How good is your memory?

Summary

The video presents a short memory test illustrating availability bias: people may judge how common something is by how easily examples come to mind.

How the test works

• Listen to a list of 13 names: Marilyn Monroe, Vince Neil, Oprah Winfrey, Angelina Jolie, Jose Canseco, Barry Williams, Margaret Thatcher, Dave Coulier, Mark McGrath, Coco Chanel, Gary Coleman, Audrey Hepburn, and Christopher Knight.
• Decide whether the list contains more men’s or women’s names.
• The answer is men: there are seven men’s names and six women’s names.
• The video says that more than 80% of people answered incorrectly in the original experiment.
• It suggests that the women’s names were more famous and therefore easier to recall. This ease of recall can lead people to overestimate how many women’s names were on the list—the availability bias.

The video points viewers to the “Availability” podcast series to learn more.

Speakers and sources

• Narrator: An unnamed voice presenting the test.
• Referenced source: An unnamed original experiment; no researchers are identified in the subtitles.
• Further resource: The “Availability” series at Outsmarting Human Minds or wherever podcasts are available.