Abstract
We tested and confirmed the hypothesis that the prior presentation of nonwords in lexical decision is the net result of two opposing processes: (1) a relatively fast inhibitory process based on global familiarity; and (2) a relatively slow facilitatory process based on the retrieval of specific episodic information. In three studies, we manipulated speed‐stress to influence the balance between the two processes. Experiment 1 showed item‐specific improvement for repeated nonwords in a standard “respond‐when‐ready” lexical decision task. Experiment 2 used a 400‐ms deadline procedure and showed performance for nonwords to be unaffected by up to four prior presentations. In Experiment 3 we used a signal‐to‐respond procedure with variable time intervals and found negative repetition priming for repeated nonwords. These results can be accounted for by dual‐process models of lexical decision (e.g., Balota & Chumbley, 1984; Balota & Spieler, 1999).
