Blacky the Cat,I: Semantic Differential Ratings

Two criteria for an alternate form of the Blacky Test, designed to facilitate female identification with Blacky are suggested: 1) the main character must be perceived by females as more feminine than the original stimulus, and 2) the main character must not be viewed differently by male and female Ss in other respects. Semantic Differential ratings of both the original Blacky stimuli and a revised “sexually neutral” cat form (N = 320) indicated that an alternate version could meet both these requirements. Differences between the responses of female Ss to both forms were further shown to be a) generally specific to female Ss, b) specific to the character of Blacky (rather than Mama) and c) often enhanced when Ss made judgments after having seen all twelve cartoons of the test, rather than only the first two.     

The computer as experimenter in social psychological research

The effects of familiarity and exposure paradigm on evaluative meaning were investigated in four experiments involving 161 Ss. A DEC PDP-10 computer linked to a VB10-C display screen for 1/0 assigned Ss to condition, presented instructions, tested Ss’ understanding of the instructions, generated and displayed stimuli in various frequencies, and obtained evaluative ratings of the stimuli. Problems encountered, Ss’ reactions, and current and possible use of the computer in social psychological research are discussed.     

The roles of practice and correction in the categorization of sour and bitter taste qualities

Ten Ss were selected from a group of 40 screened to determine misnaming of stimuli usually called sour (hydrochloric and citric acid) and bitter (quinine sulfate). The 10 Ss were then given 16 trials in which they were asked to match the stimuli to standards, with or without verbal feedback for each stimulus. This was followed by 16 trials without feedback for all Ss and, several days later, by a 16-trial posttest. Final improved performance of the Ss was not affected by having received the feedback. It was concluded that experience with the stimuli leads to a reduction in the degree of misnaming, implying a nonphysiological basis for sour-bitter confusions.     

Selective eye movements to simultaneously presented stimuli during discrimination

Human Ss, when given a discrimination task whose stimuli varied in dimension and relevance, always chose and ftxated more frequently the stimulus they had been reinforced for choosing. Decreasing the brightness reduced the choice and ftxation preference for form stimuli over line stimuli and raised total ftxation frequency. Ss decreased fixation frequency to discriminanda with practice.     

Absolute judgments of colors using natural color names

Twenty Ss, 10 male and 10 female, were required to select from a list of 36 common color names the correct name for each of 36 Munsell colored chips. On their first trial, with no prior training and without even having seen the set of stimuli in advance, our Ss gave results that were as good as, or better than, previous Es have reported at the conclusion of much longer experiments. On the last trial (Trial 10) our Ss transmitted about 5.07 bits of information, corresponding to the perfect discrimination of more than 33 colors. These figures approach the upper limit possible with 36 colors (5.17 bits). Reasons are given to suggest that the so-called human “channel capacity” to tasks of this kind could be even greater than we found here.     

Does implicit speech in same-different decisions extend to nonsense forms?

A previous study (Klapp, 1971) demonstrated that response latencies for same-different decisions involving printed words and numbers depend on the number of syllables needed for pronunciation. In the present experiment, Ss first learned to associate one- or two-syllable words to nonsense form stimuli. After extensive overlearning, the Ss were transferred to a same-different decision task involving these nonsense forms. Latencies were independent of number of syllables in the learned response. This was interpreted as showing that the Ss did not use the responses to mediate their same-different decisions, in contrast to the apparent implicit pronunciation for decisions involving printed words and numbers.     

Familiarity effects in visual comparison tasks and their implications for studying human intelligence.

Two experiments were carried out to study the effect of prior knowledge on cognitive processes related to human intelligence by examining its role in defining task novelty. In Experiment 1, Ss performed a letter-matching task involving same-different judgments based on 4 rules of sameness: physical identity, form, system, and name. When the stimuli were unfamiliar, performance on the name classification task was correlated with measures of fluid abilities, whereas when the stimuli were familiar, performance on this task was not correlated with measures of fluid abilities. In Experiment 2, Ss performed 3 different forms of a mental rotation task. When the stimuli were unfamiliar, the slope of the rotation function was correlated with a test of fluid ability, whereas when the stimuli were familiar, the slope of the rotation function was not correlated with a test of fluid ability. These results are discussed in terms of their implications for understanding the nature of task complexity and the way knowledge and processing interact in the development of skilled performance.     

Prediction outcome probabilities as determinants of choice reaction time

In a two-stimulus two-response choice reaction time (RT) task in which Ss made stimulus predictions, the probability of a correct prediction was manipulated between Ss. The magnitude of the difference in RT to correctly and incorrectly predicted stimuli (i.e., the prediction outcome effect) was an increasing function of the probability of a correct prediction This finding was primarily due to a reliable decrease in RT to correctly predicted stimuli as the probability of a correct prediction increased, since RT to incorrectly predicted stimuli was not affected by prediction outcome probability. These results were interpreted as partially supporting a continuous expectancy notion which involves facilitory and inhibitory mechanisms winch are differentially influenced by the probability of a correct prediction.     

Form recognition: Individual strategies in multivariate cue utilization

Twenty-five Ss were each presented 1,250 trials in a form-recognition task requiring S to find a form among 25 other forms on each trial. Fifty different eight-sided randomly derived polygons were used as stimuli, each presented in 25 different problems. Factors based on physical measures of the stimuli were correlated with observed latencies using multiple regression to assess cue-utilization strategies, while beta-weight profiles and intercorrelations of the Ss’ predicted latencies were used as indices of individual differences. Multiple correlations of physical-factor scores with observed latencies accounted for a significant proportion of the variance for all Ss, while between-S correlations of predicted latencies were never below .90. By all criteria employed, use of stimulus information was highly consistent among Ss. Replication of the experiment for one S revealed good reliability and nearly identical strategies.     

Role of response imagery on stimulus recognition*

This experiment investigated the role of response imagery on recognition of stimulus terms following associative training. Ss learned to associate 12 high-imagery or low-imagery responses with trigram stimuli by the study-associative matching procedure. Half the pairs were consistently paired and half were re-paired anew on each trial. Following associative training, Ss were given a stimulus recognition and an associative matching task The results indicated that the probability of stimulus recognition, given correct associative matching, was greater when the responses were high-imagery rather than low-imagery. In contrast, no rehable response imagery effects were found for the probability of stimulus recognition, given incorrect associative matching. It was argued that the locus of the response imagery effect was primarily during retrieval rather than during encoding.     

Investigating the effect of stimulus range on attribute weight

Classic economic theories of choice assume that trade-offs are made consistently and are not swayed by irrelevant contextual variables. One possible source of trade-off inconsistency is investigated by asking whether attribute weights are affected by variations in the range of the stimuli presented. Ss should be influenced by the range of the stimuli only when distributional characteristics provide information about the value of the stimuli. In six experiments, Ss made judgments when the range (a) did not provide information about the value of the scores on the scales, (b) might provide such information, and (c) certainly provided this information. In Experiments 1-5, Ss were not influenced by the range of the stimuli. The only exception was Experiment 6, which required Ss to judge hypothetical job candidates on the basis of stimulus scales with which the Ss had no previous experience. In this experiment the meaning of the scales was determined entirely by the location of each stimulus within the presented distribution. In general, the results support the classical view of decision making: that attribute weights exist independent of situational demands, and that Ss' judgments are not influenced by irrelevant stimuli.     

Response latencies in visual search involving redundant or irrelevant information

Three properties of models for comparison of multiattribute visual stimuli were considered: parallel vs serial processing, efficient vs exhaustive comparisons, and biased vs unbiased acceptance of attributes for processing. Ss performed two comparison tasks, matching-to-sample (M) and identification of odd stimuli (0), with color and form attributes presented singly and in redundant and nonredundant pairings. Analyses of means and of total distributions of response latencies supported the conclusion that parallel and efficient comparisons were the rule, along with a kind of partial selection of attribute to be processed. Ss differed in their relative speed of processing form and color attributes, and these differences accounted for most, but not all, of the differences among them in processing multiattribute stimuli.     

Shape correlates of visual and tactual size judgments: A contrast with complexity

Pattern correlates of perceived size were studied by obtaining category judgments of the size of 100 random forms from 40 Ss who explored the forms visually and 40 Ss who explored them factually. Comparison of the modalities and contrasts with perceived complexity were made via intercorrelations of judgments and latencies, multiple regression analyses using factored form dimensions, and correlations with original form measures. By holding area of the forms constant, it was shown that perceived size can be related to characteristics of shape.     

A constant error in the perception of brief temporal intervals

Ss were presented two stimuli of equal duration separated in time. The parrs of stimuli were vibrotactile, auditory, or visual. The Ss adjusted the time between the two stimuli to be equal to the duration of the first stimulus. The results show that for stimulus durations ranging from 100 to 1,200 msec, Ss set the tune between the two stimuli too long and by a constant amount. For vibrotactfle stimuli, the constant was 596 msec; for auditory stimuli, 657 msec; and for visual stimuli, 436 msec. Changing the intensity of the vibrotactile stimuli did not change the size of the constant error. When Ss were presented two tones with a burst of white noise between the tones and adjusted the duration of the white noise to be equal to the duration of the first tone, the white noise was not adjusted too long by a constant amount. The results suggest that there is a constant error in the perception of unfilled relative to filled temporal intervals.     

An analysis of the visual component in recognition memory for verbal stimuli

Forty Ss were given a continuous recognition memory test in which each word was presented twice, either in the same print or in different print on the two occasions. The results showed that (a) recognition performance was facilitated to a small but statistically significant extent in the same-print condition and that (b) Ss could reliably report first presentation print for recognized items for at least 1^1/2 rain. In a second experiment, the stimuli used were nonsense strings of. from five to seven letters instead of words. This manipulation increased the same-print advantage in recognition but reduced Ss’ ability to report first print form. The results indicate that information about the physical features of verbal stimuli is retained in a visual code that is partially’ or wholly independent of the verbal code for the same stimuli. The results are inconsistent with the conclusion that the visual code is stored only as a dependent attribute of the verbal code in memory.     

Differences in heaviness in relation to density and weight

Eight Ss (Group L) judged differences in heaviness between all pairs of stimuli in three series of five weights each, in the range of 100–300 g, presented randomly. Series L varied in weight and density, Series LVW varied only in weight, and Series LVD varied only in density. Another eight Ss (Group H) judged heaviness differences between all pairs of stimuli in three similar series (H, HVW, and HVD) in the range 700–900 g. Differences in density alone yielded relatively greater impressions of difference in heaviness in Group H than in Group L. Predictions from Ross and Di Lollo’s vector theory were confirmed.     

Feature encoding and pattern classifications with sequentially presented Markov stimuli

The major objective of this experiment was to develop and evaluate a methodology designed to permit more direct assessment of the detailed processes involved in prototype abstraction. Thirty Ss participated in a task having the following characteristics: (1) classifications of Markov-generated stimuli sampled from two different populations, (2) controlled scanning of pattern features, (3) a measure of the degree to which pattern features were correctly identified, and (4) intermittent reproduction of pattern features abstracted from collections of mixed instances. Results showed that a significant number of the Ss learned to classify the stimuli into categories corresponding to generation rules and, at least partially, abstracted the population prototypes from these variable instances. The feature identification data suggested that the Ss who were unsuccessful in classifying the stimuli into the rule-defined categories used an inappropriate strategy for sampling pattern information upon which to base their classifications.     

Form is easy,meaning is hard: resolving a paradox in early child language

A developmental paradox is discussed: studies of infant processing of language and language-like stimuli indicate considerable ability to abstract patterns over specific items and to distinguish natural from unnatural English sentences. In contrast, studies of toddler language production find little ability to generalize patterns over specific English words or constructions. Thus, infants appear to be abstract auditory or language processors whereas toddlers appear to be non-abstract, item-specific language users. Three resolutions are offered to this paradox. The first, that no resolution is necessary because only the toddler findings come from language use in a communicative context and so only the toddler findings are relevant to linguistic knowledge, is rejected. The second, that the contradictions are rooted in the differing methodologies of the two sets of studies (comprehension vs. production), is found to explain important aspects of the contradictory findings. The third, that the contractions come from the differing content of the stimuli in the studies, is also found to be explanatory and is argued to carry greater weight. Resolution 3 suggests that the patterns that infants extract from their linguistic input are not yet tied to meaning; thus, toddlers do not lose these earlier-abstracted forms but their use of them is limited until they have been integrated with meaning. It is argued that in language acquisition, learning form is easy but learning meaning, and especially linking meanings and forms, is hard.     

A Bayesian prediction of multiple-look identification performance from one-look data: The effect of unequal prior probabilities

Bayes’s theorem had accurately predicted multiple-look visual identification performance from one-look data in two previous studies when the prior probabilities of the visual stimuli were equal. In this study, prior probabilities were manipulated to determine whether these values were important in determining agreement between man and statistical man. The prior probabilities of the stimuli, four gap orientations in Landolt rings, were .7, .1, .1, and .1 for four Ss and .3, .3, .3, and .1 for three Ss. One-look data were used to predict two-look and four-look performance. In the 7-1-1-1 condition, the empirical percent correct increased as a function of repeated observations for the rare stimuli, but not for the high-probability stimuli. In the 3-3-3-1 condition, Ss improved over repeated observations for both types of stimuli. Predictions of multiple-look performance under unequal prior probability conditions in this study were less accurate than those under equal prior probability conditions in previous studies. Three possible determinants of this difference were discussed.     

Retention functions for syntactic and lexical vs semantic information in sentence recognition memory

In a continuous recognition memory design, Ss judged whether each sentence was identical in form and meaning to some previously presented sentence, then judged whether the sentence was identical in meaning irrespective of form, and, finally, rated the likelihood of recognizing the sentence ff it was presented an hour later (memorability). The Ss were given sentences that were new, identical to, or paraphrased from some previously presented sentence, at delays ranging from 0 sec to 2 h. Long-term memory for both semantic information and syntactic-lexical information decayed according to the same exponential-power retention function previously found to be characteristic of the decay of simpler verbal materials (nonsense items, letters, digits, words, and word pairs). Semantic memory primarily differed from syntactic-lexical memory in that the semantic information had a far higher degree of learning, but the decay rate for syntactic-lexical information was also approximately 5 0% greater than the decay rate for semantic information.