Semantic priming and the word repetition effect in a lexical decision task.

Abstract

Two experiments were conducted to look at the relationship between semantic priming and the word repetition effect in lexical decisions. Although it might be expected that these phenomena are caused by the operation of similar memory processes, given current models of word recognition, the relationship between them has not been empirically investigated.In the present study, the persistence of both effects was observed, and it was found that while facilitation due to semantic priming persists for only a short period of time, the word repetition effect is quite strong and longlasting. The results are discussed in the context of current models of semantic priming and word repetition effects. RESUME Compte rendu de deux experiences sur la relation entre la preparation semantique et I'effet de repetition des mots dans des decisions d'ordre lexical. Meme si, etant donne les modeles actuels de la reconnaissance des mots, Ton peut s'attendre a ce que ces deux effets soient le resultat de processus semblables en memoire, leur relation n'a pas ete experimentalement etudiee. Les deux experiences entreprises ont permis d'observer la persistence des deux effets: alors que la facilitation due a la preparation semantique ne persiste que durant un court laps de temps, I'effet de repetition des mots est puissant et dure longtemps. Les resultats sont discutes a la lumiere des modeles actuels de la preparation semantique et des effets de la repetition des mots.

Language specificity in lexical organization: Evidence from deaf signers' lexical organization of American Sign Language and English

“…However, the fact that comparable facilitation was obtained for the ASLonly set indicates that lexical organization can be based on principles of ASL. The obtained facilitation for the ASL-only stimuli cannot be explained as being due to associative priming, as the lags introduced in the present study were too great to permit such priming (Ratcliff et al, 1985; see also Dannenbring & Briand, 1982). This pattern of results suggests that users of ASL tend to organize their lexicons according to morphological relationships.…”

“…It could be argued that such reasoning across experiments does not apply in the present case, because different tasks were used in the two experiments. Although there is evidence that some priming tasks produce associative priming whereas others do not (Henik, Friedrich, & Kellogg, 1983;Smith, Theodor, & Franklin, 1983), priming effects have been obtained only over lags of 1 or 2 items, even with tasks favorable to associative priming (Henik et al, 1983;Meyer, Schvaneveldt, & Ruddy, 1975;Ratcliff et al, 1985;Rugg, 1987;Smith et al, 1983; see also Dannenbring & Briand, 1982). The lag of 10 items in Experiment 1 is clearly beyond that at which associative priming can be expected to persist.…”

“…Facilitation due to semantic or associative priming has been experimentally demonstrated to persist only at short intervals between prime and target, specifically, at lags of 1 or 2 items (Dannenbring & Briand, 1982;Henderson, Wallis, & Knight, 1984;Ratcliff, Hockley, & McKoon, 1985). In contrast, the studies reporting effects of morphological priming have found these effects to be more longlasting.…”

“…To guard against influences of associative and semantic priming, in the present study we used an average lag of 10 items, a lag too great to produce such priming (Dannenbring & Briand, 1982;Henderson et al, 1984;Ratcliff et al, 1985). Consequently, any facilitation obtained in the present priming study could convincingly be attributed to morphological, not associative or semantic, priming.…”

Word and picture identification: Is representational parsimony possible?

“…Scarborough, 1977;Tulving, Schacter, & Stark, 1982). This dissociation is explicit in the findings described by Dannenbring and Briand (1982), Gough, Alford, and Holley-Wilcox (1981) and Henderson, Wallis, and Knight (1984).…”