Signal Detection and Threshold Modeling of Confidence-Rating ROCs: A Critical Test With Minimal Assumptions

An ongoing discussion in the recognition-memory literature concerns the question of whether recognition judgments reflect a direct mapping of graded memory representations (a notion that is instantiated by signal detection theory) or whether they are mediated by a discrete-state representation with the possibility of complete information loss (a notion that is instantiated by threshold models). These 2 accounts are usually evaluated by comparing their (penalized) fits to receiver operating characteristic data, a procedure that is predicated on substantial auxiliary assumptions, which if violated can invalidate results. We show that the 2 accounts can be compared on the basis of critical tests that invoke only minimal assumptions. Using previously published receiver operating characteristic data, we show that confidence-rating judgments are consistent with a discrete-state account.