| Abstract: | Three experiments with a total of 56 1st graders explored a theoretical interpretation of stimulus familiarization, the finding that after repeated exposure to a stimulus, reaction time is slower to that stimulus than to a novel one. In Exp I, this phenomenon was replicated. Exp II and Exp III, using a reaction time paradigm analogous to one that separates attention into alertness and encoding components, demonstrated that (a) the familiarization effect results primarily from a decrease in alertness associated with a familiar stimulus and (b) when alertness is held constant, reaction time to the familiar stimulus is faster than reaction time to the novel stimulus due to an encoding advantage enjoyed by the familiar stimulus. Developmental implications of an overall processing system are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
