DEVELOPMENTAL-CHANGES IN THE SPECIFICITY OF MEMORY OVER THE 2ND YEAR OF LIFE

Developmental changes in the specificity of memory were examined in fi ve experiments with 12- to 21-month-old infants. In all experiments, i nfants were tested in a deferred imitation paradigm; the specificity o f the cues necessary to retrieve the target memory was assessed after a delay. Changes in cues that disrupted performance at 12 months had n o effect on performance at 18 months, and changes in cues that disrupt ed performance at 18 months had no effect on performance at 21 months. These findings indicate that one hallmark of memory development is an increase in the range of effective retrieval cues for a particular me mory. We propose that this change in effective retrieval cues increase s the range of situations in which early learning experiences are retr ieved and expressed and may contribute to the decline of childhood amn esia during the third year of life.