What is the Generation Effect?
Have you ever seen an ad that makes you think a bit before you “get it?”
Like a tiny mental puzzle, you have to take a second to understand the message. But when you do, it seems to stick in your mind all day.
It’s down to a behavioral science principle called the Generation Effect.
What is the Generation Effect?
The Generation Effect says that we remember messages that make us “fill in the blanks” better than just one that makes us read.
Making people work out an answer for themselves is called a “desirable difficulty” because it benefits memory and attention. For example, researchers at UCLA and UC Berkeley have discovered that the Generation Effect can help students better remember course material. According to their research, generation exercises (like fill-in-the-blank questions or self-testing) made it easier for students to remember information than reading alone.
Here’s how we can apply the Generation Effect in marketing and advertising:
