Need for cognition and false memory in the Deese–Roediger–McDermott paradigm

Two experiments investigated whether false recognition in the Deese–Roediger–McDermott (DRM) paradigm is mediated by individual differences in need for cognition. In Experiment 1, participants were presented with word lists composed of associates which converge on a non-presented critical word. On a subsequent recognition test, high need for cognition participants falsely recognized a greater proportion of critical words as having been previously studied than did low need for cognition participants. Experiment 2 replicated Experiment 1, and also tested a manipulation of list strength. Word lists used were either strong or weak in terms of eliciting the critical item. These experiments show that individual differences in approach to information processing tasks can affect the rate of false memory elicited in the DRM task.