Generation effects for context words: Implications for item-specific and multifactor theories

We investigated generation effects for context words (i.e., cue words) semantically associated with generated or read targets. Intact context words were presented with target fragments for one group of subjects (generating group) and with intact targets for another group of subjects (reading group). When recall for the context words was cued with the associated target, generation effects for context words were found (Experiments 1, 2, and 3). There was no generation effect for context words, however, when recognition memory was tested (Experiment 2). In Experiment 3, generation effects were obtained when cued recall for the context words was conditionalized on correct recognition of the targets (i.e., the cues in the cued-recall test). This pattern strongly suggests that generation can enhance context word-target word relational processing. Generation effects were also obtained in free recall of the targets (Experiment 1). This effect was accompanied by category clustering that was significantly greater than chance for generating subjects but not for reading subjects. This pattern suggests that generation can also enhance whole-list relational processing. The results are consistent with a three-factor account of the generation effect.