Cross-language positive priming disappears, negative priming does not: Evidence for two sources of selective inhibition

The authors used a unilingual and bilingual primed lexical decision task to investigate priming effects produced by attended and ignored words. In the unilingual experiment, accelerated lexical decisions to probe target words resulted when the word matched the preceding target word, whereas slowed lexical decisions to probe target words resulted when the word matched the preceding ignored nontarget word. In the bilingual (English-Spanish) experiment, between-language, rather than within-language, priming manipulations were used. Although the ignored repetition negative priming effect replicated across languages, cross-language attended repetition positive priming did not. This dissociation of priming effects in the inter- versus intralanguage priming conditions contradicts episodic retrieval accounts of negative priming that deny the existence of selective inhibitory processes. On the other hand, these results support an extension of inhibition-based accounts of negative priming, because they indicate that inhibition can operate at two levels of abstraction--local word and global language--simultaneously.     

Connection between the evaluation of positive or negative valence and verbal responses to a lexical decision making task]

Evaluation of the positive or negative valence of a stimulus is an activity that is part of any emotional experience that has been mostly studied using the affective priming paradigm. When the prime and the target have the same valence (e.g. positive prime and positive target), the target response is facilitated as a function of opposing valence conditions (e.g. negative prime and positive target). These studies show that this evaluation is automatic but depends on the nature of the task's implied response because the priming effects are only observed for positive responses, not for negative responses. This result was explained in automatic judgmental tendency model put forth by Abelson and Rosenberg (1958) and Klauer and Stern (1992). In this model, affective priming assumes there is an overlap between both responses, the first response taking precedence as a function of the prime-target valence, and the second response one that is required by the task. We are assuming that another type of response was not foreseen under this model. In fact, upon activating the valence for each of the prime-target elements, two preliminary responses would be activated before the response on the prime-target valence relationship. These responses are directly linked to the prime and target evaluation independently of the prime-target relationship. This hypothesis can be linked to the larger hypothesis whereby the evaluative process is related to two distinct motivational systems corresponding to approach and avoidance behaviour responses (Lang, Bradley, & Cuthbert, 1990; Neuman & Strack, 2000; Cacciopo, Piester & Bernston, 1993). In this study, we use the hypothesis that when a word leads to a positive valence evaluation, this favours a positive verbal response and inversely, a negative valence word favours a negative response. We are testing this hypothesis outside the affective priming paradigm to study to what extent evaluating a word, even when it is not primed, activates both motivational systems and consequently, positive verbal responses for approach and negative responses for avoidance. To validate this hypothesis, we are re-using both versions of the lexical decision task proposed by Wentura (2000). The classic version leads participants to a positive response for words, and the modified version leads to a no response. This experiment, carried out with thirty-two participants, measures the influence on response time of two experimental factors, the intrasubject valence of words (positive and negative) and the inter-subject factor (yes and no responses to words). Results show an interaction between the type of response and word valence. It is temporally more onerous to give a no response to positive words than to negative words. This result confirms that there is a direct relation between the evaluation of a valence stimulus and the response to this stimulus, a relation that had up to now been essentially observed with motor behaviours, and more rarely with verbal responses. We propose integrating the existence of this link between evaluation and verbal response (yes and no) in interpreting the effects of affective priming.     

Cross-language negative priming remains intact,while positive priming disappears: evidence for two sources of selective inhibition

In the current experiments, within- and between-language primed lexical decision tasks with Twi-English bilinguals were used. The aim was to explore the priming effects produced by attended and ignored words, in an effort to draw theoretical and empirical parallels and differences between the mechanisms of excitation and inhibition and to isolate the different circumstances in which these mechanisms operate in bilingual language processing. In the within-language (Twi) experiment, facilitatory (positive) priming resulted when a prime word and subsequent probe target word were identical, whereas delayed decisions to probe targets (negative priming) ensued when the ignored prime word was conceptually identical to the subsequent probe target word. In contrast, while the between-language (Twi-English) experiments replicated the ignored repetition negative priming effect, no evidence of positive priming was observed. These between-language findings undermine episodic retrieval models of selective attention that discount inhibitory processes in negative priming paradigms. Instead, our findings substantiate inhibition-based accounts by showing that there are two sources of inhibition operating at the local word and global language levels of abstraction. The findings also support bilingual language representations in which the words of the two languages are integrated.     

Interference in implicit memory caused by processing of interpolated material

This study addresses the susceptibility of implicit memory to interference. Interference is manipulated by presenting interpolated lists of words that do or do not have word stems in common with previously studied target words (e.g., target word paragraph followed by interpolated words such as paradise or vicinity). Interference in a word stem completion task occurred only when words had similar word stems (Experiment 1). Increasing the number of interpolated words with corresponding word stems (e.g., not only paradise but also parking, pardon, and parliament) produced increasing amounts of interference (Experiment 2). Interference in implicit memory appears to be a simple response competition phenomenon that occurs when cues simultaneously activate primed targets and primed competing responses. The amount of interference can be explained by a quantitative model of the relative strengths of target and competing responses.     

Dissociation of bimanual responses with the Simon effect: on the nonunitization of bimanual responses

The authors examined whether responses of the 2 hands were completely unitized when participants (N=36) produced bimanual responses to lateralized targets in a Simon-type paradigm. Their primary aim was to investigate whether lateralized stimuli differentially influence the response dynamics of the 2 hands. Simon effects were obtained in reaction time and force components of the bimanual response by the hand on the same side as the lateralized stimulus were more forceful than were those of the other hand. Also, Simon effects were larger when the lateralized target appeared alone than when it was accompanied by a distractor on the other side of the display. Finally, responses of the 2 hands were correlated most strongly when stimulus displays were symmetrical. The authors conclude that bimanual responses are strongly coupled, but not perfectly so.     

Opposing effects of age and reading ability on pseudoword priming

Repetition priming refers to the facilitation of stimulus processing due to prior processing of the same or similar stimulus, and is one of the most primitive ways in which experience and practice can affect performance. Previous studies have produced contradictory results regarding the stability of repetition priming across development. Drawing on models of word priming that suggest decreased priming with increased reading ability, the present experiment investigated the possibility that null effects of age in priming are due to opposing effects of age and reading ability on priming magnitude. Forty-eight participants between 7 and 22 years old read aloud primed and unprimed pseudowords, after completing a reading ability assessment. In line with predictions, the magnitude of priming for pseudowords increased with increased age when reading ability was controlled, and decreased with increased reading ability when age was controlled. Moreover, neither the age nor ability effect was significant when tested without the other. Results were not influenced by explicit memory for primed pseudowords. Thus, the present experiment provides evidence for developmental increases in word priming, as well as a potential explanation for the lack of developmental effects in previous studies.     

The attentional blink effect: influence of negative words in an affective valence categorization task

In this study, we explored the emotional modulation of the Attentional Blink effect. In a Rapid Serial Visual Presentation procedure, a word (Target 1), either positive, negative or neutral, was followed by the word "WATER" (Target 2) in one half of the trials. The task included two conditions. In one of them, participants only had to detect the word "WATER". In double-response trials, participants also categorized Target 1's valence. Results showed that the detection of Target 2 was impaired in the double-response condition, this impairment being greater when negative word appeared as Target 1, as compared to positive and neutral words. However, these effects were independent on the Anxiety-Trait levels of participants. Overall, the pattern of data suggests that cognitive resources are focused on negative stimuli when their negative valence is emotionally salient enough.     

Dissociation of Bimanual Responses With the Simon Effect: On the Nonunitization of Bimanual Responses

The authors examined whether responses of the 2 hands were completely unitized when participants (N = 36) produced bimanual responses to lateralized targets in a Simon-type paradigm. Their primary aim was to investigate whether lateralized stimuli differentially influence the response dynamics of the 2 hands. Simon effects were obtained in reaction time and force; components of the bimanual response by the hand on the same side as the lateralized stimulus were more forceful than were those of the other hand. Also, Simon effects were larger when the lateralized target appeared alone than when it was accompanied by a distractor on the other side of the display. Finally, responses of the 2 hands were correlated most strongly when stimulus displays were symmetrical. The authors conclude that bimanual responses are strongly coupled, but not perfectly so.     

Tests of dual process theory: Word priming and recognition

Dual process theory postulates two representational processes: Activation of a representation makes the mental event more easily and automatically accessible. Elaboration of a mental event produces access to the representation through search and retrieval processes. We explored word priming in recognition and in a stem completion task where the primed word was one of several possible completions for a 3-letter stem. The main hypothesis was that priming has similar and parallel effects in the two tasks. The initial presentation (priming) of items was under conditions of either semantic or non-semantic processing. Priming was either direct, by the presentation of the target word, or indirect, by the presentation of phonologically related (rhyming) or semantically related (categorical) items. When priming occurred, RTs increased from direct to phonologically primed and to semantically primed items for both completion and recognition tests. One additional experiment confirmed the absence of semantic processing in the non-semantic condition, and another experiment showed that when response requirements for recognition and completion responses are equated, RTs to the two tests are comparable.     

Counterfactual and semifactual conditionals prime alternative possibilities

The authors examined in 3 experiments the comprehension of counterfactuals, such as "If it had rained, the plants would have bloomed," and semifactuals, such as "Even if it had rained, the plants would have bloomed," compared with indicative conditionals, "If it rained, the plants bloomed." The first experiment showed that people read the negative conjunction, "not p and not q" faster when it was primed by a counterfactual than when it was primed by an indicative conditional. They read the affirmative conjunction, "p and q" equally quickly when it was primed by either conditional. The 2nd experiment showed that people read the negated-antecedent conjunction, "not p and q" faster when it was primed by a semifactual conditional. The 3rd experiment corroborated these results in a direct comparison of counterfactuals and semifactuals. The authors discuss the implications of the results for the mental representations of different conditionals.     

Moods as spotlights: the influence of mood on accessibility effects

Three studies explore the manner in which one's mood may affect the use and impact of accessible information on judgments. Specifically, the authors demonstrated that positive and negative moods differentially influence the direction of accessibility effects (assimilation, contrast) by determining whether abstract traits or concrete actor-trait links are primed. Study 1 investigated the impact of positive versus negative mood on the judgmental impact of trait-implying behaviors and found that positive moods lead to assimilation and negative moods to contrast. In Study 2, this effect was replicated in a subliminal priming paradigm. In Study 3, it was demonstrated that the type of information activated by trait-implying behaviors is indeed mood dependent, such that abstract trait information is activated in a positive mood, whereas specific actor-trait links are activated in a negative mood.     

Confusion and compensation in visual perception: effects of spatiotemporal proximity and selective attention

The authors investigated spatial, temporal, and attentional manipulations in a short-term repetition priming paradigm. Brief primes produced a strong preference to choose the primed alternative, whereas long primes had the opposite effect. However, a 2nd brief presentation of a long prime produced a preference for the primed word despite the long total prime duration. These surprising results are explained by a computational model that posits the offsetting components of source confusion (prime features are confused with target features) and discounting (evidence from primed features is discounted). The authors obtained compelling evidence for these components by showing how they can cooperate or compete through different manipulations of prime salience. The model allows for dissociations between prime salience and the magnitude of priming, thereby providing a unified account of "subliminal" and "supraliminal" priming.     

The segment as the minimal planning unit in speech production: Evidence based on absolute response latencies

A minimal amount of information about a word must be phonologically and phonetically encoded before a person can begin to utter that word. Most researchers assume that the minimum is the complete word or possibly the initial syllable. However, there is some evidence that the initial segment is sufficient based on longer durations when the initial segment is primed. In two experiments in which the initial segment of a monosyllabic word is primed or not primed, we present additional evidence based on very short absolute response times determined on the basis of acoustic and articulatory onset relative to presentation of the complete target. We argue that the previous failures to find very short absolute response times when the initial segment is primed are due in part to the exclusive use of acoustic onset as a measure of response latency, the exclusion of responses with very short acoustic latencies, the manner of articulation of the initial segment (i.e., plosive vs. nonplosive), and individual differences. Theoretical implications of the segment as the minimal planning unit are considered.     

Redundant information in an observing-response procedure

In three observing-response experiments relevant to the information hypothesis of conditioned reinforcement, the basic procedure was one in which an observing response produced one stimulus on trials that terminated in non-contingent reinforcement and another stimulus on trials that terminated in a brief timeout. In Experiment I, the observing response consisted of a single peck or a short fixed-ratio schedule (FR 3 or FR 6), depending on the type of trial. If the single peck produced the negative stimulus and the fixed ratio produced the positive stimulus, observing responses were maintained. If the single peck produced the positive stimulus and the fixed-ratio produced the negative stimulus, observing responses were not maintained on negative trials. In the second experiment, the response key was either white or dark at the beginning of a trial, indicating whether it was a positive or negative trial. Observing responses continued to be maintained on positive trials but not on negative trials. In Experiment III, only positive or negative trials were scheduled for several sessions. Observing responses extinguished regardless of whether positive or negative trials were scheduled. The results do not support the hypothesis that making the stimuli produced by observing responses redundant will reduce observing responses.     

Verbal response-effect compatibility

Ideomotor theory states that motor responses are activated by an anticipation of their sensory effects. We assumed that anticipated effects would produce response-effect (R-E) compatibility when there is dimensional overlap of effects and responses. In a four-choice task, visual digit stimuli called for verbal responses (color names). Each response produced a written response-effect on the screen. In different groups, the response-effect was a colored color word (e.g., blue in blue), a white color word, or a colored nonword (Xs in blue). In different blocks, the predictable effects were either incompatible (e.g., response "blue" --> effect: green) or compatible with the response. We found faster responses with compatible than with incompatible R-E mappings. The compatibility effect was strongest with colored words, intermediate with white words, and smallest with colored nonwords. We conclude that effect anticipation influences response selection on both a perceptual level (related to the word's color) and a conceptual level (related to the word's meaning).     

Response bias in "remembering" emotional stimuli: a new perspective on age differences

Older adults sometimes show a recall advantage for emotionally positive, rather than neutral or negative, stimuli (S. T. Charles, M. Mather, & L. L. Carstensen, 2003). In contrast, younger adults respond "old" and "remember" more often to negative materials in recognition tests. For younger adults, both effects are due to response bias changes rather than to enhanced memory accuracy (S. Dougal & C. M. Rotello, 2007). We presented older and younger adults with emotional and neutral stimuli in a remember-know paradigm. Signal-detection and model-based analyses showed that memory accuracy did not differ for the neutral, negative, and positive stimuli, and that "remember" responses did not reflect the use of recollection. However, both age groups showed large and significant response bias effects of emotion: Younger adults tended to say "old" and "remember" more often in response to negative words than to positive and neutral words, whereas older adults responded "old" and "remember" more often to both positive and negative words than to neutral stimuli.     

Multiletter Word Units in Visual Recognition: Direct Activation by Supraletter Visual Features

Multiletter priming effects have been interpreted as evidence for the representation of separable multiletter units in the visual word recognition system (Whiteley & Walker, 1994). The reported experiments examine whether the activation of such units is pre- or post-lexical. Experiments 2 and 3 employed priming in an alphabetic decision task in which subjects made a discrimination response to test stimuli which could be classed as either targets or foils. Targets were single letters, or consonant bigrams, present or absent in an immediately preceding word, or (Experiment 3 and 4) they were whole words semantically associated or not to a preceding word. Foils were single non-alphanumeric characters, a character plus a letter, or a word with one letter replaced by a character. Experiment 1 was a preliminary to determine the parameters of a sequential presentation manipulation. Experiment 2 compared conditions of simultaneous and sequential presentation where letters of prime words were presented together, or one at a time in rapid succession. With simultaneous presentation, responses to bigram targets were facilitated when these appeared in the prime word, while responses to individual constituent letters of those bigrams were not facilitated. Additionally, responses to primed bigram targets were faster than responses to primed single letter targets. The sequential presentation of prime words resulted in a qualitative change in the response pattern indicative of the disruption of multiletter unit activation. That change was replicated in Experiment 3 where semantic priming confirmed that the prime words were being processed to a level of meaning. The observations challenge a post-lexical account of the multiletter priming effects. Finally, Experiment 4 addressed the question of whether bigram priming reflects the intentional use of prime information to predict following targets. Strategic interpretations are undermined and it is argued that multiletter units are activated automatically as part of normal visual word recognition.     

Conceptual activation of distractors during selection is not sufficient to produce negative priming

Negative priming (NP) occurs when responses are slower because the targets were distractors on the preceding trial. Word-naming NP occurs only with words that have been presented repeatedly as targets; novel words do not show NP. The activation-inhibition explanation is that representations of repeated-word distractors are activated already and must be inhibited; the inhibition carries over to the next trial. If this explanation is correct, novel-word NP should occur if the word is semantically primed (thus activating its representation) before it occurs as a distractor. In two experiments, there was NP for words from a repeated set, and the magnitude of NP increased when the same word could occur as a target on consecutive trials. There was positive, rather than negative, priming for novel-word targets that had been semantically primed as distractors. Either the activation from semantic priming was not sufficiently strong to require inhibition, or the activation-inhibition hypothesis does not refer to activation of conceptual representations.     

语言标识对情绪体验的影响

本研究通过两个实验考察了语言标识对个体情绪体验的调节作用。实验一探讨了中性标识对不同类型的情绪体验的影响,结果发现与韩文字符标识相比,中性双字词标识时被试对负性图片的消极情绪体验强度显著降低。实验二进一步探讨了不同情绪色彩的词语的标识效应,结果发现与中性标识相比,负性或正性标识时被试对负性图片的消极情绪体验程度更低。结果表明了语言标识对负性情绪体验具有显著的调节作用,并且标识效应的产生依赖于词汇语义信息的通达。     

Negative stimulus-response compatibility observed with a briefly displayed image of a hand

Manual responses can be primed by viewing an image of a hand. The left-right identity of the viewed hand reflexively facilitates responses of the hand that corresponds to the identity. Previous research also suggests that when the response activation is triggered by an arrow, which is backward-masked and presented briefly, the activation manifests itself in the negative priming effect. The present study showed that response activation, which is produced by an identity of a briefly presented image of a hand, can be similarly associated with a negative priming effect. However, in contrast to the previously reported negative priming effects, the hand stimuli produced negative priming even when the hand was not backward-masked and did not contain task-relevant information. The study supports the view that the automatic inhibition of motor activation triggered by briefly viewed objects is a general and basic functional principle in exogenous motor control processes.