Abstract
In order to test the frequent assumption that lexical access in visual word recognition would proceed independent of central attention, the overlapping task paradigm has recently been employed with somewhat contradictory results. Here we combined overlapping tasks with the recording of event-related brain potentials to assess task load dependent modulations of lexical access in more detail. The study was carried out in Spanish with native Spanish speaking participants. They performed a high-priority pitch discrimination task followed by a visual lexical decision task, in which the difficulty of lexical access was manipulated by means of word frequency. Increasing task load by reducing the stimulus onset asynchrony between both tasks from 700 to 100 ms resulted in considerable slowing of lexical decisions. Word frequency effects were underadditive with the slowing induced by task overlap, indicating lexical access to take place although central attention was dedicated to the high-priority task. The effect of word frequency on the event-related potentials, used as electrophysiological indicator of lexical access, was much less delayed than the lexical decision responses in conditions of high task overlap, providing converging evidence for the independence of lexical access from central attention. On the other hand, this slight delay and an amplitude reduction of the effect with high task load show that lexical access may not be completely autonomous, but subject to some additional early source of interference.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.