Which is easier to remember, symbols or words?

Recently, Cognitive Neuroscience PhD candidate, Brady Roberts, aimed to investigate how well symbols are remembered compared to words with the same meaning. “Symbols might be more easily remembered because they give concrete visuals to abstract ideas,” said Roberts, "When we think about abstract concepts, like love, it can be difficult to visualize clearly. But with symbols, we can use a sort of image that represents the concept – like a heart for love – which makes the abstract idea more concrete and therefore easier to remember."

In all studies, the researchers found that participants were able to memorize symbols better than words with the same meaning.

Click here for a full link to the news article featured in today's UWaterloo Daily Bulletin.