The Influence of Reference Acceptance and Reuse on Conversational Memory Traces

Not all pieces of information mentioned during an interaction are equally accessible in speakers' conversational memory. The current study sought to test whether 2 basic features of dialogue management (reference acceptance and reuse) affect reference recognition. Dyads of speakers were asked to discuss a route for an imaginary person, thus referring to the landmarks to be encountered. The results revealed that the participants' conversational memory for the references produced during the interaction depended on whether these had been reused during the interaction and by whom, along with landmark visibility during the interaction. These findings have implications for partner adaptation in dialogue, which depends in part on what speakers remember of past interactions.