Intuitive (in)coherence judgments are guided by processing fluency, mood and affect.

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Linguistics
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Current theories link processing fluency to positive affect and successful semantic coherence judgments.
• The role of processing fluency in identifying semantic incoherence remains underexplored.
• Investigating fluency's dual role in semantic assessment is crucial for understanding intuitive judgments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if processing fluency can also indicate semantic incoherence.
• To examine the influence of affective valence and mood on these judgments.
• To test the hypothesis that fluency variations, not absolute fluency, drive semantic judgments.

Main Methods:

• Two studies were conducted using a novel paradigm where participants identified incoherent items among coherent words.
• Study 1 manipulated the affective valence of solution words.
• Study 2 examined the moderating effect of participant mood on incoherence judgments.

Main Results:

• Participants accurately identified incoherent items, demonstrating fluency's potential to signal incoherence.
• Affective valence of solutions modulated incoherence detection.
• Participant mood influenced incoherence judgments independently of solution valence, confirming fluency variations are key.

Conclusions:

• Processing fluency variations, not just the level of fluency, are critical drivers of intuitive semantic coherence judgments.
• These findings challenge existing models by showing fluency can signal both coherence and incoherence.
• The study highlights the complex interplay between fluency, affect, and mood in semantic processing.