Associative Strength Effects in the Lexical Decision Task

Abstract

Four experiments explore the role of automatic and attentional processing in producing strength effects in a lexical decision task. Experiment I manipulated the relative proportion of related and unrelated pairs, the stimulus-onset-asynchrony (SOA), and the strength of the prime–target relationship. Results indicated that strength was independent of the proportion of related and unrelated pairs and SOA. Experiment 2 manipulated the relative proportion of strong and weak related pairs and the strength of the prime–target relationship at a relatively long SOA interval (500 msec). Results showed that the strength effect was present when more strong than weak pairs were presented, and it was absent when the stimulus list contained more weak than strong pairs. Experiment 3 replicated the more weak pairs condition of Experiment 2 but with a short SOA interval (100 msec) and showed that the strength effect was found regardless of the large number of weak related pairs presented. Experiment 4 manipulated strength of the prime–target relationship and proportion of strong and weak pairs but introducing a neutral prime condition and a longer SOA interval (1000 msec). Results are discussed within a two-process model (Posner & Snyder, 1975) postulating that the strength effect at short SOAs is due to automatic processes, whereas at long SOAs it is due to the influence of attentional processes.