Chapter 13 Bizarre imagery: Mnemonic benefits and theoretical implications

This chapter discusses the mnemonic benefits and theoretical implications of bizarre imagery. One issue in studying imagery and memory concerns how the quality of the image may influence its mnemonic properties. Two factors that are apparently important for obtaining bizarre imagery effects are the processing task and the test task. A distinctiveness hypothesis has been used to explain why the type of design is instrumental for observing bizarre imagery effects. According to most accounts of distinctiveness, the distinctiveness of an event is determined by two factors. First, a distinctive item is one that shares few features in common with other information in memory. Second, distinctiveness is typically defined in a relative sense—that is, relative to other information in the learning context According to this criterion, items become functionally distinct only when they are presented in the context of common items. Bizarre imagery effects are found only when bizarre items appear in the context of common material.