Person
Bennett Murdoch
Researcher; 1962 serial-position list-recall study
Researcher whose 1962 study, presenting participants with word lists of varying lengths (10 to 40 words) and testing free recall, established that recall probability depends heavily on a word's position in the list — items at the beginning and end are remembered far more reliably than items in the middle. A foundational demonstration behind both the Primacy Effect and the Serial Position Effect.
Discussed in
- Episode 79 — 79- Primacy Effect - Why Going First Wins