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Relative speed of processing determines color-word contingency learning
Noah D Forrin1, Colin M MacLeod2
1Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada. nforrin@uwaterloo.ca.
Memory & Cognition
|June 7, 2017
Summary
Contingency learning effects in color-word tasks depend on processing speed. Learning occurs when the irrelevant feature is processed faster than the relevant feature, supporting a relative speed-of-processing account.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Perception and Attention
Background:
- Color-word contingency learning describes faster responses to high-contingency stimuli.
- This phenomenon is influenced by the relative processing speeds of different stimulus features.
Purpose of the Study:
- To test a relative-speed-of-processing account of color-word contingency learning.
- To investigate how response modality and information preview affect contingency learning.
Main Methods:
- Three experiments were conducted using color-word stimuli.
- Response modalities included key presses and vocal responses.
- Information preview was manipulated in the third experiment.
Main Results:
- Contingency learning effects were observed for both color and word identification when response mapping was slow (Experiment 1).
- With faster vocal responding, contingency learning occurred only for the slower dimension (color naming) (Experiment 2).
- Previewing color information modulated contingency learning for both dimensions (Experiment 3).
Conclusions:
- Contingency learning is influenced by the relative processing speed of stimulus features.
- The findings support a relative-speed-of-processing explanation for contingency learning.
- Response modality and stimulus preview are critical factors affecting this learning phenomenon.
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