TY - JOUR
T1 - Inhibition from nonword primes in lexical decision reexamined
T2 - The critical influence of instructions
AU - Zeelenberg, René
AU - Pecher, Diane
AU - De Kok, Dirk
AU - Raaijmakers, Jeroen G.W.
PY - 1998/7
Y1 - 1998/7
N2 - Compound-cue theory predicts that lexical decisions are slower to word targets preceded by a nonword than to word targets preceded by an unrelated word. This nonword-prime inhibition effect is not predicted by spreading-activation theories. R. Ratcliff and G. McKoon (1995) obtained nonword-prime inhibition, whereas T. P. McNamara (1994b) failed to obtain it. In the present study, for both a 200-ms and 350-ms prime-target stimulus onset asynchrony, nonword-prime inhibition was obtained for participants who, as in Ratcliff and McKoon's research, received instructions that mentioned that prime and target could be related. No nonword-prime inhibition was found for participants who, as in McNamara's research, received instructions that did not mention the possibility of a prime-target relation. Neither compound cue nor spreading activation can explain this pattern. The possibility that nonword-prime inhibition results from response competition is discussed.
AB - Compound-cue theory predicts that lexical decisions are slower to word targets preceded by a nonword than to word targets preceded by an unrelated word. This nonword-prime inhibition effect is not predicted by spreading-activation theories. R. Ratcliff and G. McKoon (1995) obtained nonword-prime inhibition, whereas T. P. McNamara (1994b) failed to obtain it. In the present study, for both a 200-ms and 350-ms prime-target stimulus onset asynchrony, nonword-prime inhibition was obtained for participants who, as in Ratcliff and McKoon's research, received instructions that mentioned that prime and target could be related. No nonword-prime inhibition was found for participants who, as in McNamara's research, received instructions that did not mention the possibility of a prime-target relation. Neither compound cue nor spreading activation can explain this pattern. The possibility that nonword-prime inhibition results from response competition is discussed.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0032362353&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1037/0278-7393.24.4.1068
DO - 10.1037/0278-7393.24.4.1068
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0032362353
SN - 0278-7393
VL - 24
SP - 1068
EP - 1079
JO - Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning Memory and Cognition
JF - Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning Memory and Cognition
IS - 4
ER -