100 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People, 2nd Edition

22 It’s Easier to Recognize Information than Recall it

Remember the memory test at the start of this chapter? Without looking at the list, write down as many of the words as you can. We’ll use this memory test to talk about recognition and recall.

Recognition is Easier than Recall

In the memory test at the beginning of this chapter, you memorized a list of words and later wrote them down. This is called a recall task. If instead I had shown you a list of words, or even walked you into an office and asked you which items were on the list, I would have been giving you a recognition task. Recognition is easier than recall. Recognition makes use of context. And context can help you remember.

Many of the user interface tools and guidelines developed ...