The Face-Name Mnemonic Strategy from a Different Perspective

Prior research has demonstrated that the face-name mnemonic strategy is useful for facilitating memory for names in response to true-to-life representations of faces (e.g., photographs). In Experiment 1, we successfully extended this finding to a situation in which the stimuli cuing name memory were caricatures. In Experiment 2, photographs and caricatures alternated as the stimulus materials prompting either name recall or recognition. Students using the mnemonic strategy again outperformed students using their own best method of study on both immediate and delayed tests. Because caricatures exaggerate prominent features, we had anticipated that the mnemonic approach might be relatively more effective with caricatures than with photographs. However, students using the face-name mnemonic strategy derived comparable benefits with both types of material.