Effect of Topic Frequency and Position on Memory for Information from Lengthy Informative Text

In this study we explore two aspects of text that have a theoretical basis for providing a cue to readers as to the likelihood that a particular concept is an important topic within a passage. College students read one of two versions of a chapter length passage in which we manipulated both the frequency of mention of a topic label and the position in the passage where the topic is first mentioned. The effects of these frequency and position manipulations were measured on both recognition memory and recall. Neither frequency nor position had an effect on recognition of important passage concepts. Position had no effect on recall as well but high frequency increased the likelihood that a topic would be recalled. These results are consistent with any of several models of comprehension which view strength of a memory trace as dependent on frequency of activation. Implications of these findings for instruction are discussed.