The masked priming toolbox: an open-source MATLAB toolbox for masked priming researchers

The Masked Priming Toolbox is an open-source collection of MATLAB functions that utilizes the free third-party PsychToolbox-3 (PTB3: Brainard, Spatial Vision, 10, 433-436, 1997; Kleiner, Brainard & Pelli, Perception, 36, 2007; Pelli, Spatial Vision, 10, 437-442, 1997). It is designed to allow a researcher to run masked (and unmasked) priming experiments using a variety of response devices (including keyboards, graphics tablets and force transducers). Very little knowledge of MATLAB is required; experiments are generated by creating a text file with the required parameters, and raw and analyzed data are output to Excel (as well as MATLAB) files for further analysis. The toolbox implements a variety of stimuli for use as primes and targets, as well as a variety of masks. Timing, size, location, and orientation of stimuli are all parameterizable. The code is open-source and made available on the Web under a Creative Commons License.