Question

187. Th e primacy effect is best explained by which of the following statements?

(A) Items on a list with unique meaning are more likely to be
remembered.
(B) The first items on a list are likely to be more effectively rehearsed and
therefore more likely to be remembered.
(C) Items on a list presented more recently are more likely to be
remembered.
(D) Items on a list with simplistic meaning are more likely to be
remembered.
(E) Th e last items on a list are more likely to be encoded first and
therefore remembered.

Answer 1

The primacy effect refers to the tendency to remember the first items on a list better because they are more effectively rehearsed and likely to be encoded into long-term memory.The correct option is: (B) The first items on a list are likely to be more effectively rehearsed and therefore more likely to be remembered.

Step-by-step explanation:

The primacy effect is best explained by (B) The first items on a list are likely to be more effectively rehearsed and therefore more likely to be remembered. This psychological phenomenon indicates that items appearing at the beginning of a list are more readily recalled because they have a higher chance of being encoded into long-term memory through more effective rehearsal.

This contrasts with the recency effect, where the last items on a list are remembered because they are still in working memory. Neither the uniqueness of meaning (A), the recent presentation of items (C), simplistic meaning (D), nor the last items being encoded first (E) are accurate explanations for the primacy effect.The correct option is: (B) The first items on a list are likely to be more effectively rehearsed and therefore more likely to be remembered.