Committee Chair

Shelton, Jill

Committee Member

Ross, David F.; Rendell, Peter

Department

Dept. of Psychology

College

College of Arts and Sciences

Publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Place of Publication

Chattanooga (Tenn.)

Abstract

Prospective memory (PM) refers to remembering to fulfill previously formed intentions. While some intentions are self-interested, others are prosocial, and both are influenced by motivational forces. This study examined these relationships using a monetary incentive to moderate motivation, and explored how metacognition was affected. College students (N = 75) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions (i.e., prosocial, self-interested, or standard). Eye-tracking technology collected gaze data using a visual search task that incorporated a PM intention. Motivational orientation did not differentially influence PM performance. Metacognitive analyses indicated that while participants in the prosocial and standard conditions were underconfident, those in the self-interested condition accurately predicted their performance. Participants in the self-interested and standard conditions exhibited poor metacognitive awareness while those in the prosocial condition were accurate in gauging how well they actually did. These findings suggest that motivational states and incentives moderate metacognitive accuracy for PM intentions.

Acknowledgments

First and foremost, I want to thank my mentor and thesis chair, Jill Shelton, for her guidance and support over the last couple of years. She saw potential in me, even when I did not see it in myself, and for that I am forever grateful. Special thanks to my committee members, David Ross and Peter Rendell, who provided invaluable feedback on this project. It was truly an honor to have had the opportunity to work with them both. Additionally, I want to thank my lab mate and friend, Tommy Vorwerk, who never failed to provide help when I needed it most. Thanks to my research assistants, Amelia Edwards and Daniel Ellis, for their dedication to this project. Finally, I would like to recognize all the amazing faculty and staff of the UTC psychology department.

Degree

M. S.; A thesis submitted to the faculty of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Science.

Date

5-2018

Subject

Prospective memory

Keyword

Prospective memory; Motivation; Metacognition; Eye-tracking

Discipline

Psychology

Document Type

Masters theses

DCMI Type

Text

Extent

x, 49 leaves

Language

English

Rights

https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

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Psychology Commons

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