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AUTOMATIC SEQUENTIAL PRIMING OF DIGITS

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Date Issued:
1983
Summary:
Previous research has shown that priming of digits is a function of the ordinal distance of the target digit from the priming sequence and that under certain conditions this effect may be automatic. The present experiment, which employs a choice RT task, was designed to test automaticity by manipulating subjects' expectancies and the time available for processing the priming sequence. Schematically valid primes (e.g., "1,2,3" preceding "4") were presented on 30%, 50%, or 70% of the trials to a given subject. Invalid primes (e.g., "5, 6, 7" preceding "4") were presented on the remaining trials. There was a highly significant effect of priming modified by interactions with exposure time and frequency. Employing a cost-benefit analysis to the frequency factor, it was found that the most frequently occurring prime resulted in decreased response latency but the less frequently occurring prime did not result in an increase in response latency (benefit wihout cost). On this basis, it is concluded that frequency influences an automatic process in this experiment. Since frequency interacts with priming, it is therefore argued that priming also affects an automatic process.
Title: AUTOMATIC SEQUENTIAL PRIMING OF DIGITS.
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Name(s): SYLVAN, ANITA.
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Issuance: monographic
Date Issued: 1983
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Fla.
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 62 p.
Language(s): English
Summary: Previous research has shown that priming of digits is a function of the ordinal distance of the target digit from the priming sequence and that under certain conditions this effect may be automatic. The present experiment, which employs a choice RT task, was designed to test automaticity by manipulating subjects' expectancies and the time available for processing the priming sequence. Schematically valid primes (e.g., "1,2,3" preceding "4") were presented on 30%, 50%, or 70% of the trials to a given subject. Invalid primes (e.g., "5, 6, 7" preceding "4") were presented on the remaining trials. There was a highly significant effect of priming modified by interactions with exposure time and frequency. Employing a cost-benefit analysis to the frequency factor, it was found that the most frequently occurring prime resulted in decreased response latency but the less frequently occurring prime did not result in an increase in response latency (benefit wihout cost). On this basis, it is concluded that frequency influences an automatic process in this experiment. Since frequency interacts with priming, it is therefore argued that priming also affects an automatic process.
Identifier: 14183 (digitool), FADT14183 (IID), fau:10995 (fedora)
Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
Note(s): Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1983.
Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Subject(s): Human information processing
Perception
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/14183
Sublocation: Digital Library
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
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Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.