Making judgments of learning enhances memory by inducing item-specific processing

A judgment of leaning (JOL) has been investigated to understand self-regulated learning. However, asking participants to make JOLs may increase memory by creating a reactivity effect. In two experiments, we examined whether making JOLs would enhance memory by inducing item-specific processing. We compared a JOL task with two other tasks that are known to induce item-specific processing: pleasantness rating (Experiment 1) and single imagery (Experiment 2; creating vivid mental images). Participants learned a categorized or uncategorized list of words. Memory should be enhanced when the list promotes relational processing and the task induces item-specific processing. As expected, when the list was categorized, recall was higher in the JOL and item-specific processing conditions (pleasantness rating and single imagery) than in the control condition. Furthermore, recall was similar between the JOL and item-specific processing conditions. When the list was uncategorized, there was no difference in recall among the JOL, item-specific processing, and control conditions. Making JOLs enhances memory by inducing item-specific processing. We concluded that researchers need to carefully consider how making a JOL influences memory when investigating self-regulated study behaviors.