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Published on: February 8, 2019
Semantic memory: Searching for attributes vs searching for names
1Department of Psychology, Johns Hopkins University, 21218, Baltimore, Maryland.
Abstract:
The purpose of this experiment was to determine whether searching for a word that has a particular attribute (a fruit that is yellow) involves a different process than searching for a word whose name has a particular form (a fruit whose name begins with "p"). Ss saw category nouns paired with adjectives or letter restrictors presented on a series of blocked trials and a series of mixed trials. The Ss had to produce a word that fell in the space defined by the noun and the restricting adjective or letter. RT was fastest when trials were blocked and when a letter followed the presentation of the noun. This finding suggested the existence of two retrieval plans that can be executed when S has knowledge of the forthcoming type of item.
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