TY - JOUR

T1 - Written words supersede pictures in priming semantic access: a P300 study

AU - Dorjee, Dusana

AU - Devenney, L.

AU - Thierry, Guillaume

PY - 2010/9/15

Y1 - 2010/9/15

N2 - The dynamic interplay of semantic access during information integration across the verbal and nonverbal domains and sensory modalities is poorly understood. Here, we compared the priming effects of four types of meaningful stimuli (pictures, written words, spoken words, and environmental sounds) on picture and written word targets referring to the same concept in all cases. P3b event-related brain potentials indexed automatic access to semantic memory in the different modalities. As expected, P3b amplitudes were large in the repetition priming condition, but also for word-picture and picture-word visual stimulus pairs. Critically, written word primes resulted in the largest P3b amplitudes whether elicited by written word or picture targets, suggesting a semantic priming supremacy of written words.

AB - The dynamic interplay of semantic access during information integration across the verbal and nonverbal domains and sensory modalities is poorly understood. Here, we compared the priming effects of four types of meaningful stimuli (pictures, written words, spoken words, and environmental sounds) on picture and written word targets referring to the same concept in all cases. P3b event-related brain potentials indexed automatic access to semantic memory in the different modalities. As expected, P3b amplitudes were large in the repetition priming condition, but also for word-picture and picture-word visual stimulus pairs. Critically, written word primes resulted in the largest P3b amplitudes whether elicited by written word or picture targets, suggesting a semantic priming supremacy of written words.

U2 - 10.1097/WNR.0b013e32833da46a

DO - 10.1097/WNR.0b013e32833da46a

M3 - Article

VL - 21

SP - 887

EP - 891

JO - Neuroreport

JF - Neuroreport

SN - 0959-4965

IS - 13

ER -