Further Evidence for Systematic Reliability Differences between Explicit and Implicit Memory Tests

Abstract

Meier and Perrig (2000) as well as Buchner and Wippich (2000) have shown that simple dissociations between explicit and implicit memory measures need not reflect functional dissociations of hypothetical underlying memory systems. Instead, such dissociations may also result from the fact that some widely used implicit memory measures are simply less reliable than the explicit measures with which they have been compared. We extend this argument in two ways. First, we show that illusion-based memory measures such as the priming measures derived from fame and preference judgement tasks are also subject to the reliability problem. Second, we show that yes—no and two-alternative forced-choice paradigms should, and in fact do, yield virtually identical results as far as the reliability of the memory tests is concerned.