ABSTRACT
A good memory is a valuable commodity for adult learners, bringing confidence to both social interactions and the workplace. In contrast, difficulty in remembering leads to hesitation and, perhaps, to second thoughts concerning one’s mental state (especially for older adults). Such concerns may even have led to the following exchange:
When the old Indians came in their file to speak to the Governor, he would ask their names; then the governor would ask Ben [Franklin], as he called him, what he must think of to remember them by. He was always answered promptly. At last one Indian came whose name was Tocarededhogan. Such a name! How shall it be remembered? The answer was prompt:—Think of a wheelbarrow—to carry a dead hog on. (Watson, 1830, cited in Pressley & McCormick, 1995, p. 301)
