Imagery Instructions Reduce False Memories Across the Visual Imagery Spectrum

Visual mental imagery is widely theorized to support memory by enhancing the richness and distinctiveness of encoded representations. However, it remains unclear how imagery ability interacts with different encoding strategies to shape memory performance. The present study examined how encoding modality (imagery vs. verbal) and processing focus (item-specific vs. relational) interact with visual imagery ability to influence veridical and false memory in the Deese–Roediger–McDermott (DRM) paradigm. A total of 173 participants (71 aphantasic participants, 12 intermediate, and 90 typical imagers) completed ten DRM lists under one of four encoding conditions in a 2 × 2 between-subjects design. Our results suggest that true recall did not differ reliably between different encoding strategies, nor was it consistently predicted by Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (VVIQ) scores, indicating that imagery ability does not broadly determine veridical memory accuracy. In contrast, imagery-based encoding reduced false memories (critical lure recall) compared with verbal encoding across the range of imagery abilities. Notably, individuals with aphantasia, despite reporting greater difficulty implementing imagery instructions, showed comparable benefits from imagery-based encoding. This finding suggests that the mnemonic benefits of imagery-based strategies may not depend exclusively on conscious visual imagery and may involve alternative representational processes. These findings challenge the assumption that imagery vividness predicts memory performance and open new avenues for understanding compensatory encoding mechanisms in aphantasia.