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Contextual diversity, not word frequency, determines word-naming and lexical decision times

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Adelman, James S. , Brown, G. D. A. (Gordon D. A.) and Quesada, José F. (2006) Contextual diversity, not word frequency, determines word-naming and lexical decision times. Psychological Science, Vol.17 (No.9). pp. 814-823. ISSN 0956-7976

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01787.x

Abstract

Word frequency is an important predictor of word-naming and lexical decision times. It is, however, confounded with contextual diversity, the number of contexts in which a word has been seen. In a study using a normative, corpus-based measure of contextual diversity, word-frequency effects were eliminated when effects of contextual diversity were taken into account (but not vice versa) across three naming and three lexical decision data sets; the same pattern of results was obtained regardless of which of three corpora was used to derive the frequency and contextual-diversity values. The results are incompatible with existing models of visual word recognition, which attribute frequency effects directly to frequency, and are particularly problematic for accounts in which frequency effects reflect learning. We argue that the results reflect the importance of likely need in memory processes, and that the continuity between reading and memory suggests using principles from memory research to inform theories of reading.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
Divisions:	Faculty of Science > Psychology
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Language and languages -- Research, Language and languages -- Word frequency
Journal or Publication Title:	Psychological Science
Publisher:	Blackwell Publishing
ISSN:	0956-7976
Date:	18 September 2006
Volume:	Vol.17
Number:	No.9
Page Range:	pp. 814-823
Identification Number:	10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01787.x
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Access rights to Published version:	Open Access
Funder:	Economic and Social Research Council (Great Britain) (ESRC), Leverhulme Trust (LT), University of Warwick
Grant number:	RES 000221558 and PTA 026270716 (ESRC), F/215/AY (Leverhulme)
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URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/399