A Recognition Test of Vocabulary Using Signal-Detection Measures and Some Correlates of Word and Nonword Recognition.
Abstract
In the first of 3 experiments, university undergraduates were presented a list of 300 words and 100 nonwords in two sessions. Their confidence that an item was a word was indicated for each item on a 6-point scale. This experiment demonstrated the feasibility of creating a recognition test of vocabulary. In Experiment II, 100 items were chosen to form a subtest, and the subtest was cross validated on a new sample of subjects. The tests in Experiments I and II were scored using signal-detection measures. The primary criterion, SAT (verbal) scores, correlated approximately .60 with the test scores. In Experiment III subjects scaled the words and nonwords for 4 psychological attributes. These were submitted to a stepwise regression analysis with the confidence ratings from Experiment I as the dependent variable. It was concluded that associability, frequency, orthography, and pronounceability all may be components of word recognition. However, only frequency was found to be a significant predictor of the confidence of recognition of nonwords. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 1973
- Accession Number
- AD0757797
Entities
People
- Benton J. Underwood
- Joel Zimmerman
- John J. Shaughnessy
- Paul K. Broder
Organizations
- Northwestern University