Table 4. Debriefing responses by subject, paraphrased as they were reported to the experimenter.

When subjects gave specific examples of color terms used as memory aids, they are reported here.

Subject	Debriefing: strategy during delay block
1	Used two-color words (e.g. ‘blue-green’) to help remember target.
2	Said the name of the color (e.g. ‘periwinkle’, ‘yellow-green’) during some delays.
3	Visualized color during delays.
4	Used verbal cues.
5	Used verbal cues (‘blueish’, ‘green’, etc.).
6	Used labels (e.g. ‘forest green’), but reported feeling that it did not help much.
7	Tried to relate each target to something in nature (e.g. ‘grass green’).
8	Tried to use words (e.g. ‘seafoam’, ‘forest green’, ‘mauve’, etc.).
9	For first 10 trials, used the labels ‘teal’, ‘grass green’, and ‘purple’ as bases, and modified to the specific target (e.g. ‘greener teal’). Subject reported finding this initial system too difficult, and just tried to picture the color in subsequent trials.
10	Associated each target with word (e.g. ‘violet’, ‘olive green’, ‘forest green’).
11	Mentally pictured target color.
12	Named color (e.g. ‘teal’, ‘turquoise’) and what “scheme” (e.g. ‘orange’) it was. Sometimes used a comparison to the previous trial (“a little more orange than previous target”, etc.).
13	Named general color (e.g. ‘blue’, ‘green’), and then pictured what shade it was.
14	Subject reported using no strategy other than mentally visualizing the color.
15	Subject reported visualizing the color and taking a mental snapshot of it.
16	Picked color that was closest to what was seen and graded degree to which it was similar (e.g. ‘lighter’, ‘darker’).
17	Mentally described target color (e.g. ‘sky blue’, ‘olive green’).
18	Used verbal descriptors for color (e.g. ‘aquamarine’, ‘olive green’).
19	Named color and gave mental description (e.g. ‘teal’).
20	No specific strategy reported.