Abstract
A health warning was presented to 89 female and 19 male students aged 17-36 years via three modalities or channels of communication: a 'talking head' (video), an audiotape recording (audio) or a printed transcript (print). The verbal content of the message was identical in all three conditions. Participants' free recall, cued recall (recognition) and global recall of the message were then measured. On two separate dependent measures and a combined measure, recall was significantly (p < .005) better in both the audio and print conditions than in the video condition. No significant differences in recall were found between the audio and print conditions. These results, and those of earlier studies of modality effects on recall of information, are discussed in terms of self-pacing and distraction theories.
Highlights
A health warning was presented to 89 female and 19 male students aged 17-36 years via three modalities or channels of communication: a “talking head”, an audiotape recording, or a printed transcript
These ranges, means, and standard deviations turned out to be broadly comparable between the free recall and cued recall scores, and it was considered justifiable to calculate an aggregate measure of global recall by summing the free recall and cued recall scores
Modality of communication had a significant effect on free recall, cued recall, and global recall of the health warning
Summary
A health warning was presented to 89 female and 19 male students aged 17-36 years via three modalities or channels of communication: a “talking head” (video), an audiotape recording (audio), or a printed transcript (print). One might expect an audiovisual medium to have a greater capacity to convey information because it involves both ‘showing’ and ‘telling’ the information to the recipients, but the recall superiority of the print modality for complex material has been replicated many times (e.g., Barlow & Wogalter, 1993; Browne, 1978; Furnham, Benson, & Gunter, 1987; Furnham & Gunter, 1985, 1987; Furnham, Gunter, & Green, 1990; Gunter, Furnham, & Gietson, 1984; Pezdek, Lehrer, & Simon, 1984; Wilson, 1974; Wold, 1977)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
