MOTIVATIONAL INFLUENCES ON CHILDRENS STRATEGIC REMEMBERING

The present article focuses on the role of mental effort as an information processing link mediating the effects of motivational factors on remembering task performance. A general model of strategy selection, incorporating mental effort as a mediator of the effects of motivational factors on strategy selection, is first discussed; this model provides a framework for the analysis of the loci of individual and developmental differences in memory task performance. Two experiments are then described which were designed to test predictions of the model. Experiment 1 examined the effects of different levels of extrinsic motivation and general academic skill on third-grade children's spontaneous use of mnemonic strategies. Experiment 2 examined the effects of the effort demands of strategy use during training on strategy transfer by adults. The findings from the two experiments are discussed in the context of the presented model of motivational influences on strategy use.