Essay
Scientific Paper - The Automaticity of Phonological Processing in Word Recognition
- Course
- Institution
well-written essay that achieved a first-class grade
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
griches10
Content preview
The Automaticity of Phonological Processing in Word RecognitionGeorgia E. Riches
Institutional affiliation: Swansea University
Student number: 1911705
Course name: Psychology
Instructor name: Dr Playfoot
Assignment due date: 08/12/2021
Word count: 1965
, Abstract
In this study, the automaticity of phonological processing in word recognition was
investigated, using effects of prime relatedness and lexicality. Previous research on word
recognition found requirements of semantic processing and access to memory of letter
patterns (Plaut, 1997; Coltheart et al., 2001), however there is a lack of evidence for
phonological requirements. In this study, a lexical decision task was used on 49 psychology
undergraduates, using related/unrelated and/or real word/pseudo-homophonic primes, with
results showing significant prime-target relatedness and insignificant prime lexicality. We
concluded that pseudo-homophones worked in associative priming despite their lack of
lexicality, indicating automaticity. The findings highlighted pseudo-homophonic importance
in priming as well as the significance of relatedness. Further research is required in word
recognition studies, particularly using participants whose response times would be negatively
affected by bilingualism or language impairments, to deduce how word recognition can be
improved upon.
, The research topic of interest is the phonological processing involved in word
recognition. Phonology is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken
human language (Clark et al., 2007). It has previously been found in some models that word
recognition requires semantics (Plaut, 1997), and in other models that it only requires access
to a memory of that letter pattern (Coltheart et al., 2001), however no existing models show
phonological information as required (Coltheart et al., 1979). It could therefore be assumed
that phonology is not accessed unless it’s needed. There is some evidence, however, that
phonology is accessed automatically. Van Orden’s (1987) verification model, whereby
meaning is posited to be accessed through the automatic activation of phonological
information, was supported by Lesch & Pollatsek (1993), as priming was obtained with a
stimulus onset asynchrony of 250 msec. Furthermore, Pattamadilok et al., (2017) found that
phonological processing in reading is supported through two complementary mechanisms;
one which is automatic and another which further fine-tunes the sensitivity of high-level
language areas to the sensory input in a task-dependent manner. In terms of prime lexicality,
Neely et al., (1989) deduced that semantic priming for lexical decisions is affected by both a
prospective prime-generated expectancy, modulated by a relatedness proportion, and a
retrospective target/prime semantic matching process, modulated by the nonword ratio. The
purpose of our study was to support the growing evidence as shown in the previous research
and lend weight to the argument of phonological automaticity, while deducing the
significance of relatedness and lexicality effects on primes.
A lexical decision task was used for the study, whereby patterns of letters appeared
onscreen, and participants were asked if they formed a real word or non-word, indicating the
recognition of particular words as familiar. We were interested in the reaction time of this
recognition, as this indicated the level of automaticity to the decision. Associative priming
was used to ensure primed lexical decisions were made, eliciting faster responses, proposed
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller griches10. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $9.75. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
75323 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now