Stroop-Like Serial Position Effects in Color Naming of Words and Nonwords

Abstract

Color-naming latencies to noncolor words and nonwords were faster when the onset or final phoneme of the displays corresponded to the onset or final phoneme of the color response. For example, for displays printed in red, the word rack and nonword rask, which share the initial onset phoneme with the response, led to faster naming than did the control word chap and nonword chup. Conversely, when the onset or final phoneme of the displays matched the onset or final phoneme of a conflicting color response (e.g., rack printed in blue), latencies were longer than to control items. Facilitation effects were stronger than interference effects, and the onset phoneme facilitation effect was augmented by coloring only the initial letter in the display. It is hypothesized that nonlexical processes that govern the translation of print to speech may be a source of facilitation in Stroop-like tasks, whereas lexical processes are more likely to contribute to interference.