Metamemory and Attributions As Mediators of Strategy Use and Recall

The process by which metamemory and academic causal attributions relate to recall was examined with hierarchical multiple regression analyses. Several alternative conceptualizations of metamemory were used: general metamemory unrelated to the specific task; task-specific metamemory; memory monitoring; and both general and task-specific attributions. In order to examine the additive benefits of strategy and monitoring instructions, 81 fourth graders were assigned to one of four instructional conditions: Strategy Only, Process Monitoring Only, Strategy Plus Process Monitoring, or Practice-Control group. Regression analyses indicated that the relationships between metamemory and recall depended on how metamemory was assessed and on the timing of the child’s engagement with the recall task. Whereas general metamemory was significantly related to recall on the posttest and near-transfer tasks, task-specific metamemory became more relevant for transfer.