Graduation Semester and Year
Spring 2025
Language
English
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science in Psychology
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Hunter Ball
Second Advisor
Crystal Cooper
Third Advisor
Jared Kenworthy
Abstract
The present research investigates whether using external reminders to support prospective memory (PM) reduces internal representation of future intentions during the retention interval. While reminders are known to improve PM performance, it remains unclear whether they actually decrease the memory trace associated with maintaining intentions. Across three experiments, we systematically manipulated reminder reliability (Exp 1-3) and task familiarity (Exp 2 & 3) to assess their effects on PM-related thoughts and PM target detection. In Experiment 1, we varied reminder reliability (0%, 50%, 100%) and found no differences in PM-related thoughts, suggesting that participants may have maintained intentions internally regardless of external support. Experiment 2 introduced task familiarity through a two-session design and revealed that, in Session 2, participants in the 100% reliability condition reported significantly fewer PM-related thoughts than those in the 0% condition. This was despite equivalent PM target detection rates, indicating that familiarity enables strategic offloading. Experiment 3 tested the cost of offloading by removing reminders unexpectedly. The 100% reliability condition exhibited the lowest PM target detection, underscoring the risk of overreliance on external support. Together, these findings demonstrate that offloading reduces internal maintenance only when individuals are familiar with the task and confident in reminder reliability, and that such efficiency carries a performance cost when external support fails. Implications for theories of effort minimization and metacognition are discussed.
Disciplines
Cognitive Psychology
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Dupre, Connor, "REDUCING FUTURE-ORIENTED THOUGHTS THROUGH INTENTION OFFLOADING" (2025). Psychology Theses. 164.
https://mavmatrix.uta.edu/psychology_theses/164