Picture-word differences in the acquisition and retention of paired associates.

In a study of paired-associate learning and retention, the mode of presentation (pictures versus words) of the stimuli and the responses was varied factorially. The numbers of acquisition trials were adjusted to control degree of learning, and recall was tested 1 week after the end of acquisition. Learning was substantially retarded when pictures rather than words were used as responses. Rate of improvement over trials was faster with pictorial than with verbal stimuli, but these effects were less pronounced than those on the response side. The differences in long-term retention were relatively small. The stimulus mode had no effect; the picture-response ggroups showed some advantage over the word-response groups. Some of the results pose difficulties for current interpretations of picture--word differences.