Why does spacing out the repetition of information make one more likely to remember it?
Lag Effect
, explained.What is the Lag Effect?
The lag effect suggests that we retain information better when there are longer breaks between repeated presentations of that information.
Where this bias occurs
While you are at work, your partner texts you to remind you that you need to pick up the dry-cleaning on your way home. In order to remember, you repeat to yourself “pick up dry-cleaning after work” three times. Then you continue your work tasks.
When you get home, your partner asks you where the dry-cleaning is. Shoot! How could you have forgotten to pick it up when you kept repeating it to yourself?
According to research, successive repetition isn’t actually the best way to retain information. The lag effect suggests that the longer the time between repetitions of information, the more likely we are to commit that information to memory. That means that it would be better if we said to ourselves “Pick up the dry-cleaning after work”, finished one work task, then repeated “Pick up the dry-cleaning after work” again, as the lag between repetitions makes us more likely to recall the information at a later date.
