Live Science Talk with Researcher William Duckett

Does Vivid Imagery Mean Better Memory?

For years, researchers assumed people with aphantasia would struggle with memory tasks compared to vivid visualizers. But the science tells a different story—one that challenges how we measure and understand the relationship between mental imagery and memory.

William Duckett, a psychology researcher from the University of Cambridge, will discuss findings from his innovative study showing that state-level vividness ratings (how vivid a specific memory feels in the moment) significantly predict memory accuracy, while trait-level measures like the VVIQ (Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire) do not.

What We'll Explore

During this talk, we'll discuss:

State vs. trait measures – Why asking "how vivid is THIS memory right now?" predicts accuracy, while asking "how vivid is your imagery in general?" does not

The aphantasia paradox – How people with aphantasia can have accurate memories despite reporting minimal imagery, and what their trial-by-trial vividness ratings reveal

Visual vs. spatial memory – Evidence that mental imagery may relate more strongly to visual aspects of memory than spatial ones

Age-related effects – Why older adults report higher vividness but show worse memory performance than younger adults

Confidence vs. vividness – How these subjective experiences relate to each other yet remain functionally distinct

Methodological implications – Why future imagery research needs to move beyond VVIQ scores and analyze vividness on a moment-by-moment basis

What to Expect

Science Talk: William will discuss his research findings walking through how he designed experiments to test memory accuracy in different ways, what he discovered about moment-to-moment vividness, and why reanalyzing existing data revealed patterns that were previously invisible.

Live Q&A: This is your chance to ask William directly about his research methods, what his findings mean for people with aphantasia, and how this changes our understanding of the imagery-memory relationship.

Duration: Approximately 1 hour (including Q&A)

Perfect For:

Individuals with aphantasia wondering how their memory actually works despite minimal imagery

Researchers interested in rigorous methodology for studying subjective experiences

Anyone curious about the complex relationship between how memories feel and how accurate they actually are

People who've taken the VVIQ and wondered what it really tells us about memory ability

Community members curious about how asking the right questions at the right time can reveal hidden patterns in research

About William Duckett

William Duckett is a psychology researcher at the University of Cambridge, working in Professor Jon Simons' lab. His research focuses on the relationship between mental imagery vividness and memory accuracy, with particular attention to age-related effects, modality-specific differences, and the critical distinction between state and trait measures of subjective experience.

Ready to rethink what vividness really means for memory?

Live Session: Members can join the live talk and participate in the Q&A in real-time

Recording: A recording of the talk will be posted to YouTube and available free to everyone after the event