Interference as measured by the Stroop Color-Word Test and the Direction-Word Test with varied comparison stimuli

The current investigation explored the influence of irrelevant stimuli on the standard Stroop color-word effect. Also investigated is the effectiveness of a new direction-related test which, unlike previous direction-related Stroop-like measures, exactly parallels format of the original Stroop in administration. This Direction-Word Test uses arrowheads at the ends of each target word to depict direction, e.g., left, right, and middle. 92 undergraduate students volunteered to participate. Analysis indicated that interference is found on the Color-Word Test, even with noncolor words as stimuli. Interference also occurred on the new Direction-Word Test. The correlation between the two forms of the Stroop effect was low, although significant, perhaps indicating there are different systems involved in response interference.