We compared three statistical analyses over binary outcomes. As applying ANOVA over proportions violates at least two classical assumptions of linear models, two alternatives are described: the ...binary logistic regression and the mixed logit model. Firstly, we compared the effects obtained by the three methods over the same data from a previous memory research. All three methods gave similar results: the effects of the tasks and the number of sensory modalities were observed, but not their interaction. Secondly, by using the bootstrap estimates of the parameters, the efficacy of each method was explored. As predicted, the bootstrap parameter estimates of the ANOVA had large bias and standard errors, and consequently wide confidence intervals. On the other hand, the bootstrap parameter estimates of the binary logistic regression and the mixed logit models were similar – both had low bias and standard errors and narrow confidence intervals.
Case studies of unusual traits can provide unique snapshots of the effects of modified systems. In this study, we report on an individual from a Serbian family with the ability to rapidly, accurately ...and voluntarily speak backwards. We consider psychological, neural and genetic correlates of this trait to identify specific relevant neural mechanisms and new molecular pathways for working memory and speech-related tasks. EEG data suggest that the effect of word reversal precedes semantic integration of visually presented backward-words, and that event-related potentials above the frontal lobe are affected by both word reversal and the maintenance of backward-words in working memory. fMRI revealed that the left fusiform gyrus may facilitate the production of backward-speech. Exome sequencing identified three novel coding variants of potential significance in the RIC3, RIPK1 and ZBED5 genes. Taken together, our data suggest that, in this individual, the ability to speak backwards is afforded by an extraordinary working memory capacity. We hypothesise that this is served by cholinergic projections from the basal forebrain to the frontal cortex and supported by visual semantic loops within the left fusiform gyrus and that these neural processes may be mediated by a genetic mutation in RIC3; a chaperone for nicotinic acetylcholine receptors.
Full text
Available for:
IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Problem ovog istraživanja bilo je utvrđivanje da li i u kojoj meri kontekst u kom se prikupljaju procene, utiče na procenu konkretnosti tih reči. Pošlo se od pretpostavke da će kontekst u kome se ...prikupljaju procene konkretnosti reči uticati na samu procenu; odnosno, da će razlika između prosečnih procena konkretnih i prosečnih procena apstraktnih reči biti veća kada su one date zajedno, u jedinstvenoj listi, u odnosu na situaciju kada su date u odvojenim listama. Eksperiment kojim je ispitivan efekat konteksta sastojao se iz tri eksperimentalne situacije. U prvoj, ispitanici su na sedmostepenoj skali procenjivali konkretnost obe vrste reči datih u zajedničkoj listi. Druga i treća situacija su podrazumevale isti zadatak, s tom razlikom što se procena u ova dva slučaja davala samo za apstraktne, odnosno samo konkretne reči, date u posebnim listama. Zabeležen je efekat konkretnosti kao i značajna interakcija između konkretnosti reči i načina zadavanja. Dobijeni rezultati su pokazali da su konkretne reči uvek dobijale više procene nego apstraktne reči, nezavisno od načina zadavanja. Međutim, dobijena interakcija je pokazala da su razlike u prosečnim procenama između apstraktnih i konkretnih reči bile manje kada su te reči prikazane odvojeno, nego u slučaju kada su prikazane zajedno. Ovaj nalaz od značaja je za teorijska razmatranja o prirodi fenomena konkretnosti, a istovremeno ima i praktične implikacije koje treba imati u vidu prilikom spajanja procena konkretnosti koje potiču iz različitih baza (koje su prikupljene u različitim normativnim studijama).
The aim of this research was to establish whether and to what extent the stimulus context affected concreteness ratings. We hypothesized that concreteness ratings of concrete and abstract words would ...depend on concreteness range of the words that are presented to participants. We, therefore, presented three sepa-rate groups of participants with either a list of concrete nouns, a list of abstract nouns, or a joint list of both concrete and abstract nouns. All participants were given identical instructions and pro-vided concreteness ratings on a seven-point scale. Our results revealed that while concrete nouns were always rated higher on the concreteness scale, the difference between average con-creteness of concrete and abstract words was significantly higher when they were presented jointly compared to a situation when concrete and abstract words were rated separately. Additionally, we recorded the rating latencies. We found that participants were faster when rating words presented in a joint list of both concrete and abstract words, compared to rating either of them separately. Additionally, they were faster when rating concrete nouns com-pared to abstract nouns, with a tendency for this difference to be more pronounced in joint-list rating. Primarily, our results have practical implications for researchers who rely on large psycho-linguistic databases to control for or match stimuli for concrete-ness, as we show that ratings collected in different norming stud-ies might not be directly comparable. From a theoretical point of view, our results point to some differences between concrete and abstract words.
In Serbian, lexical decision latencies to words composed of letters that exist in both the Roman and Cyrillic alphabets (some of which have different phonemic interpretations in each) are slower than ...for the unique alphabet transcription of those same words. In this study, we use the effect of phonological ambiguity to explore the time course of semantic facilitation. Targets are either the phonologically ambiguous forms (e.g., PETAK meaning “Friday” when pronounced as a Roman string /petak/ but without meaning when pronounced in Cyrillic as /retak/) or the unique alphabet transcription of the same word (ПETAK). We manipulate alphabet match and semantic relatedness of prime to target. In addition to replicating slowing due to phonological ambiguity, we show 1) greater alphabet switch cost for bivalent then for unambiguous targets as well as for unrelated then for related prime-target pairs and 2) greater semantic facilitation as the number of shared common letters between prime and target increases. Results reveal the interaction of phonological and semantic processes in Serbian. The findings are discussed in terms of a triangle model of language processing, which hypothesizes a division of labor between an orthography-to-semantics, and an orthographyto-phonology-to-semantics route and their simultaneous contribution to activation of meaning.
Problem ovog istraživanja bio je ispitivanje uticaja broja čula kojima se može iskusiti neki pojam na uspešnost njegove reprodukcije. Pretpostavili smo da će se pojmovi koji se mogu iskusiti većim ...brojem čula tačnije reprodukovati u odnosu na one koji se mogu iskusiti manjim brojem čula, kao i u odnosu na apstraktne pojmove. U dva eksperimenta primenjeni su zadatak slobodne i zadatak navođene reprodukcije. U prvom eksperimentu dve grupe ispitanika učile su liste parova asocijativno povezanih reči. U svakoj listi varirani su stimulusi po konkretnosti, a pored toga, liste su se međusobno razlikovale po konkretnim rečima. Jedna lista sadržala je parove konkretnih pojmova koji se mogu iskusiti sa mnogo čula (čarapa‒patika), a druga lista sadržala je parove konkretnih pojmova koji se mogu iskusiti sa malo čula (plakat‒bilbord). U drugom eksperimentu ispitanici su učili jedinstvenu listu sa sve tri grupe parova reči. Pored standardnog efekta konkretnosti i vrste zadatka, kao i njihove interakcije, zabeležen je i efekat broja čula. U skladu sa očekivanjima, ispitanici su bili uspešniji u zadatku navođene reprodukcije, uspešnije su reprodukovali konkretne nego apstraktne reči i uspešnije su reprodukovali konkretne reči koje označavaju pojmove koji mogu da se iskuse pomoću većeg broja čulnih modaliteta nego one koji mogu da se iskuse manjim brojem čulnih modaliteta. Efekat broja čula zabeležen je u dugom eksperimentu kad su ispitanici učili sve tri grupe pojmova. Prema našim saznanjima, ovo predstavlja prvu empirijsku demonstraciju efekta broja čula kojima se može iskusiti neki pojam na uspešnost u reprodukciji. Pored toga, u prvom eksperimentu zabeležen je i očekivani izraženiji efekat konkretnosti u slučaju zadatka navođene reprodukcije. Ova interakcija izostala je u drugom eksperimentu, usled čega je potrebno nastaviti istraživanje ovog fenomena.
The aim of this study was to examine the effect of congruence between the sensory modality through which a concept can be experienced and the modality through which the word denoting that concept is ...perceived during word recognition. Words denoting concepts that can be experienced visually (e.g. “color”) and words denoting concepts that can be experienced auditorily (e.g. “noise”) were presented both visually and auditorily. We observed shorter processing latencies when there was a match between the modality through which a concept could be experienced and the modality through which a word denoting that concept was presented. In visual lexical decision task, “color” was recognized faster than “noise”, whereas in auditory lexical decision task, “noise” was recognized faster than “color”. The obtained pattern of results cannot be accounted for by exclusive amodal theories, whereas it can be easily integrated in theories based on perceptual representations.
In this study we addressed three issues concerning semantic and associative relatedness between two words and how they prime each other. The first issue is whether there is a priming effect of ...semantic relatedness over and above the effect of associative relatedness. The second issue is how difference in semantic overlap between two words affects priming. In order to specify the semantic overlap we introduce five relation types that differ in number of common semantic components. Three relation types (synonyms, antonyms and hyponyms) represent semantic relatedness while two relation types represent associative relatedness, with negligible or no semantic relatedness. Finally, the third issue addressed in this study is whether there is a symmetric priming effect if we swap the position of prime and target, i.e. whether the direction of relatedness between two words affects priming. In two lexical decision experiments we presented five types of word pairs. In both experiments we obtained stronger facilitation for pairs that were both semantically and associatively related. Closer inspection showed that larger semantic overlap between words is paralleled by greater facilitation effect. The effects did not change when prime and target swap their position, indicating that the observed facilitation effects are symmetrical. This outcome complies with predictions of distributed models of memory.
The main goal of this paper is to present a new tool for preparing and conducting the psychological experiments which we created to enrich and facilitate the education process within the practicals ...in the area of cognitive psychology and related fields. It has been designed as an aid in the teaching process at the university level, but due to its simplicity it can easily be applied at earlier levels of schooling as well. We described a computer program UltraLab which created with an idea to follow contemporary trends and be a software which is free, very simple to use in preparing and conducting the experiments, and yet flexible - it can cover a wide range of experimental paradigms. A download link is provided as well. In this paper we describe the basic technical features, give detailed instructions for the preparation of experimental files, as well as for reading the data files. Finally, we point out the advantages which the application of this tool brings to the students who are acquiring the knowledge of experimental psychology.
PDF
