Chunking
Information in small groups is understood and remembered; information in a stream is not.
What it is
Working memory handles a few units at a time, but a unit can be a group. Phone numbers are chunked, so are credit cards. Interfaces that group related fields, steps and facts into labelled sets let people carry more with less effort and find their place again after an interruption.
The research
Recoding long sequences into a smaller number of meaningful chunks dramatically increases how much can be held in immediate memory.
Miller, 1956
How to use it
Group the form
"About you", "About the job", "When". Three labelled groups feel shorter than one long list of the same fields.
Format numbers for reading
0412 345 678 is remembered. 0412345678 is not.
Three points per section
A services page with three grouped offers is read. Eleven equal bullets are skimmed.
Related
Sources that shaped this entry: growth.design.