increased reliably across repetitions and was fit by a simple maximum-likelihood model with a single learning parameter that seemingly combined all facets of memory strengthening. This suggested that a substantial contribution to learning may occur during initial exposure to the image when it is presented with the correct answer and three foils, even before participants attempt to answer or receive feedback. In a second study (n=63), half the participants completed practice repetitions in a condition in which two of the foils frequently reappeared with the correct answer. These recurring foils tended to be selected despite feedback that they were incorrect, leading to slower overall learning. An updated quantitative model with these data was able to separately estimate the amount of associative learning from exposure to the image and answer options versus memory strengthening from retrieval and subsequent feedback. These findings offer a mechanistic explanation of explicit memory strengthening during repeated forced-choice recognition practice, describing learning from both passive exposure and active retrieval with feedback.

Topic Area: LONG-TERM MEMORY: Semantic