Are the effects of divided attention on memory encoding processes due to the disruption of deep-level elaborative processes? Evidence from cued- and free-recall tasks

Whereas numerous studies have indicated that divided attention (DA) at encoding significantly disrupts later memory for the studied information, the underlying mechanisms of this effect remain unclear. Following from our recent investigation (Naveh-Benjamin, Guez, Hara, Brubaker, & Lowenschuss-Erlich, 2014) that used an item recognition task, in the current study we further assess the degree to which deep-level semantically-elaborative processes are affected under DA. We compared the effects of DA at encoding under incidental and intentional learning instructions on later cued-recall and free recall tasks, which have been shown to benefit from deep-level elaboration during encoding. The results of two experiments, in which participants studied word pairs or lists of words under either full or divided attention, converged in systematically showing that DA at encoding reduced cued-recall and free recall to the same degree under incidental and intentional learning. Furthermore, the detrimental effects of DA on memory were similar regardless of the encoding strategy reported by the participants. The results do not support the suggestion that deep-level effortful elaborative processes are major ones affected by DA and the role of other potential underlying processes is discussed.