The Applied Psychology of Names

Abstract

The question asked is, "Is there any general rule that can be applied as to the way the combination of names should appear in advertisements, on letter-heads or in any form of publicity?" The data indicate (1) that a combination of names possesses a greater immediate memory value if the more familiar component of the combination appears last, and the less familiar first; (2) other things equal, the unfamiliar element shows a greater memory gain than the familiar component. This suggests that eventually the unfamiliar will become a more effective stimulus than the latter. From Psych Bulletin 18:06:00367. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)