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Recollection of Negative & Positive Images
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Jackie Davis (Dr. Hildy Schilling, sponsor)
Behavioral Sciences
Abstract
The experiment was designed to test the effects of
emotional valence and color on recall of pictures.
Participants viewed either positive images (e.g.,
smiling baby) or negative images (e.g., crying
baby) that were either printed in black and white or
color ink. Next, the participants wrote down the
images that they could recall. It was expected that
recall would be greater for negative than positive
images. It was also expected that recall would be
greater for colorful images than for black and white
images. Results show that there was no effect of
image association on color.
Study Design
The study uses a 2 X 2 between-subjects design
with independent variables of stimulus type
(positive, negative) and color type (color, black &
white). The dependent variable is the number of
words recalled.
Results
Discussion
An alpha level of .05 was used for all analyses. The
mean number of positive stimuli recalled was 13.85
images, which was not statistically different than
the mean number of negative stimuli recalled
which was 12.45 images, F(1, 36)=2.411, p=.129.
The mean number of colored images recalled was
13.25 images, which was not statistically different
than the mean number of black and white images
recalled which was 13.05 images, F(1, 36)=.049,
p=.826. There was no interaction between image
color and image association F(1, 36)=.308, p=.583.
This study did not support results by previous
researchers. Mean recall for negative images was
not greater than that for positive images. Mean
recall for colorful pictures was not greater than that
for black and white pictures. This could be due to
the lack of verification that the images used for the
study were proper opposites of each other (a
wilting rose and an alive flower).
Mean Recall of Images
Color
B&W
Mean
Positive
14.2
13.5
13.85
Negative
12.3
12.6
12.45
Mean
13.25
13.05
Introduction
Ostergaard and Davidoff (1985) found that colorful
images were recalled more frequently than black
and white images. Increased recall was a result of
the increased ability to distinguish surfaces and
textures of the object in colored objects as opposed
to black and white objects. According to a media
recall study by Porter, Taylor and Brinke (2008),
participants recalled more negative images than
positive images. The findings suggest that negative
media events are stored more vividly in the brain,
and thus cause for greater recall than positive
images. In this study, a positive image is an image
that evokes positive feelings. A negative image is
an image that evokes a negative feeling. There are
two levels of stimuli; the first is image color (a color
or black and white image), and the second is image
association (a positive or negative image).
Recall
Ostergaard, A, & Davidoff, J. (1985). Some Effects of color
on naming and recognition of objects. Journal of
Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition,
11(3), 579-587.
Porter, S, Taylor, K, & Brinke, L. (2008). Memory for media:
investigation of false memories for negatively and positively
charges public events. Memory, 16(6), 658-666.
Procedure
1) Participants viewed 20 images (there were 4
images on 5 separate pages) for 90 seconds.
The images shown depended on which group
they were assigned to (positive color, positive
black/white, negative color or negative
black/white).
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recall
2) Participants were then given 90 seconds to
recall as many of the images they could
remember by writing them on a sheet of paper.
Image
Association
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References