Abstract
Subjects verified verbal descriptions of the forms “This (is, is not) a (color) (shape)” and “This (is, is not) a (shape) that’s (color)” against two-dimensional geometric figures. The figure was seen immediately after the description was heard or after a filled delay. Latency and error data indicated that differences in surface-structure organization affected encoding but not comparison. Some subjects appeared to transform negative conjunctions into positive disjunctions before comparison. More subjects showed this transformation under delayed than under immediate utilization. Dimensional comparison was an unlimited-capacity process under immediate utilization, but showed capacity limitations under delayed utilization
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
Reference Notes
Carpenter, P. A., & Just. M. A.Sentence comprehension: An information-processing model of verification. Complex Information Processing Working Paper 246. Pittsburgh: Carnegie-Mellon University, 1974.
Trabasso, T.Reasoning and the processing of negative information. Invited address to Division 3 of the Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, September 1970.
References
Anderson, J. R., &Bower, G. H.Human associative memory. Washington, D.C: Winston, 1973.
Bacharach, V. R., &Maisto, A. A. Prenominal adjective order and visual discrimination in children.Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 1974,17, 495–506.
Carpenter, P. A., &Just, M. A. Sentence comprehension: A psycholinguistic model of sentence verification.Psychological Review, 1975,82, 45–73.
Carr, T. H., &Bacharach, V. R. Perceptual tuning and conscious attention: Systems of input regulation in visual information processing.Cognition: International Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 1976,4, 281–302.
Clark, H. H., &Chase, W. G. On the process of comparing sentences against pictures.Cognitive Psychology, 1972,3, 472–517.
Kahneman, D.Attention and effort, Englewood Cliffs, N.J: Prentice-Hall, 1973.
Katz, J. J. On defining “presupposition.”Linguistic Inquiry, 1973,4, 256–260.
Keele, S. W.Attention and human performance. Pacific Palisades, Calif: Goodyear, 1973.
Keenan, E. L. Two kinds of presupposition in natural language. In C. J. Fillmore & D. T. Langendoen (Eds.),Studies in linguistic semantics. New York: Holt, 1971.
Kintsch, W.The representation of meaning in memory. Hillsdale. N.J: Erlbaum, 1974.
LaBerge, D. Identification of two components of the time to switch attention. In S. Kornblum (Ed.),Attention and performance IV. New York: Academic Press, 1973,
Melton, A. W., &Martin, E.Coding processes in human memory. Washington, D.C: Winston, 1972.
Moray, N.Attention: Selective processes in vision and hearing. London: Hutchinson, 1969.
Norman, D. A., &Rumelhart, D. E.Explorations in cognition. San Francisco: Freeman, 1975.
Posner, M. I.Cognition: An introduction. Glenview, Ill: Scott Foresman, 1973.
Townsend, J. T. Issues and models concerning the processing of a finite number of inputs. In B. Kantowitz (Ed.),Human information processing: Tutorials in performance and cognition. Hillsdale, N.J: Erlbaum, 1974.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This research, based on the first author’s unpublished doctoral dissertation, was supported by NICHD Program-Project Grant 5P01-HD00973 to George Peabody College. Preparation of the manuscript was supported in part by NIH Postdoctoral Fellowship 1-F32-HD05157-01 from NICHD to the first author, under the sponsorship of Michael I. Posner.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Carr, T.H., Bacharach, V.R. Encoding and performance in sentence verification under varying memory load. Memory & Cognition 5, 590–596 (1977). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03197404
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03197404