An experimenter reads a list of 30 words to a group of participants at the rate of one word per second. This is immediately followed by a free-recall test. A second group of participants hears the same 30 words presented at the faster rate of two words per second. We should expect that the group hearing the slower presentation will show improved memory performance for the:

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The slower presentation rate allows for more time for encoding the earlier words in the list, resulting in better recall for the pre-recency portion of the list. The recency effect, which is believed to rely more on short-term memory, should not be affected by the presentation rate.

An Experimenter Reads a List of 30 Words to a Group