A double stimulation test of ideomotor theory with implications for selective attention.

Abstract

90 Ss were offered incentives to respond rapidly to only the visual stimulus in combined visual and auditory digit stimulus presentations. 5 Ss per cell were employed in a 2 * 9 factorial design with 2 modes of response (speaking vs. writing the visual digit) and 9 interstimulus intervals (ranging from auditory 200 msec. before to 200 msec. after visual stimulus). Auditory stimulus content (same digit, different digit, or nothing) was an additional within-Ss variable. In support of the major prediction based on ideomotor theory, the auditory-different-digit condition interfered strongly with spoken responses (slower RTs, more errors), while interfering only very slightly with written responses. The interfering effect of auditory-different-digit on spoken responses was manifest at all interstimulus intervals from auditory 200 msec. before to 100 msec. after the visual digit. This failure of Ss giving spoken responses to screen out conflicting auditory stimuli was regarded as inconsistent with selective attention formulations appealing to information filtering prior to verbal analysis of stimuli. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)