Abstract: Negative priming is commonly defined by slow responses to a stimulus dimension that is identical or related to one that served as a distracting dimension in a previous display. This effect has now been observed in a wide variety of tasks, but was first demonstrated in a variant of the Stroop (1935) color naming task. Neill (1977; see also Dalrymple-Alford & Budayr, 1966) reported that response time to name, say, the ink color of the word ÒBLUEÓ written in red ink was slow following responses to the word ÒREDÓ written in green ink. The present study demonstrate that this same result can occur in a task that does not require the selection of one of two sources of color information in a first display. Instead, negative priming was observed here following presentation of a single color word, presented in white, when the proportion of repeated trials in the experimental session was at chance. The results are discussed with reference to the contribution of controlled attentional processes during retrieval of a response to the second of two displays.

(1997). Submitted: JEP:LMC