Serial position and attention

REFERENCE:

Rodero, E. (2014). Serial position and attention resources to improve the recall of radio ads. Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, 69, 1-11.

Abstract

Introduction. The expressive crisis experienced by radio advertising combined with the effectiveness that this format could have in theory lead to the need of studies about this point to provide solutions to this problem. Objectives. This research tries to analyze whether the implementation of three measures related to micro and macrostructural elements of advertising in radio ads increases the levels of recall of the listeners, improving the cognitive processing of the auditory stimulus. Methodology. The question to analyze by a quantitative experimental methodology is if serial position of the ad into the commercial break, and the use of attention resources to the text reducing the density of information in the message could increase the level of recall in the listener. Conclusion. The study shows that the use of attention resources to the ad message increases the recall of the listener but not the serial position of the ad into the commercial block.

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Significance of the project

The application of the attention resources analized in this study is highly recommended when designing an ad because they have a triple function: they direct attention towards the most important elements of the ad, which helps to involve the listener; they reduce the complexity in the coding of the message; and favour the process of information memorisation to allow the subsequent recalling. Therefore, these findings can be directly apply to radio commercials production.

Goals of the Project

The objective of this study was to analyse the effect of the serial position at the macro-structural level and of the application of some attention resources on the recall rate of a listener exposed to a four-ad radio advertising block to try to improve their cognitive processing.

Main Results

The objective of this study was to analyse the effect of the serial position at the macro-structural level and of the application of some attention resources on the recall rate of a listener exposed to a four-ad radio advertising block to try to improve their cognitive processing. While there are studies that have confirmed the effect of the serial position when ads are presented in blocks, this study has failed to show that the first and last ads included in an advertising block obtain a higher recall rate.

On the other hand, the application of attention resources to the ad’s script aimed at reducing the information density has proven to be a beneficial factor for cognitive processing. As expected, the recall rate of these ads was increased by about one point with the application of such resources as redundancy, appeals to the listener, and calls of attention. Firstly, redundancy is a strategy that has favoured memorisation by facilitating data recalling through repetition. This resource has been reinforced by the appeals to listeners, which favoured their involvement with the message, and by the calls of attention about the ad’s key data which guided listeners’ interest.

Altogether, it can be concluded that the application of these attention resources is highly recommended when designing an ad because they have a triple function: they direct attention towards the most important elements of the ad, which helps to involve the listener; they reduce the complexity in the coding of the message; and favour the process of information memorisation to allow the subsequent recalling. But perhaps the most important aspect regarding the content has to do with the reduction of information density. The more data an auditory stimulus has, the more difficult it will be for the listener to process it and the higher the risk of cognitive overload.

Additional Information

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