Separating the role of perceptual and conceptual fluency on masked word priming using event-related potentials

Masked word repetition increases old responses on an episodic recognition test (Jacoby & Whitehouse, 1989). This effect is commonly attributed to perceptual fluency; that is, unconscious perception of the prime speeds reading of the target and this fluency leads to elevated familiarity. Two experiments directly tested the claim that perceptual fluency is responsible for word priming effects. Experiment 1 held prime-target meaning constant and altered the physical characteristics of match primes (e.g., RIGHT primes RIGHT) by including both lowercase (e.g, right) and mixed case primes (e.g., rIgHt). If word priming effects are due to perceptual fluency, then lowering the perceptual overlap between the prime and target should decrease or eliminate word priming effects. Instead, all three conditions showed robust priming effects in the behavioral and ERP (i.e., N400) measures. Experiment 2 equated the prime-target perceptual features and lowered the conceptual overlap by using orthographically similar nonwords as primes (e.g., JIGHT primes RIGHT). Removing prime-target conceptual overlap eliminated behavioral evidence of priming and N400 ERP differences correlated with priming. The evidence suggests that word priming effects on episodic recognition memory are more likely a product of conceptual fluency than perceptual fluency.

Automated summary

This study examines the effects of masked word repetition on episodic recognition tests and suggests that word priming effects are more likely a result of conceptual fluency rather than perceptual fluency.