Self-Reference effect and consumer brands

This study extended the self-reference effect (SRE) to the recall of consumer brands. The pilot study gathered normative data to create the stimulus items for studies 1 and 2. In study 1, participants completed a questionnaire that contained SRE questions, (i.e., is the brand used by you), semantic questions (i.e., is the brand a certain type of product), and structural questions (i.e., is the brand name in large font). In a surprise recall task of brand names, all three tasks differed from each other with the largest recall coming for SRE items followed by semantic and structural items, respectively. Study 2 followed the same procedures as study 1 except now the semantic task dealt with judgments about brand popularity. The SRE and semantic items were both better recalled than the structural items, but the SRE and semantic items did not differ from each other. Limitations and future research are discussed.