Age of acquisition persists as the main factor in picture naming when cumulative word frequency and frequency trajectory are controlled

The aim of this study was to address the effect of objective age of acquisition (AoA) on picture-naming latencies when different measures of frequency (cumulative and adult word frequency) and frequency trajectory are taken into account. A total of 80 Spanish participants named a set of 178 pictures. Several multiple regression analyses assessed the influence of AoA, word frequency, frequency trajectory, object familiarity, name agreement, image agreement, image variability, name length, and orthographic neighbourhood density on naming times. The results revealed that AoA is the main predictor of picture-naming times. Cumulative frequency and adult word frequency (written or spoken) appeared as important factors in picture naming, but frequency trajectory and object familiarity did not. Other significant variables were image agreement, image variability, and neighbourhood density. These results (a) provide additional evidence of the predictive power of AoA in naming times independent of word-frequency and (b) suggest that image variability and neighbourhood density should also be taken into account in models of lexical production.     

Age of acquisition and word frequency in written picture naming

This study investigates age of acquisition (AoA) and word frequency effects in both spoken and written picture naming. In the first two experiments, reliable AoA effects on object naming speed, with objective word frequency controlled for, were found in both spoken (Experiment 1) and written picture naming (Experiment 2). In contrast, no reliable objective word frequency effects were observed on naming speed, with AoA controlled for, in either spoken (Experiment 3) or written (Experiment 4) picture naming. The implications of the findings for written picture naming are briefly discussed.     

Age of acquisition and word frequency effects in picture naming: a dual-task investigation

In 2 experiments, the authors explored age of acquisition (AoA) and word frequency (WF) effects in picture naming using the psychological refractory period paradigm. In Experiment 1, participants named a picture and then, a short time later, categorized 1 of 3 possible auditory tones as high, medium, or low. Both AoA (Experiment 1A) and WF (Experiment 1B) effects propagated onto tone discrimination reaction times (RTs), with the effects of AoA being stronger. In Experiment 2, the to-be-named picture followed the auditory tone by a varying interval. As the interval decreased, picture naming RTs increased. The relationship between the interval and AoA (Experiment 2A) was reliably underadditive; AoA effects were eliminated at the shortest interval. In contrast, WF (Experiment 2B) was additive with the effects of the interval. These results demonstrate an empirical dissociation between AoA and WF effects. AoA affects processing stages that precede those that are sensitive to WF. The implications for theories of picture naming are discussed.     

Age of acquisition,not word frequency,affects object naming,not object recognition

Word frequency is widely believed to affect object naming speed, despite several studies in which it has been reported that frequency effects may be redundant upon age of acquisition. We report, first, a reanalysis of data from the study by Oldfield and Wingfield (1965), which is standardly cited as evidence for a word frequency effect in object naming; then we report two new experiments. The reanalysis of Oldfield and Wingfield shows that age of acquisition is the major determinant of naming speed, and that frequency plays no independent role when its correlation with other variables is taken into account. In Experiment 1, age of acquisition and phoneme length proved to be the primary determinants of object naming speed. Frequency, prototypicality, and imageability had no independent effect. In Experiment 2, subjects classified objects into two semantic categories (natural or man-made). Prototypicality and semantic category were the only variables to have a significant effect on reaction time, with no effect of age of acquisition, frequency, imageability, or word length. We conclude that age of acquisition, not word frequency, affects the retrieval and/or execution of object names, not the process of object recognition. The locus of this effect is discussed, along with the possibility that words learned in early childhood may be more resistant to the effects of brain injury in at least some adult aphasics than words learned somewhat later.     

The role of age of acquisition in picture and word naming in dyslexic adults

To date, there has been numerous reports that early acquired pictures and words are named faster than late acquired pictures and words in normal reading but it is not established whether age of acquisition (AoA) has the same impact on adult dyslexic naming, especially in a transparent orthography such as Turkish. Independent ratings were obtained for AoA, frequency, name agreement, and object familiarity in Turkish for all items in the Snodgrass and Vanderwart line drawing set. Dyslexic (N= 15) and non-dyslexic (N= 15) university undergraduates were asked to name 30 early acquired and 30 late acquired pictures and picture names standardized and selected from these norms. As predicted, there were main effects for (a) AoA with reaction times (RTs) for Early items named faster than Late items, (b) reader status with non-dyslexic students faster than dyslexic students, and (c) stimuli types with pictures named slower than words. A two-way interaction between reader status and stimuli type was also significant. Implications of the results for theoretical frameworks of AoA within the cognitive architecture and normal and impaired models of reading are discussed.     

Age of acquisition and name agreement as predictors of mean response latencies in picture naming of French adults

We studied the influence of five variables on picture naming latencies in French adult subjects: frequency, age of acquisition and length of words, name agreement in oral naming, and visual complexity of pictures. 140 pictures were presented to 56 subjects with control of individual factors (age, educational level, gender). Naming latency was measured as the time from picture onset until keystroke corresponding to the begin of verbal production. The results of simple and multiple regression analyses show that only two variables make independent contributions to mean response latency: age of acquisition and name agreement. Such state of affairs confirms similar findings obtained with English speaking subjects.     

Age of acquisition effects in picture naming: evidence for a lexical-semantic competition hypothesis

In many tasks the effects of frequency and age of acquisition (AoA) on reaction latencies are similar in size. However, in picture naming the AoA-effect is often significantly larger than expected on the basis of the frequency-effect. Previous explanations of this frequency-independent AoA-effect have attributed it to the organisation of the semantic system or to the way phonological word forms are stored in the mental lexicon. Using a semantic blocking paradigm, we show that semantic context effects on naming latencies are more pronounced for late-acquired than for early-acquired words. This interaction between AoA and naming context is likely to arise during lexical-semantic encoding, which we put forward as the locus for the frequency-independent AoA-effect.     

The word frequency effect in picture naming: contrasting two hypotheses using homonym pictures

Models of speech production disagree on whether or not homonyms have a shared word-form representation. To investigate this issue, a picture-naming experiment was carried out using Dutch homonyms of which both meanings could be presented as a picture. Naming latencies for the low-frequency meanings of homonyms were slower than for those of the high-frequency meanings. However, no frequency effect was found for control words, which matched the frequency of the homonyms' meanings. Subsequent control experiments indicated that the difference in naming latencies for the homonyms could be attributed to processes earlier than word-form retrieval. Specifically, it appears that low name agreement slowed down the naming of the low-frequency homonym pictures.     

Age and age of acquisition: An evaluation of the cumulative frequency hypothesis

An important determinant of picture and word naming speed is the age at which the names were learned (age of acquisition). Two related interpretations of these effects are that they reflect differences between words in their cumulative frequency of use, or that they reflect differences in the amount of time early and lateacquired words have spent in lexical memory. Both theories predict that differences between early and late-acquired words will be less apparent in older than younger adults. Two experiments are reported in which younger and older adults read words varying in age of acquisition or frequency, or named objects varying in age of acquisition. There was an observed effect of word frequency only for young adults' word naming. In contrast, strong age of acquisition effects were found for both the young and the old participants. The implications of these results for theories of how age of acquisition might affect lexical processing are discussed.     

Age-of-acquisition and frequency effects in speeded word naming

An experiment was conducted to assess the importance of age-of-acquisition and frequency in a speeded word naming task, where participants were instructed to read aloud words before they disappeared from the computer screen. Under such speeded naming instructions, reading latencies were over 100ms (or 20%) faster than in "standard" (or immediate) word naming. There were clear effects of word frequency and age-of-acquisition under speeded naming. Compared to standard immediate naming, the age-of-acquisition effect was larger, with early-acquired words being speeded up more than late-acquired words, which is interpreted in terms of speeded naming reducing the contribution of sublexical processing to word naming times.     

A study of masked form priming in picture and word naming

We report a series of picture- and word-naming experiments in which the masked priming paradigm with prime exposures brief enough to prevent prime identification were used. Experiment 1 demonstrates that the prior presentation of the same word prime facilitates both picture and word naming independently of target frequency. In Experiments 2 and 3, primes that were pseudohomophones of picture targets produced facilitatory effects compared with orthographic controls, but these orthographically similar nonword primes did not facilitate picture naming compared with unrelated controls. On the other hand, word targets were primarily facilitated by orthographic prime— target overlap. This marked dissociation in the priming effects obtained with picture and word targets is discussed in relation to different explanations of masked form priming effects in visual word recognition and current models of picture and word naming.     

Age of acquisition and meaningfulness as predictors of word availability

Recognition latencies were obtained for words about which age-of-acquisition data were directly available on individual children. Latencies to name 50 words were obtained for each of 20 ninth-grade children. In addition, each child was asked to give associations to each word as a measure of its meaningfulness. Although latencies were significantly related to age-at-acquisition, confirming earlier reports, the partial correlation with meaningfulness removed was not significant. Age-of-acquisition determines word availability only because early-learned words elicit more associations.     

Age of acquisition and word frequency: determinants of object-naming speed and accuracy

The combined contributions of word age of acquisition (AoA) and word frequency (rated and objective) to word retrieval speed and accuracy were investigated, using a picture-naming paradigm. Results from two fully factorial studies revealed that both AoA and word frequency reliably facilitate the speed and accuracy of word retrieval. Furthermore, word frequency and AoA interacted across delay (0, 750, 1,500, and 2,250 msec) in Experiment 2. This resulted in word frequency's playing a stronger role for late-acquired words across delays. It is concluded that both AoA and word frequency play a fundamental role in lexical retrieval. The results are also consistent with the view that both factors affect the same processing stages.     

Effects of age of acquisition and priming on picture naming

Four experiments examined the interaction of age of acquisition (AoA) and priming on picture naming. Experiment 1 found that initial-letter priming and AoA significantly affected picture-naming latencies, but there was no interaction between them. Experiment 2 found that initial-phoneme priming and AoA significantly affected picture-naming latencies, but again there was no interaction. Experiment 3 repeated Barry, Hirsh, Johnston, and Williams's (2001) priming study using a very short interval between prime and target. Experiment 3 replicated previous findings of a significant interaction between priming and AoA. Experiment 4 repeated this investigation with a procedure that did not require participants to articulate the prime. Once again, there were significant effects of priming, AoA, and the interaction between them. The implications of these findings in relation to accounts of AoA and its locus of effect are discussed.     

Effects of age of acquisition and priming on picture naming

Four experiments examined the interaction of age of acquisition (AoA) and priming on picture naming. Experiment 1 found that initial-letter priming and AoA significantly affected picture-naming latencies, but there was no interaction between them. Experiment 2 found that initial-phoneme priming and AoA significantly affected picture-naming latencies, but again there was no interaction. Experiment 3 repeated Barry, Hirsh, Johnston, and Williams's (2001) priming study using a very short interval between prime and target. Experiment 3 replicated previous findings of a significant interaction between priming and AoA. Experiment 4 repeated this investigation with a procedure that did not require participants to articulate the prime. Once again, there were significant effects of priming, AoA, and the interaction between them. The implications of these findings in relation to accounts of AoA and its locus of effect are discussed.     

Age of acquisition and repetition priming effects on picture naming of children who do and do not stutter

The effects of age of acquisition and repetition priming on picture naming latencies and errors were studied in 22 children who stutter (CWS) and 22 children who do not stutter (CWNS) between the ages of 3;1 and 5;7. Children participated in a computerized picture naming task where they named pictures of both early and late acquired (AoA) words in two consecutive stages. Findings revealed that all children's picture naming latencies and errors were reduced following repetition priming and in response to early AoA words relative to late AoA words. AoA and repetition priming effects were similar for children in both talker groups, with one exception. Namely, CWS benefitted significantly more, in terms of error reduction, than CWNS from repetition priming for late AoA words. In addition, CWNS exhibited a significant, positive association between linguistic speed and measures of vocabulary, but CWS did not. These findings were taken to suggest that the (a) semantic-phonological connections of CWS may not be as strong as those of CWNS, and (b) existing lexical measures may not be sensitive enough to differentiate CWS from CWNS in lexically related aspects of language production. Educational objectives: After reading this article, the learner will be able to: (a) describe the effects of repetition priming and age of word acquisition in speech production; (b) summarize the performance similarities and differences of children who stutter and children who do not stutter on a computerized picture naming task; and (c) compare the results of the present study with previous work in this area.     

Age of acquisition, word frequency, and the role of phonology in the lexical decision task

In five experiments, we examined the respective roles of word age of acquisition (AoA) and frequency in the lexical decision task. The two variables were manipulated orthogonally (while controlling for concreteness and length) in fully factorial designs. Experiment 1 was a conventional lexical decision task, and Experiments 2-5 involved various attempts to interfere with reliance upon phonology. In Experiment 2, only orthographically illegal nonwords were used; in Experiment 3, pseudohomophone nonwords; in Experiment 4, articulatory suppression by the recitation of a nursery rhyme; and in Experiment 5, articulatory suppression by the repetition of a single word. The same basic pattern of results was observed in all experiments: There were main effects of both AoA and frequency, which interacted in such a way that the AoA effect was larger for low- than for high-frequency words. Although the AoA effect was reduced by manipulations intended to interfere with phonological processing, the manipulations did not eliminate the effect. The results are discussed in terms of current models of reading in which it is proposed that AoA has its primary effect on the retrieval of lexical phonology, which appears to be consulted automatically in the lexical decision task.     

First in,first out: Word learning age and spoken word frequency as predictors of word familiarity and word naming latency

This study is concerned with recent claims that subjective measures of word frequency are more suitable than are standard word frequency counts as indices of actual frequency of word encounter. A multiple regression study is reported, which shows that the major predictor of familiarity ratings is word learning age. Objective measures of spoken and written word frequency made independent contributions to the variance. It is concluded that rated familiarity is not an appropriate substitute for objective frequency measures. A multiple regression study of word naming latency is reported, and shows that rated word learning age is a better predictor of word naming latency than are spoken word frequency, written word frequency, rated familiarity, and other variables. Possible theoretical explanations for age-of-acquisition effects are discussed and it is concluded that early-learned words have a more complete representation in a phonological output lexicon. This conclusion is related to relevant developmental literature.     

Studies toward a model of laterality effects for picture and word naming

Experiments requiring the naming of bilaterally presented nouns, picturable nouns, consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) nonwords, and line drawings are reported. In order to eliminate order of report strategies and facilitate comparison across experiments, the stimulus to be reported first was cued by underlining at presentation of each trial. Large right visual hemifield (RVF) superiorities were found to arise from both first and second reports for naming nouns and CVC nonwords. Drawings and picturable nouns, however, produced only a small RVF superiority arising entirely from subjects' second reports. It is proposed that hemispheric laterality effects for naming visually presented stimuli can arise from three principal sources, and the application of this model to existing studies is outlined.     

Age-of-acquisition effects in reading aloud: Tests of cumulative frequency and frequency trajectory

Several studies have reported that the age at which a word is learned affects skilled reading. This age-of-acquisition effect is potentially important for theories of reading and learning. The effect has been difficult to pin down, however, because the age at which a word is learned is correlated with many other lexical properties. Zevin and Seidenberg (2002) analyzed these phenomena, using connectionist models that distinguished between cumulative frequency (the total number of times a word is experienced) and frequency trajectory (the distribution of these experiences over time). The models prompted a reevaluation of the empirical literature on this topic. The present research tested and confirmed three behavioral predictions derived from these models. First, cumulative frequency has an impact on skilled word naming, more so than standard measures of frequency derived from such norms as those of Kucera and Francis (1967). Second, frequency trajectory affects age of acquisition: The timing of exposure to words affects how rapidly they are learned. However, frequency trajectory does not affect skilled reading aloud, because the consistencies in mapping between spelling and sound eventually wash out the effects of early differences in frequency of exposure. Thus, in skilled performance, the timing of exposure to words is less important than the amount of exposure. The results clarify the conditions under which age-dependent learning effects occur in reading aloud.