The primacy of print: immediate cued recall of news as a function of the channel of communication

Abstract Memory for four news stories was tested among 80 English adults. A 2 × 2 × 2 design was used, varying mode of presentation (transcript vs. tape recording), mode of questioning (printed questionnaire vs. tape recording), and mode of answer (written vs. spoken). Subjects who received the news stories in print remembered the material better than those who received them aurally, regardless of the style of questioning or the style of answering. The results provide further support for the “primacy of print” hypothesis.