Journal of Cognition最新文献

The approximate number system (ANS) is thought to mediate symbolic and non-symbolic numerical magnitude comparison. Challenging this view, the dual system model stipulates that non-symbolic comparisons rely on the ANS while symbolic comparisons rely on a discrete semantic system (DSS). In three experiments, the current study tests whether symbolic and non-symbolic magnitude comparisons rely on a common ANS or a DSS by examining the correlation between the size and distance effects in numerical magnitude comparison. We replicated previous studies, which used one-digit numbers 1 to 9, but also aimed to increase variance by using less familiar number ranges. Experiment 1 used a fixed-reference paradigm (reference = 55) with two-digit integers (11-99). Experiments 2 and 3 extended the design to decimals (0.01-0.98) with variable (Experiment 2) or fixed reference (Experiment 3). All experiments additionally included non-symbolic dot comparison in which the expected negative correlation between size and distance effect emerged. Across experiments, size and distance effects in less familiar number ranges were uncorrelated when presented in symbolic format, corroborating the idea that symbolic number comparison relies on a DSS. These findings were moderated by the observation of a significant correlation between size and distance effects in a subsample of participants who showed significant size and distance effects at the individual level. Interpretation of the current results must take into account limitations concerning specificities of multi-digit number processing, the reliability of the effects, and the possible role of unmeasured external factors in shaping the observed correlations.

This study examined the effect of temporal overlap in dual-task processing on task switch costs. Participants performed a psychological refractory period (PRP) experiment with a varying stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA), which is the time interval between the onsets of the stimuli for Task 1 (T1) and Task 2 (T2). Trials included task repetitions, where T2 was identical to T1, and task switches, where T2 differed from T1. T2 performance was worse with shorter SOAs than with longer SOAs and in switch trials than in repetition trials, indicating a PRP effect and switch costs. Notably, switch costs were not modulated by the SOA. However, SOA cannot precisely determine whether T1 and T2 are performed with or without temporal overlap in a given trial. To distinguish between these trials, we assessed the time interval between the T1 response and the onset of the T2 stimulus, known as the response-stimulus interval (RSI). The RSI acts as a proxy to temporally localize when T1 response selection is completed and the response-selection bottleneck is released, This novel trial-by-trial approach revealed that switch costs did not differ between trials with and without temporal overlap in task processing. Moreover, RSI was found to predicted T2 performance more accurately than SOA. Using RSI as a predictor of RT2 provides persuasive evidence that task selection and response selection rely on independent cognitive processes. Alternatively, both processes use shared central processing limitations, but temporal and/or strategic factors prevent these processes from overlapping in time and thereby interfering with each other.

It has long been known that presenting information to multiple senses at a time (e.g., audiovisual presentation as opposed to only visual or auditory) improves later recall of said information - an effect known as the bimodal advantage. Surprisingly however, evidence for this has come only from studies employing free and serial recall, where the identity of an object is recalled, but not in cued recall, where one object feature is recalled when another one is cued. This is despite both tasks requiring binding features into an object in working memory (WM) - our brain's capacity-limited system for temporarily maintaining information for the purpose of achieving behavioral goals. The present study investigated this discrepancy across a series of four experiments. Contrary to the literature, and despite near-identical task settings, we found evidence in favor of a bimodal advantage across multiple experiments. Moreover, our results suggest that this advantage mainly arises from perceptual processes at encoding rather than from storage in an audiovisual fashion in WM. Finally, a primarily perceptually-based process, the bimodal advantage appears to be sensitive to the characteristics of the cue feature (i.e., its presentation modality). In sum, our results shed light on the mechanism of the bimodal advantage, now robustly detected in cued recall tasks, furthering our understanding of the relationship between perception and WM. Results are discussed in relation to prior studies that did not find a bimodal advantage, potential mechanisms underlying the effect, and the broader framework of the multicomponent model of WM.

Word recognition is a complex cognitive process that has been often investigated via lexical decision task (LDT). LDT can indeed provide insight into how individuals access and process linguistic information, and how (and if) specific word- and/or individual-level characteristics affect participants' behavior. Here, we aimed to provide a systematic investigation of the interaction between individual-level reading skills and word-level factors (e.g., frequency, length). Participants were asked to perform a LDT and complete neuropsychological tests assessing their reading-related skills. By using completely data-driven approaches, participants' performance in the LDT was predicted by word- and individual-level predictors, and the best-fitting model was selected. The best-fitting model dropped all the interactions among deeper-level predictors (e.g., density of the semantic neighborhood) and reading-related skills. The interactions involving word length or word frequency indicated that more expert readers are less sensitive to this kind of factors. These results underscore the importance of considering both lexical properties and individual reading proficiency when investigating the cognitive mechanisms underlying word recognition.

Coordinated social interaction requires people to control their tendencies to imitate each other's actions. Previous research suggests that imitative response tendencies become modulated by the goals to which one's own and others' actions are individually or jointly directed. However, an open question is how different levels of goal representation (ranging from higher-level goals that specify joint or individual action outcomes to lower-level goals encoding own and others' movement features) interact and shape imitative congruency effects during social interactions. To address this gap, we conducted two online experiments, in which participants selected one of two action targets in turn with a virtual co-actor to achieve either individual or joint task goals. We manipulated imitative congruency between both task partners' task contributions regarding their individual action goals as well as their lower-level movement goals. Our results showed that participants' task performance was driven by imitative congruency between their own and their partner's individual action goals, which modulated effects of imitative congruency between their own and their partner's low-level movement goals. Interestingly, these imitation effects were found to be present regardless of instructing participants to work towards individual or joint task goals. While supporting goal-directed theories of imitation, our findings suggest that modulations of imitative response tendencies may stem from domain-general action planning and control processes that operate across social and non-social task settings, and that instructions to pursue joint rather than individual task goals exert only limited influence on imitative action tendencies in interactive task contexts.

This article presents AI-generated estimates for five characteristics of German words: concreteness, valence, arousal, age of acquisition (AoA), and word familiarity. The estimates were generated using GPT-4o-mini, which was selected due to its good performance in previous studies. Validation studies were conducted comparing the AI-generated estimates with both human ratings and previously generated AI data to ensure their usefulness for research applications. The main results are as follows. The GPT estimates of word concreteness, valence, and arousal show a strong correlation with human ratings but are not better than the best available AI-generated estimates based on semantic vectors. The GPT estimates of AoA are good approximations of human ratings and outperform other available alternatives (except for human ratings), especially after the model was fine-tuned based on 2,000 human ratings. Fine-tuned AI-generated estimates of word familiarity have better predictive value than word frequency for word recognition in lexical decision tasks and vocabulary tests. Estimates for concreteness, valence, arousal, and AoA are available for 167,000 words, which are likely to be known to more than 90% of participants in typical adult studies. Word familiarity estimates are presented for 928,000 word forms. All data and codes, including newly collected human familiarity ratings for 11,000 words, are publicly available at https://osf.io/ghjd2/. The data may be freely used for research purposes, but not for commercial purposes.

Cognitive control is a prerequisite for achieving goals in daily life. Miyake et al. (2000) distinguished three separable but correlated cognitive control functions in young adults: inhibition, shifting, and updating. This three-factor model was later adapted to a bi-factor model with a common factor and separate updating and shifting factors. Over the years, these models have been replicated in various young adult samples. However, other studies have failed to confirm these models. Furthermore, the variety of tasks used in these studies hampers replication of the underlying factor structure of cognitive control. The primary goal of this study was to address this issue of replicability by validating the factor structure of cognitive control functions using a new test battery based on often-used tasks, while offering full transparency about each step in the analysis process. This test battery comprises nine behavioral tasks measuring inhibition, shifting and updating. The factor structure was assessed in 247 young adults (84.21% female). Confirmatory Factor Analysis was used to test the one-factor model with a common cognitive control function, the three-factor model with separate but correlated cognitive control functions, and the bi-factor model. Our findings supported the three-factor model with correlated cognitive control functions as the best-fitting model, despite some fit indices yielding mixed evidence. Additionally, the test battery in this study is offered as an open-source and easily accessible resource. Finally, we offer a critical look on the field and provide recommendations for future use and adaptations of this test battery to increase its broad applicability.

According to action control theories, responding to stimuli leads to a binding of stimulus and response features into a common representation referred to as an event file. If any component of this event file repeats, information is retrieved and affects performance: While full repetition is beneficial, partial repetition leads to cost. These stimulus-response (S-R) binding effects have been found in very many experimental designs; yet, these effects are typically completely absent in visual detection and localization tasks. Recently, however, it has been found that contrary to vision, auditory detection and localization leads to binding effects, thus suggesting modality dependence. In the current study we aimed to extend this debate by comparing the visual with the tactile domain. Participants detected (Experiment 1) or localized (Experiment 2) visual targets of different color and tactile targets of different intensity and rhythm. In both detection and localization, we observed evidence of binding and retrieval in the tactile domain which was completely absent in the visual domain. The results highlight the previously suggested modality dependence for binding approaches in action control.

Remembering is typically viewed as unreliable and prone to errors, whereas highly confident recognition memory is often believed to be highly reliable and associated with high recognition accuracy. We evaluated these beliefs using memory for photographs of natural scenes in two studies: recognition memory to examine picture similarity effects in a 2-alternative forced-choice measure, and source memory to examine picture-location associations with a continuous retrieval accuracy measure. Additionally, we assessed the experience of remembering and its influence on judgments of confidence and memory accuracy. High confidence remembering was associated with high accuracy when perceptually or mnemonically similar lures were presented in the item recognition task. However, an association between high confidence and high accuracy was also seen in the absence of remembering for mnemonically similar lures. The confidence-accuracy inversion in the picture similarity task is speculated due to confidently (mis)remembering a similar picture stored in memory. Based on analyses of participant and trial level data, in both studies memory quality was strongly associated with confidence. Importantly, remembering moderated the association between recognition accuracy and confidence judgments, differentially influencing confidence more than it influenced accuracy. Memory quality moderated the association between source accuracy and confidence, the relationship being stronger for images remembered vividly. Our findings have implications for accounts of vividness, confidence, episodic memory, and eyewitness testimony. High confidence recognition may not in all cases reliably imply high accuracy. Highly vivid memories, confidently recollected, may not always be factually accurate.

In school, children often have to read or listen to spoken language while background noise is present. However, previous studies show a negative influence of background noise on reading and listening comprehension, especially in children. These background noise effects are not solely due to masking effects. Two accounts used to explain background noise effects are the interference-by-process account and the renewed view of age-related distraction. The interference-by-process assumes that the overlap of the processes needed for the background noise and the focal task are of importance, while the renewed view of age-related distraction argues that the modality of the focal task needs to be taken into consideration. In this study a total of 125 fifth grade students completed both listening and reading comprehension tasks under three listening conditions: silence, semantic noise and non-semantic noise. We found significantly lower performance for the semantic background noise condition compared to the silent condition. There was no significant interaction between task modality and background noise. These results are broadly consistent with the interference-by-process account but provide no support for the specific modality-based prediction derived from the renewed view of age-related distraction.