Speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in Stroop-task performance
The Stroop task is a popular neuropsychological test that measures executive control. Strong Stroop interference is commonly interpreted in neuropsychology as a diagnostic marker of an impairment in executive control, possibly reflecting executive dysfunction. However, popular models of the Stroop t...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2016-06-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00822/full |
| _version_ | 1819259644991766528 |
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| author | Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Anneke eVedder Anneke eVedder Stephen B.R.E. Brown Sander eNieuwenhuis Sander eNieuwenhuis |
| author_facet | Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Anneke eVedder Anneke eVedder Stephen B.R.E. Brown Sander eNieuwenhuis Sander eNieuwenhuis |
| author_sort | Marnix eNaber |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The Stroop task is a popular neuropsychological test that measures executive control. Strong Stroop interference is commonly interpreted in neuropsychology as a diagnostic marker of an impairment in executive control, possibly reflecting executive dysfunction. However, popular models of the Stroop task indicate that several other aspects of colour and word processing may also account for individual differences in the Stroop task, independent of executive control. Here we use new approaches to investigate the degree to which individual differences in Stroop interference correlate with the relative processing speed of word and colour stimuli, and the lateral inhibition between visual stimuli. We conducted an electrophysiological and behavioural experiment to measure (1) how quickly an individual’s brain processes words and colours presented in isolation (P3 latency), and (2) the strength of an individual’s lateral inhibition between visual representations with a visual illusion. Both measures explained at least 40% of the variance in Stroop interference across individuals. As these measures were obtained in contexts not requiring any executive control, we conclude that the Stroop effect also measures an individual’s pre-set way of processing visual features such as words and colours. This study highlights the important contributions of stimulus processing speed and lateral inhibition to individual differences in Stroop interference, and challenges the general view that the Stroop task primarily assesses executive control. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-23T19:13:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6c527e33bb0d47d189921ac2ee634046 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-23T19:13:18Z |
| publishDate | 2016-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-6c527e33bb0d47d189921ac2ee6340462022-12-21T17:34:23ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782016-06-01710.3389/fpsyg.2016.00822191540Speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in Stroop-task performanceMarnix eNaber0Marnix eNaber1Marnix eNaber2Marnix eNaber3Anneke eVedder4Anneke eVedder5Stephen B.R.E. Brown6Sander eNieuwenhuis7Sander eNieuwenhuis8Utrecht UniversityHarvard UniversityLeiden UniversityLeiden Institute for Brain and CognitionHarvard UniversityUtrecht UniversityLeiden UniversityLeiden UniversityLeiden Institute for Brain and CognitionThe Stroop task is a popular neuropsychological test that measures executive control. Strong Stroop interference is commonly interpreted in neuropsychology as a diagnostic marker of an impairment in executive control, possibly reflecting executive dysfunction. However, popular models of the Stroop task indicate that several other aspects of colour and word processing may also account for individual differences in the Stroop task, independent of executive control. Here we use new approaches to investigate the degree to which individual differences in Stroop interference correlate with the relative processing speed of word and colour stimuli, and the lateral inhibition between visual stimuli. We conducted an electrophysiological and behavioural experiment to measure (1) how quickly an individual’s brain processes words and colours presented in isolation (P3 latency), and (2) the strength of an individual’s lateral inhibition between visual representations with a visual illusion. Both measures explained at least 40% of the variance in Stroop interference across individuals. As these measures were obtained in contexts not requiring any executive control, we conclude that the Stroop effect also measures an individual’s pre-set way of processing visual features such as words and colours. This study highlights the important contributions of stimulus processing speed and lateral inhibition to individual differences in Stroop interference, and challenges the general view that the Stroop task primarily assesses executive control.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00822/fullexecutive controlMotion-induced blindnessinterferenceStroopP3 Component. |
| spellingShingle | Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Marnix eNaber Anneke eVedder Anneke eVedder Stephen B.R.E. Brown Sander eNieuwenhuis Sander eNieuwenhuis Speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in Stroop-task performance Frontiers in Psychology executive control Motion-induced blindness interference Stroop P3 Component. |
| title | Speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in Stroop-task performance |
| title_full | Speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in Stroop-task performance |
| title_fullStr | Speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in Stroop-task performance |
| title_full_unstemmed | Speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in Stroop-task performance |
| title_short | Speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in Stroop-task performance |
| title_sort | speed and lateral inhibition of stimulus processing contribute to individual differences in stroop task performance |
| topic | executive control Motion-induced blindness interference Stroop P3 Component. |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00822/full |
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