Von Restorff effect
(also called distinctiveness effect, Restorff effect, isolation effect)
(also called distinctiveness effect, Restorff effect, isolation effect)
DESCRIPTION
The tendency for individuals to have superior recall for items having a high degree of salience.
The tendency for individuals to have superior recall for items having a high degree of salience.
KEY INSIGHTS
Named after Hedwig von Restorff, a pioneer of research on the phenomenon (von Restorff 1933), the von Restorff effect finds that items such as words to be learned are more likely to be remembered when such items are salient in some way. The salience may be a result of the words being in a different color ink or any other way in which the items are distinctive in relation to other items to be learned. Note: While the von Restorff effect is also called the isolation effect, the description and discussion of the effect present here should not be confused with that for another, more common meaning of the isolation effect term. See isolation effect.
Named after Hedwig von Restorff, a pioneer of research on the phenomenon (von Restorff 1933), the von Restorff effect finds that items such as words to be learned are more likely to be remembered when such items are salient in some way. The salience may be a result of the words being in a different color ink or any other way in which the items are distinctive in relation to other items to be learned. Note: While the von Restorff effect is also called the isolation effect, the description and discussion of the effect present here should not be confused with that for another, more common meaning of the isolation effect term. See isolation effect.
KEYWORDS Memory, recall, salience, distinctiveness
IMPLICATIONS
Marketers concerned with facilitating superior recall of a message or information associated with a marketer’s offerings may benefit from making such information distinctive or salient in some way from the perspective of the consumer. Marketers can employ a variety of means to make such information stand out, which may include placement of an item where it is unexpected or making such information unique to surrounding or previously encountered messages through the use of distinctive language or graphic design.
Marketers concerned with facilitating superior recall of a message or information associated with a marketer’s offerings may benefit from making such information distinctive or salient in some way from the perspective of the consumer. Marketers can employ a variety of means to make such information stand out, which may include placement of an item where it is unexpected or making such information unique to surrounding or previously encountered messages through the use of distinctive language or graphic design.
APPLICATION AREAS AND FURTHER READINGS
Consumer Behavior
Lynch, John G., Jr., and Srull, Thomas K. (1982). ‘Memory and Attentional Factors in Consumer Choice: Concepts and Research Methods,’ Journal of Consumer Research, 9(1), June, 18–37.
Lynch, John G., Jr., and Srull, Thomas K. (1982). ‘Memory and Attentional Factors in Consumer Choice: Concepts and Research Methods,’ Journal of Consumer Research, 9(1), June, 18–37.
Janiszewski, C., Noel, H., and Sawyer, A. G. (2003). ‘A Meta-analysis of the Spacing Effect in Verbal Learning: Implications for Research on Advertising Repetition and Consumer Memory,’ Journal of Consumer Research, 30(1), 138–149.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
von Restorff, H. (1933). ‘Über die Wirkung von Bereichsbildungen im Spurenfeld’ (The Effects of Field Formation in the Trace Field), Psychologie Forschung, 18, 299–342.
von Restorff, H. (1933). ‘Über die Wirkung von Bereichsbildungen im Spurenfeld’ (The Effects of Field Formation in the Trace Field), Psychologie Forschung, 18, 299–342.
Hunt, R. R. (1995). ‘The Subtlety of Distinctiveness: What von Restorff Really Did,’ Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 2, 105–112.
waiting line theory see queuing theory