RSVP at the movies: dynamic images are remembered better than static images when resources are limited

We examined whether dynamic images benefit memory when visual resources are limited. Almost all previous research in this area has used static photographs to examine viewers' memory for image content, description, or visual attributes. Here, we investigated the short-term retention of brief stimuli using rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) with short videos and static frames of 80, 160, 200, and 400 ms/item. Memory performance for dynamic images was generally better than for comparable still images of the same duration. There was also a strong recency effect for items briefer than 400 ms, which suggests that an optimal duration of about 400 ms may be necessary for dynamic images to be detected and fully processed. Interestingly, we also found that the presence of motion increased performance while the amount of motion did not.