People exhibit a tendency to generalize a novel noun to the basic-level in a
hierarchical taxonomy -- a cognitively salient category such as "dog" -- with
the degree of generalization depending on the number and type of exemplars.
Recently, a change in the presentation timing of exemplars has also been shown
to have an effect, surprisingly reversing the prior observed pattern of
basic-level generalization. We explore the precise mechanisms that could lead
to such behavior by extending a computational model of word learning and word
generalization to integrate cognitive processes of memory and attention. Our
results show that the interaction of forgetting and attention to novelty, as
well as sensitivity to both type and token frequencies of exemplars, enables
the model to replicate the empirical results from different presentation
timings. Our results reinforce the need to incorporate general cognitive
processes within word learning models to better understand the range of
observed behaviors in vocabulary acquisition
