In a recognition task, if the distractors are very similar to the correct item, one's memory for the correct item will tend to be poor.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

When distractors are very similar to the correct item in a recognition task, it increases the difficulty of distinguishing the correct item from the distractors, leading to poorer memory performance for the correct item. This is because the presence of similar distractors increases the cognitive load and confuses the memory retrieval process.

In a Recognition Task, If the Distractors Are Very Similar