In a typical study investigating the primacy effect, participants are sequentially presented with a list of words, each being presented for a fixed amount of time.A primacy effect is found when participants correctly recall words from the first few positions in a list more often than they recall words from later list positions.This phenomenon was interpreted as evidence for two different memory systemsa long-term store that is the basis for the primacy effect, and a short-term store that is responsible for the recency effect.
This distinction has influenced many theories of human memory. This was found in an early study, in which participants were asked to overtly rehearse the words they were to memorize. Results showed that the first few words were rehearsed more often than were words presented later in the list. The more frequent rehearsal of an item leads to a stronger long-term memory for that item, and thus a better chance to recall that item, compared with less frequently rehearsed items. For example, one study presented words at a faster rate, thus reducing participants opportunity to rehearse. Under those conditions, the magnitude of the primacy effect is reduced. Additional evidence showing that rehearsal is the basis for the primacy effect comes from studies that modified participants rehearsal strategies. When participants were asked to rehearse only the item that is currently presented, no primacy effect was found. A primacy effect has also been shown in the domain of television commercials: Participants viewing a television program that was interrupted by blocks of commercials showed better memory for the first three commercials than for commercials broadcast later in the block.
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