A Factor Analysis of Semantic Memory Abilities. Studies of Aptitudes of High-Level Personnel.

摘要

The following hypotheses were experimentally investigated: (1) A distinct semantic-memory ability exists for each of the six product categories of the Structure-of-Intellect (SI) model; (2) Six semantic Divergent-Production (DP) abilities can be identified in a senior-high-school population; and (3) The six memory abilities are unrelated to semantic abilities in the other operation categories of the SI model. A sample of 175 11th-grade students was tested with a battery of 50 intellectual-aptitude tests. Of these tests, 28 were newly written and were designed for aspects of semantic memory; 14 were measures of divergent production; and 8 were marker tests for factors in other operation categories. All factorial hypotheses were found to be tenable. The newly demonstrated semantic-memory abilities are: memory for isolated items of information; memory for class ideas; memory for meaningful connections between meaningful items of information; memory for the structure or order of information; memory for redefinitions and other changes in information; and memory for arbitrary connections between meaningful items of information.