Lists of answers

[Function]

Hello everyone

 

Here in Belgium, there's a tv show in which in some round, 3 players have to bid on how many answers on a list they can give (e.g. the water brands sold in some super market), the one with the highest bid can try to name their answers.

 

Something remarkable: if a player picks a long list (let's say the bid 'n' answers, so they have to name 'n' answers), he/she will most likely name 'n-1' answers, leaving 1 open spot, failing the 'task'.

 

I have also remarked this in class: when students have to learn a list of e.g. consequences of an event, most can name all but one.

If they then take a look at the list, they remember the one they'd forgotten, but then forget another one.

Should they look again at the list, they remember the one they had now forgotten again, but forget the one they initially forgot again.

 

Is this just some coincidence and a result of lack of learning, or perhaps, learning too intensively, too much, too literally?

 

Thanks.

 

Function

[iNow]

I would first question whether the phenomenon is truly noteworthy. You must recall that it's entirely possible you have a confirmation bias and tend to only remember those events where the individual falls one short of the total.

 

Your best bet before speculating what might be causing this is to first confirm it's actually happening with any regularity. Do a review of every contestant and every list. Mark down the number they say they'll name in one column and the number they actually name in another column. Do this with every contestant for a few shows in a row... Get a decently sized data set, then do some analysis.

 

How many fell one short of their stated target? What percentage of all list games was that?

How many fell short of their stated target by more than one? What percentage of all list games was that?

How many exceeded their stated target? What percentage of all list games was that?

How many met their target number exactly? What percentage of all list games was that?

 

Then, you can get a sense of trends and see if people truly do fall one short more often than you'd expect from mere chance.

 

You'd also want to then do the same collection of data a few weeks later and see if your results are replicated. Once you've laid this foundation you'll be in a much better place to determine whether or not this has anything to do with learning or some other factor entirely.

Edited February 21, 2014 by iNow

[Roamer]

Possibly we remember lists with a title, and (subconsciously?) pick one of the list as "title" thus removing it from the list itself.

I 'm just guessing though, as iNow said some statistics would be nice, possibly this effect only occurs on long/short/strange/normal/etc. lists.