Learning from Tests: The Case of True-False Examinations

Sixty-four college students read a series of passages about 12 U.S. presidents and then took a true-false exam on the material. One week later, they took a second exam in which they rated each item on a 7-point scale, ranging from definitely false to definitely true. Some items on the second exam were repeated from the first exam, whereas other items (nonrepeated items) were presented previously. Results indicated that mean validity ratings on the second exam were higher for repeated items than for nonrepeated items regardless of whether the items were true or false. That is, subjects were more likely to believe an item to be true if they had encountered it previously on the initial true-false exam. This occurrence for objectively false items constitutes evidence for a “negative suggestion effect” (Remmers & Remmers, 1926), in which students learn incorrect information as a result of exposure to false items. Practical and theoretical implications of these findings are discussed.