Experiments

Question 1

Simple Reaction Time

Answer 1

• participants are asked to respond as quickly as possible anytime a stimulus (eg. red square) appears
• independent variable: inter-stimulus interval
• dependent variable: reaction time

Question 2

Choice Reaction Time

Answer 2

• participants are asked to press the left side of the screen if the square is red, & the right side of the screen if the square is blue
• measures reaction time & accuracy

Question 3

Numerical Stroop Test

Answer 3

• participants are asked to compare physical sizes & numerical values of 2 numbers (while ignoring the irrelevant dimension)
• interference effect occurs because the information is processed automatically which makes it very difficult to differentiate between size & magnitude
• independent variable: the condition/instructions of the task
• dependent variable: reaction time & accuracy

Question 4

Wisconsin Card Sorting Task

Answer 4

• participants are asked to match a card to 1 of 4 options, but they have to guess what the target variable is, and it changes
• tests pattern & object recognition, ability to use feedback, working memory
• independent variables: color, number, shape
• dependent variables: # of errors, speed of responses

Question 5

Word vs. Non-word

Answer 5

• asked participants to determine whether or not a string of letters was a word
• investigated how mental lexicons are organized, how we understand different types of words & information associated with them
• independent variables: combination of letters, order of word vs. non-word, relation of words to each other
• dependent variables: reaction time & accuracy