What memory skills are most important to university students in the United States and New Zealand?

Previous research investigated what memory skills were most important to students enrolled in a university memory skills course in the United States. This research extended the investigation to a broader sample of 85 United States students and to a similar sample of 85 New Zealand students. The students completed the Memory Improvement Questionnaire (MIQ), on which they rated the importance of 12 aspects of memory (e.g., remembering people's names, improving schoolwork or study skills). The most important aspects in both samples were schoolwork, remembering what they read, remembering facts and details, and remembering people's names. There were few relationships with gender, grades, or year in school. The findings suggest that there might be more similarities than differences among different kinds of students in what memory skills are most important to them.