Relevance instructions and memory for text. The role of instruction specificity and text length ( Instrucciones de relevancia y recuerdo de textos. El rol de la especificidad de la instrucción y de la longitud del texto )

Abstract

We examined two factors that influence the effect of relevance instructions on memory for text, namely, instruction specificity and text length. In Experiment 1, 111 undergraduate students read a 1,182-word-long text describing an exotic country. Some students were provided with a general instruction (to focus on one subtopic of the text), others were provided with specific instructions (what-questions inserted into the text), and the rest were provided with a neutral instruction (they were asked just to read for understanding). Those receiving specific instructions recalled the relevant information better; those in the general instruction condition did not show better memory for the relevant information. In Experiment 2, 170 undergraduate students read either the long version of the exotic country text, comprising 1,182 words, or a shortened, 603-word-long version. Half of the students received the general instruction, whereas the rest received the neutral instruction. When the text was short, the participants receiving the general instruction recalled the relevant information better; when the text was long, they did not show better memory for the relevant information.