Semantic priming: Subliminal perception or context?

Bernstein, Ira H.; Bissonnette, Victor; Vyas, Avni; Barclay, Pamela

doi:10.3758/bf03208050

Cited by 65 publications

(59 citation statements)

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“…Recently, using a new paradigm that isolates the semantic level of speech (i.e., at the word rather than at the sentence level), we showed that this native language intelligibility advantage for the perception of degraded speech is at least in part specifically driven by semantic context (Golestani et al, 2009). We used an auditory version of the retroactive word priming paradigm (Bernstein et al, 1989) in which we presented pairs of semantically related or unrelated words, the first of which was embedded in different levels of noise. We found that performance was better on related compared to unrelated trials during native language speech processing, and further, we showed that this benefit of context increases as SNR decreases.…”

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Semantic versus perceptual interactions in neural processing of speech-in-noise

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Native listeners make use of higher-level, context-driven semantic and linguistic information during the perception of speech-in-noise. In a recent behavioral study, using a new paradigm that isolated the semantic level of speech by using words, we showed that this native-language benefit is at least partly driven by semantic context (Golestani et al., 2009). Here, we used the same paradigm in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiment to study the neural bases of speech intelligibility, as well as to study the neural bases of this semantic context effect in the native language. A forced-choice recognition task on the first of two auditorily presented semantically related or unrelated words was employed, where the first, 'target' word was embedded in different noise levels. Results showed that activation in components of the brain language network, including Broca's area and the left posterior superior temporal sulcus, as well as brain regions known to be functionally related to attention and task difficulty, was modulated by stimulus intelligibility. In line with several previous studies examining the role of linguistic context in the intelligibility of degraded speech at the sentence level, we found that activation in the angular gyrus of the left inferior parietal cortex was modulated by the presence of semantic context, and further, that this modulation depended on the intelligibility of the speech stimuli. Our findings help to further elucidate neural mechanisms underlying the interaction of context-driven and signal-driven factors during the perception of degraded speech, and this specifically at the semantic level.© 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. IntroductionIn studying the neural implementation of spoken language processing, it is important to consider the complexity of linguistic processes. For example, one can ask how higher-order, semantic versus lower-order, perceptual processes interact during the processing of noisy speech -a phenomenon that is ubiquitous in our daily lives, and how the brain supports the interaction of these complementary cognitive and perceptual dimensions (Mattys et al., 2009). It is known that in one's native language, speech comprehension is often successful even when hearing noisy, or degraded speech (Nabelek and Donahue, 1984;Takata and Nabelek, 1990;van Wijngaarden et al., 2002). Further, using the Speech Perception in Noise (SPIN) paradigm (Bilger et al., 1984;Kalikow et al., 1977), in which the predictability of the final word in sentences is manipulated, it has been shown that this native language advantage can arise from the use of higher-level linguistic, contextual information (Florentine, 1985a;Mayo et al., 1997). These original studies further showed that lower SNRs (or higher noise levels) are associated with a greater context benefit (Mayo et al., 1997). We are thus capable of making use of linguistic context to compensate for poor signal quality. Linguistic context includes semantic and syntactic information, as well as pragmatic and proso...

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Semantic versus perceptual interactions in neural processing of speech-in-noise

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“…Marcel's (1980Marcel's ( , 1983aMarcel's ( , 1983b weH-known studies have attempted to demonstrate "subliminal" prirning. However, Bernstein, Bissonnette, Vyas, and Barclay (1989) noted that retroactive prirning could explain Marcel's results as a reciprocal interaction between the ostensive prime and target. They showed that primes that were "subliminal" when presented alone were clearly "supraliminal" when presented with semantically related targets.…”

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“…A holistic analysis of word shape occurs first, in which semantic relatedness can lower the criterion for a process like logogen activation (Morton, 1969), shifting criteria along Farah's (1989) Iines, A "second look" then resolves ambiguities about the stimulus and may improve discrimination accuracy. Bernstein et al (1989) suggested a sirnilar mechanism.…”

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“…Briand et al (1988) combined narning latencies and lexical decisions. Most often, interest centers on facilitation arising from a related prime (bread-butter), compared to either an unrelated prime (sleep-butter) or a nonword prime (selep-butter) (Antos, 1979;Bernstein et al, 1989;Schvaneveldt & McDonald, 1981), but inhibition due to rnisprirning (bread-batter in a narning latency task) is also weH documented (Norris, 1984). Neely (in press) provides an extensive empirical and theoretical summary of the priming literature.…”

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“…Requests for reprints should be addressed to Ira H. Bernstein, Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Arlington, P.O. Box 19528, Arlington, TX 76019-0528. 1986), word/nonword (lexical) decisions (Antos, 1979;Meyer & Schvaneveldt, 1971;Neely, 1977;O'Connor & Forster, 1981;Schvaneveldt & McDonald, 1981;Stone & Van Orden, 1989), recognition memory (Ratcliff & McKoon, 1988), and tachistoscopic accuracy (Bernstein et al, 1989). Briand et al (1988) combined narning latencies and lexical decisions.…”

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Perceptual and response interactions in semantic priming

Bernstein

Bissonnette

Welch

1990

Perception & Psychophysics

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In two experiments, subjects made pairs oflexical decisions verbally. In Experiment 1, masked stimuli appeared concurrently to the left and right of'fixation; in Experiment 2, nonmasked stimuli appeared sequentially at fixation. The left-hand letter strings were judged more accurately in in Experiment 1, and the second letter strings were judged more accurately in Experiment 2. Each string in the pair could be either a word (e.g., fork) or a nonword anagram (e.g., frok). Consequently, the two strings in the pair could be related (e.g., fork-epoon, frok-spoon, etc.) or unrelated (e.g., fork-door, frok-door, etc.), independently ofwhether neither, either, or both strings were words. Semantically related stimuli induced consistent biases to respond "word," as noted in other studies. These biases were typically stronger for the event reported second. Minimal evidence was found for perceptual priming effects. The asymmetrical effects were consistent with spreading-activation-type mechanisms, but other considerations support a multiple-process view.

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Reactivating a Reactivation Theory of Implicit Memory

Bower

1996

Consciousness and Cognition

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Semantic priming: Subliminal perception or context?

Cited by 65 publications

References 34 publications

Semantic versus perceptual interactions in neural processing of speech-in-noise

Semantic versus perceptual interactions in neural processing of speech-in-noise

Perceptual and response interactions in semantic priming

Reactivating a Reactivation Theory of Implicit Memory

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