Tactile memory Ranschburg effects under conditions of concurrent articulation

Abstract

In a single experiment, we investigate the Ranschburg effect for tactile stimuli. Employing an immediate serial recall (ISR) procedure, participants recalled sequences of six rapidly presented finger stimulations by lifting their fingers in the order of original stimulation. Within-sequence repetition of an item separated by two intervening items resulted in impaired recall for the repeated item (the Ranschburg effect), thus replicating the findings of Roe et al. Importantly, this impairment persisted with concurrent articulation, suggesting that the Ranschburg effect is not reliant upon verbal recoding. These data illustrate that the Ranschburg effect is evident beyond verbal memory and further suggest commonality in process for both tactile and verbal order memory.