Carmen Moret-Tatay

Smart Phone, Smart Science: How the Use of Smartphones Can Revolutionize Research in Cognitive Science

Investigating human cognitive faculties such as language, attention, and memory most often relies on testing small and homogeneous groups of volunteers coming to research facilities where they are asked to participate in behavioral experiments. We show that this limitation and sampling bias can be overcome by using smartphone technology to collect data in cognitive science experiments from thousands of subjects from all over the world. This mass coordinated use of smartphones creates a novel and powerful scientific “instrument” that yields the data necessary to test universal theories of cognition. This increase in power represents a potential revolution in cognitive science.

Do serifs provide an advantage in the recognition of written words

A neglected issue in the literature on visual-word recognition is the careful examination of parameters such as font, size, or interletter/interword spacing on reading times. Here we analysed whether serifs (i.e., the small features at the end of strokes) play a role in lexical access. Traditionally, serif fonts have been considered easier to read than sans serif fonts, but prior empirical evidence is scarce and inconclusive. Here we conducted a lexical decision experiment (i.e., a word/nonword discrimination task) in which we compared words from the same family (Lucida) either with a serif font or with a sans serif font—in both a block list and a mixed list. Results showed a small, but significant advantage in response times for words written in a sans serif font. Thus, sans serif fonts should be the preferred choice for text in computer screens—as already is the case for guide signs on roads, trains, etc.

The effects of interletter spacing in visual-word recognition.

Despite the importance of determining the effects of interletter spacing on visual-word recognition, this issue has often been neglected in the literature. The goal of the present study is to shed some light on this topic. The rationale is that a thin increase in interletter spacing, as in casino, may reduce lateral interference among internal letters without destroying a words integrity and/or allow a more precise encoding of a words letter positions. Here we examined whether identification times for word stimuli in a lexical decision task were faster when the target word had a slightly wider than default interletter spacing value relative to the default settings (e.g., casino vs. casino). In Experiment 1, we examined whether interletter spacing interacted with word-frequency, whereas in Experiment 2, we examined whether interletter spacing interacted with word length. Results showed that responses to words using a thin increase in interletter spacing were faster than the responses to words using the default settings-regardless of word-frequency and word length. Thus, interletter spacing plays an important role at modulating the identification of visually presented words.

Facilitation versus inhibition in the masked priming same-different matching task.

In the past years, growing attention has been devoted to the masked priming same–different task introduced by Norris and Kinoshita (2008, Journal of Experimental Psychology: General). However, a number of researchers have raised concerns on the nature of the cognitive processes underlying this task—in particular the suspicion that masked priming effects in this task are mostly inhibitory in nature and may be affected by probe–prime contingency. To examine the pattern of facilitative/inhibitory priming effects in this task, we conducted two experiments with an incremental priming paradigm using four stimulus–onset asynchronies (13, 27, 40, and 53 ms). Experiment 1 was conducted under a predictive-contingency scenario (probe–prime–target; i.e., “same” trials: HOUSE–house–HOUSE vs. house–water–HOUSE; “different” trials: field–house–HOUSE vs. field–water–HOUSE), while Experiment 2 employed a zero-contingency scenario (i.e., “same” trials: HOUSE–house–HOUSE vs. house–water–HOUSE; “different” trials: field–field–HOUSE vs. field–water–HOUSE). Results revealed that, for “same” responses, both facilitation and inhibition increased linearly with prime duration in the two scenarios, whereas the pattern of data varied for “different” responses, as predicted by the Bayesian Reader model.

On the role of the upper part of words in lexical access: evidence with masked priming.

More than 100 years ago, Huey (1908/1968) indicated that the upper part of words was more relevant for perception than the lower part. Here we examined whether mutilated words, in their upper/lower portions (e.g., ), can automatically access their word units in the mental lexicon. To that end, we conducted four masked repetition priming experiments with the lexical decision task. Results showed that mutilated primes produced a sizeable masked repetition priming effect. Furthermore, the magnitude of the masked repetition priming effect was greater when the upper part of the primes was preserved than when the lower portion was preserved—this was the case not only when the mutilated words were presented in lower case but also when the mutilated words were presented in upper case. Taken together, these findings suggest that the front-end of computational models of visual-word recognition should be modified to provide a more realistic account at the level of letter features.

Can masked priming effects be obtained with words

One important issue often neglected in the literature on visual-wordrecognition,despiteitsobviousecologicalvalidity,ishowthe cognitive system processes handwritten words. Althoughhandscript wastheinitial and onlyway of writing/reading untilthe 15th century, the vast majority of psycholinguistic experi-ments use spotless printed words in which, unlike inhandwriting, letters are physically separated within each wordand the instances of each letter are identical (e.g., comparedenied vs. ). Not surprisingly, there is some costassociated with the processing of handwritten words (Barnhart& Goldinger, 2010; Manso de Zuniga, Evett, & Humphreys,1991). Given the inherent noise in the bottom-up informationfrom handwritten words, the cognitive system has to relymore on more effortful, top-down processes (Manso deZuniga et al., 1991). Consistent with this interpretation,lexical effects are magnified with handwritten words—including the effects of word frequency, regularity, bidi-rectional consistency, and imageability (see Barnhart G see alsoGrainger, 2008, for a recent review), in which a brieflypresented prime word precedes the presentation of a targetword. One highly robust and replicated phenomenon in thiscontext is the masked repetition priming effect: Identifica-tion times to a target word are consistently faster when it hasbeen briefly preceded by the same word than when it hasbeen preceded by anunrelated word (Forster & Davis,1984;see Dehaene et al., 2001, for fMRI evidence; see Carreiras,Dunabeitia, & Molinaro, 2009, for ERP evidence).Can words produce masked priming effects?Clearly, if masked priming occurs with handwritten primes,it will be possible to examine the impact of handwrittenwords on orthographic, phonological, or morphologicalprocesses at the earliest stages of processing usingbehavioral and/or neurophysiological techniques. There-fore, we believe that it is critical to demonstrate, in the firstplace, the existence of masked repetition priming withhandwritten primes (i.e., the most robust form of maskedpriming). Previous research has found that masked primingeffects are quite abstract in nature; indeed, they can beobtained between upper- and lowercase typed words thatare visually dissimilar (e.g., edge–EDGE; see Bowers,Vigliocco, & Haan, 1998). This would suggest that maskedpriming should extend between written and typed primesand targets—at least for easily readable prime words(e.g., –CABLE). However, the only published experi-ment on the issue, conducted by Qiao et al. (2010), failed tofind a masked repetition priming effect with handwrittenprimes using a semantic categorization task (i.e., wordsreferring to man-made objects vs. words referring to natural

Can masked priming effects be obtained with handwritten words

One important issue often neglected in the literature on visual-wordrecognition,despiteitsobviousecologicalvalidity,ishowthe cognitive system processes handwritten words. Althoughhandscript wastheinitial and onlyway of writing/reading untilthe 15th century, the vast majority of psycholinguistic experi-ments use spotless printed words in which, unlike inhandwriting, letters are physically separated within each wordand the instances of each letter are identical (e.g., comparedenied vs. ). Not surprisingly, there is some costassociated with the processing of handwritten words (Barnhart& Goldinger, 2010; Manso de Zuniga, Evett, & Humphreys,1991). Given the inherent noise in the bottom-up informationfrom handwritten words, the cognitive system has to relymore on more effortful, top-down processes (Manso deZuniga et al., 1991). Consistent with this interpretation,lexical effects are magnified with handwritten words—including the effects of word frequency, regularity, bidi-rectional consistency, and imageability (see Barnhart G see alsoGrainger, 2008, for a recent review), in which a brieflypresented prime word precedes the presentation of a targetword. One highly robust and replicated phenomenon in thiscontext is the masked repetition priming effect: Identifica-tion times to a target word are consistently faster when it hasbeen briefly preceded by the same word than when it hasbeen preceded by anunrelated word (Forster & Davis,1984;see Dehaene et al., 2001, for fMRI evidence; see Carreiras,Dunabeitia, & Molinaro, 2009, for ERP evidence).Can words produce masked priming effects?Clearly, if masked priming occurs with handwritten primes,it will be possible to examine the impact of handwrittenwords on orthographic, phonological, or morphologicalprocesses at the earliest stages of processing usingbehavioral and/or neurophysiological techniques. There-fore, we believe that it is critical to demonstrate, in the firstplace, the existence of masked repetition priming withhandwritten primes (i.e., the most robust form of maskedpriming). Previous research has found that masked primingeffects are quite abstract in nature; indeed, they can beobtained between upper- and lowercase typed words thatare visually dissimilar (e.g., edge–EDGE; see Bowers,Vigliocco, & Haan, 1998). This would suggest that maskedpriming should extend between written and typed primesand targets—at least for easily readable prime words(e.g., –CABLE). However, the only published experi-ment on the issue, conducted by Qiao et al. (2010), failed tofind a masked repetition priming effect with handwrittenprimes using a semantic categorization task (i.e., wordsreferring to man-made objects vs. words referring to natural

Predisposing, Enabling and Reinforcing Factors Associated with Smoking Relapse among Hospital Workers

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Can masked priming effects be obtained with Open image in new window words

One important issue often neglected in the literature on visual-wordrecognition,despiteitsobviousecologicalvalidity,ishowthe cognitive system processes handwritten words. Althoughhandscript wastheinitial and onlyway of writing/reading untilthe 15th century, the vast majority of psycholinguistic experi-ments use spotless printed words in which, unlike inhandwriting, letters are physically separated within each wordand the instances of each letter are identical (e.g., comparedenied vs. ). Not surprisingly, there is some costassociated with the processing of handwritten words (Barnhart& Goldinger, 2010; Manso de Zuniga, Evett, & Humphreys,1991). Given the inherent noise in the bottom-up informationfrom handwritten words, the cognitive system has to relymore on more effortful, top-down processes (Manso deZuniga et al., 1991). Consistent with this interpretation,lexical effects are magnified with handwritten words—including the effects of word frequency, regularity, bidi-rectional consistency, and imageability (see Barnhart G see alsoGrainger, 2008, for a recent review), in which a brieflypresented prime word precedes the presentation of a targetword. One highly robust and replicated phenomenon in thiscontext is the masked repetition priming effect: Identifica-tion times to a target word are consistently faster when it hasbeen briefly preceded by the same word than when it hasbeen preceded by anunrelated word (Forster & Davis,1984;see Dehaene et al., 2001, for fMRI evidence; see Carreiras,Dunabeitia, & Molinaro, 2009, for ERP evidence).Can words produce masked priming effects?Clearly, if masked priming occurs with handwritten primes,it will be possible to examine the impact of handwrittenwords on orthographic, phonological, or morphologicalprocesses at the earliest stages of processing usingbehavioral and/or neurophysiological techniques. There-fore, we believe that it is critical to demonstrate, in the firstplace, the existence of masked repetition priming withhandwritten primes (i.e., the most robust form of maskedpriming). Previous research has found that masked primingeffects are quite abstract in nature; indeed, they can beobtained between upper- and lowercase typed words thatare visually dissimilar (e.g., edge–EDGE; see Bowers,Vigliocco, & Haan, 1998). This would suggest that maskedpriming should extend between written and typed primesand targets—at least for easily readable prime words(e.g., –CABLE). However, the only published experi-ment on the issue, conducted by Qiao et al. (2010), failed tofind a masked repetition priming effect with handwrittenprimes using a semantic categorization task (i.e., wordsreferring to man-made objects vs. words referring to natural