Nonverbal symbols such as pictorials are increasingly being used to convey safety-related information. Pictorials may be useful to persons who cannot read printed verbal messages because of inadequate reading skills or unfamiliarity with the language used in the message. One application for pictorials is in the depiction of safety and warning information on pharmaceutical products. The present study examined consumer preference by evaluating prescription medication instructions which differed in textual and pictorial presentation format. Results indicate that participants preferred a fully redundant (combined) text and pictorials format, rating it more effective and easier to understand and remember. The data also show a strong preference for text-only compared to pictorials-only instructions. Furthermore, there was no difference between text-only and partial pictorial (text with an incomplete set of corresponding pictorials) formats, indicating the belief that a complete absence of pictorials was just as effective as a limited set of pictorials. The results have implications for accompanying textual instructions with an incomplete set of pictorials.
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