What happens to memory performance as the length of words in a list increases?

As the length of words in a list increases, memory performance typically decreases. This phenomenon can be traced to cognitive load and capacity limitations of working memory. When individuals are presented with longer words, they require more cognitive resources to encode and retrieve those words from memory. The increased complexity of processing longer words can overload the working memory, making it harder to store and recall the information accurately.

Research in cognitive psychology has shown that as the length of words increases, the time required to rehearse or encode these items also increases, which can lead to errors or omissions during recall. Furthermore, longer words may also be more challenging to visualize or associate with other concepts, further inhibiting memory retention.