高度模糊靶字下的N400语义启动效应：词汇加工理论的证据

本研究基于不可识别模糊字词仍能诱发N400的词汇加工理论的假设,让被试对模糊字进行同一字延迟判断,利用脑电技术记录不同模糊程度靶字的认知过程,来探讨N400出现的条件,以阐明N400反映的是词汇加工,还是词汇后加工。实验结果表明：与可识别、轻度模糊汉字一样,不可识别、高度模糊汉字仍然可以诱发N400;这种N400语义启动效应反映了词汇加工过程。     

注意促进效应依赖于项目-背景的质心间距

近期研究者发现, 在某些条件下增加对第一任务的注意能够提高伴随发生的第二任务的成绩, 并将其命名为注意促进效应。研究者提出双任务交互模型对之进行解释, 认为该效应产生的必要条件是时间上的重叠, 而不受空间距离的影响。基于对这一观点的质疑, 本研究探究了检测项目与背景图片的质心间距对注意促进效应的影响。结果发现, 当目标项位于背景图片中央时(质心间距为0), 表现出注意促进效应; 而当二者分开一定的空间距离时, 出现了注意干扰/抑制效应。由此可见, 项目和背景的质心间距会对注意促进效应产生影响。     

辅音和元音知觉中的启动效应差异

采用启动范式,在两个实验中分别考察了辅音范畴和元音范畴知觉中的启动效应。启动音是纯音和目标范畴本身,目标音是辅音范畴和元音范畴连续体。结果发现辅音范畴连续体知觉的范畴反应百分比受到纯音和言语启动音影响,辅音范畴知觉的反应时只受言语启动音影响;元音范畴连续体知觉的范畴反应百分比不受两种启动音影响,但元音范畴知觉的反应时受到言语启动音影响。实验结果表明辅音范畴和元音范畴知觉中的启动效应存在差异,这为辅音和元音范畴内在加工机制的差异提供了新证据。     

Movement-Based Priming: Clinical Applications and Neural Mechanisms

Priming can be described as behavior change generated by preceding stimuli. Although various types of priming have been long studied in the field of psychology, priming that targets motor cortex is a relatively new topic of research in the fields of motor control and rehabilitation. In reference to a rehabilitation intervention, priming is categorized as a restorative approach. There are a myriad of possible priming approaches including noninvasive brain stimulation, motor imagery, and sensory-based priming, to name a few. The authors report on movement-based priming which, compared to other priming types, is less frequently examined and under reported. Movement-based priming includes, but is not limited to, bilateral motor priming, unilateral priming, and aerobic exercise. Clinical and neural mechanistic aspects of movement-based priming techniques are explored.     

Higher order influences on evaluative priming: Processing styles moderate congruity effects

A growing body of research challenges the automaticity of evaluative priming (EP). The present research adds to this literature by suggesting that EP is sensitive to processing styles. We relied on previous research showing that EP is determined by the extent to which the prime and the target events on a given trial are processed as a unified compound. Here, we further hypothesised that processing styles encouraging the inclusion of the prime to the target episode support congruity effects, whereas processing styles that enhance the exclusion of the prime from the target episode interrupt (or reverse) these effects. In Experiment 1, a preceding similarity search task produced a congruity effect, whereas a dissimilarity search task eliminated and (non-significantly) reversed this effect. In Experiments 2 and 3, we replicated and extended these findings using a global/local processing manipulation. Overall, these findings confirm that EP is flexible, open to top-down influences and strategic regulation.     

The go/no-go priming task: automatic evaluation and categorisation beyond response interference

The response-window version of a go/no-go (GNG) response priming task is introduced using both evaluative (Experiment 1) and animacy decision (Experiment 2). In each trial a cue indicates which target category should lead to a key-press. The target is preceded by either a congruent or incongruent prime. The standard priming task was added as well. Both tasks yielded robust priming effects. However, they differed regarding a signature of response activation paradigms, that is, the Gratton effect (i.e. smaller priming effects following incongruent trials compared to congruent trials), which is present in the standard task but absent in the GNG task. This indicates that effects found with the GNG task are caused by different processes compared to the standard task. Experiment 3 tested an alternative account to explain priming effects in the GNG task. By manipulating response biases, Experiment 3 provides evidence for this account.     

Masked form priming is moderated by the size of the letter-order-free orthographic neighbourhood

University students made lexical decisions to targets preceded by masked primes. In Experiment 1, transposed-letter primes were used also in the sandwich priming paradigm, in which the target is briefly pre-presented prior to the prime. The priming effects in the masked paradigm, but not in the sandwich paradigm, were moderated by the density of the letter-order-free neighbourhood of the target. In Experiment 2, letter-order-free neighbour prime words produced a priming cost in masked priming. These results are consistent with the idea that sandwich priming attenuates letter-order-free neighbour competition in target identification. Unexpectedly, no priming cost was produced by conventional (letter-position-preserving) word neighbour primes. Order-free neighbours may produce facilitation of target processing less, and more variably, than conventional neighbours.     

重要还是笨重?——概念表征对重量具身效应的影响

本研究考察在"重量-重要性"和"重量-灵活性"两种情境下重量具身效应的表现,进而探讨概念表征对具身效应所产生的影响。实验结果表明,在"重量-重要性"情境下,被试认为重鼠标的价格显著大于轻鼠标的价格,并且更容易将重鼠标与高价值货币,轻鼠标与低价值货币建立联系,表现为经典的"重量-重要性"具身效应;而在"重量-灵活性"情境下,被试认为重鼠标的价格显著小于轻鼠标的价格,并且鼠标重量与高低价值货币之间的联系并没有明显倾向性,重量具身效应出现明显变化。研究结果表明,重量具身效应受概念表征的显著影响,该效应的表现不仅取决于对客体重量的经验,更取决于主体如何对重量感进行认知表征。。     

Can Infinitival to Omissions and Provisions Be Primed? An Experimental Investigation Into the Role of Constructional Competition in Infinitival to Omission Errors

An experimental study was conducted on children aged 2;6–3;0 and 3;6–4;0 investigating the priming effect of two WANT‐constructions to establish whether constructional competition contributes to English‐speaking children's infinitival to omission errors (e.g., *I want ___ jump now). In two between‐participant groups, children either just heard or heard and repeated WANT‐to, WANT‐X, and control prime sentences after which to‐infinitival constructions were elicited. We found that both age groups were primed, but in different ways. In the 2;6–3;0 year olds, WANT‐to primes facilitated the provision of to in target utterances relative to the control contexts, but no significant effect was found for WANT‐X primes. In the 3;6–4;0 year olds, both WANT‐to and WANT‐X primes showed a priming effect, namely WANT‐to primes facilitated and WANT‐X primes inhibited provision of to. We argue that these effects reflect developmental differences in the level of proficiency in and preference for the two constructions, and they are broadly consistent with “priming as implicit learning” accounts. The current study shows that (a) children as young as 2;6–3;0 years of age can be primed when they have only heard (not repeated) particular constructions, (b) children are acquiring at least two constructions for the matrix verb WANT, and (c) that these two WANT‐constructions compete for production.