Bottom-up and top-down attentional contributions to the size congruity effect

Abstract

The size congruity effect refers to the interaction between the numerical and physical (i.e., font) sizes of digits in a numerical (or physical) magnitude selection task. Although various accounts of the size congruity effect have attributed this interaction to either an early representational stage or a late decision stage, only Risko, Maloney, and Fugelsang (Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 75, 1137-1147) have asserted a central role for attention. In the present study, we used a visual search paradigm to further study the role of attention in the size congruity effect. In Experiments 1 and 2, we showed that manipulating top-down attention (via the task instructions) had a significant impact on the size congruity effect. The interaction between numerical and physical size was larger for numerical size comparison (Exp. 1) than for physical size comparison (Exp. 2). In the remaining experiments, we boosted the feature salience by using a unique target color (Exp. 3) or by increasing the display density by using threedigit numerals (Exps. 4 and 5). As expected, a color singleton target abolished the size congruity effect. Searching for threedigit targets based on numerical size (Exp. 4) resulted in a large size congruity effect, but search based on physical size (Exp. 5) abolished the effect. Our results reveal a substantial role for top-down attention in the size congruity effect, which we interpreted as support for a shared-decision account.

Task instructions modulate unit-decade binding in two-digit number representation

“…This interpretation of the data would be consistent with previous research indicating that initiation time and reach curvature originate from two dissociable processes (e.g., Erb, Moher, Sobel, & Song, 2016;Ruitenberg et al, 2016;Strauss, Woodgate, Sami, & Heinke, 2015). Specifically, it is thought that initiation times might be driven by an early action planning stage that is tied to cue-related encoding processes, whereas MT and AUC might reflect mainly top-down (controlled) processes which provide for revision and correction of the decision during the movement execution phase (e.g., Faulkenberry et al, 2016;Sobel, Puri, & Faulkenberry, 2016;Sobel, Puri, Faulkenberry, & Dague, 2017). All together, our analysis of movement dynamics echoes and extends the results obtained using the traditional keypress paradigm in Experiment 1.…”

Task instructions modulate unit–decade binding in two-digit number representation

“…This interpretation of the data would be consistent with previous research indicating that initiation time and reach curvature originate from two dissociable processes (e.g., Erb, Moher, Sobel, & Song, 2016;Ruitenberg et al, 2016;Strauss, Woodgate, Sami, & Heinke, 2015). Specifically, it is thought that initiation times might be driven by an early action planning stage that is tied to cue-related encoding processes, whereas MT and AUC might reflect mainly top-down (controlled) processes which provide for revision and correction of the decision during the movement execution phase (e.g., Faulkenberry et al, 2016;Sobel, Puri, & Faulkenberry, 2016;Sobel, Puri, Faulkenberry, & Dague, 2017). All together, our analysis of movement dynamics echoes and extends the results obtained using the traditional keypress paradigm in Experiment 1.…”

A Single-Boundary Accumulator Model of Response Times in an Addition Verification Task

“…However, it is not currently clear whether format additionally affects the later processes involved in responding. Several recent studies have indicated that manipulations of number encoding can feed forward into the response phase, at least in simple number decision tasks (e.g., Santens and Verguts, 2011; Faulkenberry et al, 2016; Sobel et al, 2016, 2017). As such, the third option remains viable; hopefully future studies can further address the effects of format on response processes in mental arithmetic.…”