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Episodic memory during middle childhood: What is developing?

Published version
Peer-reviewed

Repository DOI


Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Carey, Emma 
Plaisted-Grant, Kate 
Cheke, Lucy G 

Abstract

Whereas previous research has concentrated on the emergence of episodic memory during the early years, fewer investigations have explored the details of this development through middle and late childhood. Considerable variation in task demands and testing methodologies have rendered the trajectory of episodic memory during this period unclear, particularly with regard to which elements are in a state of change at which time. This study separately assessed memory for item, location, and temporal order, as well as integrated what-where-when (WWW) information using a WWW memory test (the Treasure Hunt task), with 84 children aged 6 to 12 years. Two versions of the task were used, varying in the degree of retrieval support while keeping encoding constant. Results show that episodic memory continued to develop across this period, with individual item, spatial, temporal, and WWW memory all improving relatively linearly with age. These improvements were underpinned by both the associative binding and strategic control processes. These findings suggest that it is not any one element of episodic memory that is driving development during this period but that all aspects are continuing to mature in parallel.

Description

Keywords

Associative memory, Cognitive development, Episodic memory, Retrieval ability, Treasure Hunt task, What–where–when memory, Humans, Child, Memory, Episodic, Mental Recall

Journal Title

J Exp Child Psychol

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0022-0965
1096-0457

Volume Title

240

Publisher

Elsevier BV