Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Serial Position Effect

Serial Position Effect

The serial position effect is a cognitive phenomenon where individuals are more likely to recall the first and last items in a list compared to those in the middle. This effect is divided into the primacy effect and the recency effect. The primacy effect is observed when the initial items in a list are remembered better. This occurs because these items are rehearsed more frequently or receive more elaborative processing, allowing them to be encoded into long-term memory more effectively. For...

Properties of Fourier series I

Properties of Fourier series I

The Fourier series is a powerful tool in signal processing and communications, allowing periodic signals to be expressed as sums of sine and cosine functions. A foundational property of the Fourier series is linearity. If we consider two periodic signals, their linear combination results in a new signal whose Fourier coefficients are simply the corresponding linear combinations of the original signals' coefficients. This property is crucial in applications like frequency modulation (FM) radio,...

Properties of Fourier series II

Properties of Fourier series II

Time scaling of signals is a crucial concept in signal processing that affects the Fourier series representation without altering its coefficients. The process modifies the fundamental frequency, thereby changing how the series represents the signal over time. This principle is essential in various applications, including audio and image processing, where signal manipulation is frequent. Understanding function symmetries is fundamental to simplifying the Fourier series.
A function f(t) is...

Types of Functions III

Types of Functions III

Logarithmic and piecewise functions play central roles in mathematical modeling, particularly when capturing nonlinear or segmented behaviors in real-world phenomena. Although these functions differ fundamentally in structure and application, both serve to represent complex relationships in simplified mathematical terms.A logarithmic function is defined as the inverse of an exponential function, expressed as These functions grow quickly for small values of x but slow down as x increases,...

Sequences

Sequences

Sequences are fundamental mathematical objects consisting of ordered lists of numbers that follow a specific rule or pattern. Sequences are critical in various mathematical concepts, including calculus, series, and number theory. They can model real-world phenomena such as population growth, financial investments, and physical processes like the diminishing height of a bouncing ball.Each number in a sequence is referred to as a term. Typically, the terms are denoted as a1, a2, a3,…, where the...

Signal Sequences and Sorting Receptors

Signal Sequences and Sorting Receptors

Signal sequences are short amino acid sequences that guide newly synthesized proteins to their proper location within the cell. Classical signal sequences are fifteen to sixty amino acids long and present at the N-terminus of a polypeptide chain. Each signal sequence has a conserved segment of basic residues towards their N terminus, a hydrophobic core, and a C-terminus rich in polar residues. The C-terminus also contains a signal cleavage site and features a -3 -1 sequence motif. The -3-1...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Word length vs. lexical factors: Re-examining what causes the word-length effect in serial recognition.

Memory & cognition·2025

Same author

Similar phonemes create interference in the serial recall task.

Memory (Hove, England)·2024

Same author

Neighborhood frequency effects in simple and complex span: Do high-frequency neighbors help or hurt?

Memory & cognition·2024

Same author

Distinctiveness, not dual coding, explains the picture-superiority effect.

Quarterly journal of experimental psychology (2006)·2024

Same author

Valence and concreteness in item recognition: Evidence against the affective embodiment account.

Psychonomic bulletin & review·2023

Same author

Set size and the orthographic/phonological neighbourhood size effect in serial recognition: The importance of randomization.

Canadian journal of experimental psychology = Revue canadienne de psychologie experimentale·2023

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 15, 2026

Examining Online Syntactic Processing of Spoken Complex Sentences in Chinese Using Dual-Modal Interference Tasks

Examining Online Syntactic Processing of Spoken Complex Sentences in Chinese Using Dual-Modal Interference Tasks

Published on: September 5, 2019

Three more semantic serial position functions and a SIMPLE explanation.

Matthew R Kelley¹, Ian Neath, Aimée M Surprenant

¹Department of Psychology, Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL 60035, USA. kelley@lakeforest.edu

Memory & Cognition

|December 25, 2012

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

This study demonstrates serial position effects in semantic memory recall using diverse stimuli like song lyrics and books. These findings suggest memory recall processes are consistent across episodic and semantic memory.

More Related Videos

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics

Published on: January 9, 2016

Generating Strictly Controlled Stimuli for Figure Recognition Experiments

Generating Strictly Controlled Stimuli for Figure Recognition Experiments

Published on: March 18, 2019

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 15, 2026

Examining Online Syntactic Processing of Spoken Complex Sentences in Chinese Using Dual-Modal Interference Tasks

Examining Online Syntactic Processing of Spoken Complex Sentences in Chinese Using Dual-Modal Interference Tasks

Published on: September 5, 2019

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics

Published on: January 9, 2016

Generating Strictly Controlled Stimuli for Figure Recognition Experiments

Generating Strictly Controlled Stimuli for Figure Recognition Experiments

Published on: March 18, 2019

Area of Science:

Cognitive Psychology
Neuroscience
Memory Research

Background:

Serial position functions, characterized by primacy and recency effects, are well-documented in episodic memory tasks.
Demonstrations in semantic memory tasks are scarce and limited to specific stimuli types.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the presence of serial position functions in semantic memory recall across varied stimuli.
To test the applicability of the SIMPLE model to semantic memory recall.

Main Methods:

Participants reconstructed the order of cartoon theme song lyrics, Harry Potter books, and movie sets.
Data analysis focused on identifying primacy and recency effects in recall order.

Main Results:

All three demonstrations yielded conventional serial position functions with primacy and recency effects.
The SIMPLE (Scale of Item Memory, Psychological, and Lexical) model accurately fit the observed data.

Conclusions:

Serial position functions are observable in semantic memory recall with diverse materials.
The findings support the SIMPLE model's account, suggesting shared underlying processes for serial position effects in both episodic and semantic memory.