The Rise of the Listicle: Using Eye-Tracking and Signal Detection Theory to Measure This Growing Phenomenon

• Main Author: Freeman, Jason Robert
• Format: Others
• Published: BYU ScholarsArchive 2017
• Subjects: listicle; user experience; native advertising; online navigation; visual communication; social media; signal detection theory; cognitive load; Communication
• Online Access: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/6803; https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7803&context=etd

As online technology continues to progress, the modes of communication through which content can be shared have exponentially grown. These include advances in navigational options for presenting information and news online. Though the listicle has been around for centuries, the internet has proliferated its growth, as content producers rely on its structure as a vehicle for sharing information. This research shows that in the case of listicles, format had no direct effect on recall, however, participants who had a greater interest in the content showed significantly higher levels of memory sensitivity. This critical finding suggests that news outlets and content producers should concern themselves with ensuring that their content is interesting and relevant to their audience more so than worrying about whether the listicle is in clickable or scrollable form. This first attempt to examine listicles by comparing their navigational difference in terms of recall performance lays a framework for future research on listicles.