This is an abstract of a paper presented at the 77th Annual WPA Convention in Seattle, Washington on April 25, 1997. All rights reserved to both the abstract and the paper.
ABSTRACT
While stress has been shown to increase Tip of the Tongue (TOT) experiences (Burke et. al.,
1991), little is known about the effect of depression. Rastle & Burke's (1996) Transmission
Deficit Model, suggests that TOTs occur when semantic, but not phonological nodes, receive
adequate activation. Ellis & Ashbrook's (1988) Resource Allocation Model explains the negative
effects that depression has on cognition in terms of net reduction in cognitive processing
resources. If both of these models are true, it would follow that depressed individuals would
experience more TOTs, as they would be more likely to experience inadequate activation of
phonological nodes. The current study investigated this hypothesis. Eighty-six undergraduate
students were randomly assigned to either depressed or neutral mood induction conditions, the
exposed to an identical TOT induction procedure (Kohn et. al., 1987). Participants in the
depressed condition experienced significantly more TOTS that those in the neutral condition,
F(2,86) = 3.02, p < .05. Results are discussed in light of the Transmission Deficit Model.
INTRODUCTION
What is a TOT?
Tip of the Tongue Phenomenon (TOT) is defined as the peculiar experience of trying to recall a
forgotten word, knowing and feeling that we are close to retrieving it, being aware of improper
matches, but vainly groping in our ability to retrieve the information (Yarmey, 1973). Most
naturally occurring TOTs are eventually remembered, this is an indication that the target word is
in memory, although temporarily inaccessible (Burke, MacKay, Worthley, & Wade, 1991).
Participants in The TOT state are often able to identify the number of syllables in the target word,
and the initial letter (Brown & McNeil, 1966).
Two Relevant Models
The Transmission Deficit Model suggests that word meaning and word sounds are represented
by different systems in the brain. In order to recall a word meaning the semantic system must be
activated, and in order to verbally produce the word the phonological system must be activated
(MacKay, 1982, 1987). Rastle and Burke (1996) proposed that TOTs occur when the lexical
node for the target word is activated (the semantic system), but the necessary phonological node
is insufficiently activated because of a transmission deficit between the two systems. .
The Resource Allocation Model (RAM) proposed by Ellis and Ashbrook (1988) to explain the
consistent finding that depressed mood has a negative effect on memory. Depressed individuals
are thought to be so absorbed in thinking about depressing things, that the cognitive resources
necessary for successful memory performance are limited. If the RAM is correct, it suggests that
depressed individuals would be more likely to have their semantic nodes activated with insufficient
cognitive resources available to activate their phonological nods. This transmission deficit would
result in increased TOTs.
Hypothesis
Individuals in a depressed mood state will experience more TOTs than individuals in a neutral mood state.
METHOD
Subjects
Sixty-eight undergraduates at Pacific Union College volunteered to participate as a part of a
requirement for their General Psychology course. After screening for pre-existing levels of
depression, forty participants remained.
Materials
Depression Screen
Beck Depression Inventory (BDI; Beck, 1967).
Mood Induction
2. Velten Mood Induction Procedure (VMIP; Velten, 1968)
Check On Mood Induction:
3. Depression Adjective Check List (DACL; Lubin, 1965).
TOT Induction:
Thirty definitions of mildly familiar terms were used as TOT stimulus materials. (Kohn et.
al., 1987).
Procedure
All testing was done in a group setting. Participants were first given the BDI. Those who scored
less than 10 were randomly assigned to either depressed or neutral mood induction conditions.
The subjects were instructed to read each statement in the mood induction booklet, reflect on the
statement for twenty seconds and attempt to recreate the mood indicated by the statements. All
subjects were paced through their booklets by a tone sounded at 20 second intervals. The success
of the mood induction was checked by the DACL. Subjects were then informed verbally of the
definition of a TOT. An experimenter then read each of the thirty definitions. Subjects were
instructed to indicate on the provided response sheet the correct answer if they knew it, the
presence of a TOT state if they were experiencing one, and any available properties of the target
word if they knew them.
RESULTS
There were 21 female, and 19 male participants. Presented with a total of 30 definitions, the total
sample correctly identified 12.18 items (40.5%). A "wrong" response was defined as an item on
which the participant was unable to supply the correct answer and did not report at TOT. The
sample wrongly identified a mean of 14.48 items (48.2%). A "noncorrect" answer was defined as
one in which the participant was unable to supply the correct answer, whether reporting a TOT or
not. Noncorrect answers set the upper limit on the number of TOTs which can be experienced,
and so TOTs were calculated in terms of their percentage of noncorrect answers. The sample
reported a mean of 17.825 noncorrect answers (59.4%). The sample reported 3.35 TOTs
(18.79% of noncorrect items) . The mean of the number of items for which the sample reported a
TOT state and was able to supply the correct first letter ("first letter TOTs") was .45 (2.52% of
noncorrect items). The mean of the number of items for which the sample reported a TOT state
and was able to correctly supply the number of syllables in the word ("syllable TOTs" was .425
(2.38% of noncorrect items).
There were 24 participants in the depressed mood condition, 16 participants in the neutral mood
condition. The mood induction, as measured by scores on the adjective checklist, was successful,
as participants in the depressed condition had higher depression scores on the ACL (M = 14.58,
SD = 5..87) than participants in the neutral condition (M = 9.38, SD = 2.03), t(30.49) = 4.0, p =
.000.
The depressed group reported significantly, or very nearly significantly, more TOTs of all kinds than the neutral group. The most reliable difference was for the first letter TOTs, where the depressed group reported a mean 3.52% while the neutral group reported .77% , t(31.39) = 2.10, p = .044. The difference between the two mood groups on the percentage of correct responses was not large enough to be statistically reliable, but was in the expected direction (depressed mean = 37.92%, SD = 17.2; neutral mean = 44.58%, ).
DISCUSSION
The results of this study support the hypothesis that depressed participants would experience more TOTs than non-depressed participants. According to the Resource Allocation Model, a depressed state reduces the amount of cognitive resources available for a given memory task. According to the Transmission Deficit Model, a TOT occurs during a conceptually driven task when activation of a lexical node fails to produce complete activation of the phonological node and results in partial retrieval of phonological information (Burke et. al., 1991). In the current study, depression appeared to limit cognitive resources, resulting in a decreased likelihood of phonological nodes being sufficiently activated.
An intriguing aspect of the present study involves the comparison between the total semantic
activation (sum of TOTs and correct answers) of the two groups. TOTs can be understood as the
result of adequate semantic activation and insufficient phonological activation. Although
depressed participants produced fewer correct answers and more TOTs than the neutral
participants, there was no difference in the number of incorrect answers. This suggests that the
two mood conditions produced the same amount of semantic activation (correct answers plus
TOTs) but that the depressed condition produced less phonological activation (correct answers).
A Sample of TOT Stimulus Definitions
1. The origin and historical development of a word
2. A professional map maker
3. Octopus like sea animal used for food
4. A rotating device used for stabilizing ships at sea
5. A seemingly self contradictory statement which may, nonetheless, be true
6. A light spear commonly used in athletic contests for distance throwing
7. A term meaning reappearing or being reborn in another body after death
8. The science of constructing and deciphering secret codes.
9. Meat from a deer used for food
10. A term applied to animals who eat every type of food
