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Examining Bilingual Language Control Using the Stroop Task
Published on: February 26, 2020
Suggestion does not de-automatize word reading: evidence from the semantically based Stroop task
Maria Augustinova1, Ludovic Ferrand
1Laboratoire de Psychologie Sociale et Cognitive (LAPSCO-UMR CNRS 6024), CNRS and Clermont Université, Université Blaise Pascal, 34, avenue Carnot, 63037 Clermont-Ferrand, France. maria.augustinova@univ-bpclermont.fr
Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
|January 20, 2012
Summary
Suggestion to view words as meaningless symbols reduces Stroop interference but does not eliminate semantic processing. This indicates suggestion influences response competition, not de-automatizing word reading.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Previous research suggested that instructing highly suggestible individuals to treat words as meaningless symbols de-automatizes word reading, reducing Stroop interference.
- The standard Stroop task measures interference between word meaning and color naming, reflecting automatic processing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether the suggestion to construe words as meaningless symbols truly de-automatizes word reading or merely affects response competition.
- To examine the impact of this suggestion on both standard and semantically based Stroop tasks in highly suggestible individuals.
Main Methods:
- Two experiments (between- and within-participants designs) were conducted with highly suggestible individuals.
- Participants completed standard and semantically based Stroop tasks under conditions with and without the suggestion to construe words as meaningless symbols.
Main Results:
- The suggestion significantly reduced standard Stroop interference, replicating prior findings.
- However, semantically based Stroop effects remained significant across all suggestion conditions, indicating semantic activation was not eliminated.
- The magnitude of semantic Stroop effects was similar regardless of the suggestion's presence.
Conclusions:
- The suggestion to view words as meaningless symbols does not de-automatize word reading or eliminate semantic activation in highly suggestible individuals.
- This intervention appears to primarily reduce nonsemantic response competition associated with the standard Stroop task.
- Findings support the automaticity of semantic activation in the Stroop task and challenge the claim of de-automatization through suggestion.
