The Stroop effect at 80: The competition between stimulus control and cognitive control

Abstract

For more than 80 years, researchers have examined the interference between automatic processing of stimuli, such as the meaning of color words, on performance of a controlled-processing task such as naming the color in which words are printed. The Stroop effect and its many variations provide an ideal test platform for examining the competition between stimulus control and cognitive control of attention, as reflected in behavior. The two experiments reported here show that rhesus monkeys, like human adults, show interference from incongruous stimulus conditions in a number-Stroop task, and that the monkeys may be particularly susceptible to influence from response strength and less able, relative to human adults, of using executive attention to minimize this interference.

Primate cognition: attention, episodic memory, prospective memory, self‐control, and metacognition as examples of cognitive control in nonhuman primates

“…In any case, the meaning of the stimulus was irrelevant, as the rule was to label the stimulus color. Nevertheless, Lana showed Stroop-like interference from this irrelevant, but highly salient associative cue-as has been reported in thousands of Stroop-task studies with humans 29 Washburn 30,31 reported similar interference effects for a numerical-Stroop task administered to rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) and undergraduate volunteers. This task required rapid judgment of which of two arrays of stimuli contained the most items.…”

“…Washburn 31 replicated this pattern of results and manipulated the relative demands on the cognitive control of attention, e.g., by varying the ratio of incongruous-to-congruous trials, and by incentivizing fast and accurate responding on incongruous trials. As shown in Figure 1, the monkeys were particularly susceptible to Stroop-like interference, and appeared to be less able than humans to attenuate control by irrelevant, incongruous stimuli on performance, even when motivation was high.…”

“…Washburn reported similar interference effects for a numerical‐Stroop task administered to rhesus monkeys ( Macaca mulatta ) and undergraduate volunteers. This task required rapid judgment of which of two arrays of stimuli contained the most items.…”

“…The diagonal lines highlight the finding that, although incentive improved performance overall, it reduced Stroop interference for humans but not for monkeys. (Reprinted with permission from Ref . Copyright 2016 Wiley)…”

Attention as a factor in the school performance of adolescents

“…It is due to the ability to direct and focus attention that a choice of a certain activity is made and that mental energy is directed towards it, and due to focusing, which we call enthrallment or concentration in every day speech, that the irrelevant stimuli or distractors are dismissed (Washburn, 2016). The direction and focusing of mental activity on a consciously set goal represents volitional, intentional or active attention.…”