Input, Decision, and Response Factors in Picture-Word Interference

Abstract

Two variations of the picture-word analogue of the Stroop task were examined in an effort to gain a better understanding of the processes involved in responding to picture-word stimuli. Four stages in this process were outlined and then evaluated as potential sources of the interference in these types of tasks. In Experiment 1 subjects were required to respond yes or no (vocally or manually) to whether the picture was that of a dog. In Experiment 2 subjects were asked to respond by naming the picture's semantic category. Taken together, the results of these experiments indicate that (a) input factors contribute very little to the interference observed, (b) in certain situations some of the interference is due to an interaction of the semantic information from the word and the picture during a decision process, and (c) the response selection and output processes account for most of the interference but only in situations in which the word's name is potentially a response. Implications of these results for the study of automatic semantic processing of words are discussed. As Quillian (1968) pointed out over 12 years ago, an individual's storehouse of information about any well-known concept is virtually limitless; yet of this information