Which of the following illustrates the primacy effect in memory recall?

• A. Remembering the first few words from a long list better than the middle or last words
• B. Forgetting both the first and last items but remembering the middle items best
• C. Equally recalling all items from a list regardless of their position
• D. Recalling the last few items from a list more easily than the first ones

Answer: (A)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the concept of the primacy effect: it refers to the tendency to better remember items presented at the beginning of a list during recall tasks.
2. Recognize that the primacy effect is part of the serial position effect, which also includes the recency effect (better recall of items at the end of a list).
3. Analyze each option by comparing it to the definition of the primacy effect, focusing on whether it involves better recall of the first items.
4. Identify that remembering the first few words better than the middle or last words directly illustrates the primacy effect.
5. Confirm that options describing better recall of the last items or equal recall do not represent the primacy effect, but rather the recency effect or no serial position effect.