Retrieval Practice Enhances Lexico-Semantic Representations and Facilitates Word Identification During the Attentional Blink: Evidence from L3 French Compound Word Learning

The present study investigated whether retrieval practice facilitates memory retention and the rapid identification of newly learned French word components under attentional blink (AB) conditions. Specifically, a total of 107 native Chinese speakers participated in the study, and 103 were included in the final analyses after exclusions. In Experiment 1, participants studied novel, semantically opaque French compound words under two learning conditions: retrieval practice and repeated study. Experiment 2 was conducted 15 min after the completion of Experiment 1. Participants performed a two-target rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) task in which the morphemic components of the learned compound words were presented as the first target (T1) and the second target (T2) at critical lags (Lag 3 and Lag 7). Experiment 1 confirmed the classical testing effect, with the retrieval practice condition showing higher accuracy and faster response times than the repeated study condition. Experiment 2 revealed that participants in the retrieval practice condition exhibited significantly higher T2 identification accuracy at Lag 7 and a numerical advantage at Lag 3 compared with those in the repeated study condition. These findings indicate that retrieval practice facilitates T2 identification, particularly when attentional resources are relatively recovered at Lag 7. Overall, retrieval-based learning appears to strengthen newly acquired lexico-semantic representations and support the rapid identification of newly learned word components under RSVP conditions.