The Effect of a Dual Level Word List on Schizophrenic Free Recall

Three-category dual level, three-category single level, and six-category single level word lists were presented for single trial free recall to 18 normals and 18 schizophrenics in remission. Schizophrenic recall was significantly inferior to that of normals across all three lists. Normals produced more clustering than schizophrenics, but the difference was not significant. Across both groups, the three-category dual level list produced significantly more recall than the other two lists. The three-category dual level list and the three-category single level list produced significantly more clustering than the six-category single level list. The results were interpreted as indicating that the schizophrenic's memory structure is similar to that of normals. It is suggested that the schizophrenic's recall deficit is not due to a lack of structure, or an inappropriate structure, but rather to a lessened tendency to utilize such structure.