On Categorizing Sounds
Abstract
Context is important when people judge sounds, or attributes of sounds, or other stimuli. It is shown how judgments depend on what sounds recently occurred (sequence effects), on how those sounds differ from one another (range effects), on the distribution of those differences (set effects), on what subjects are told about the situation (task effects), and on what subjects are told about their performance (feedback effects). Each of these factors determines the overall mean and variability of response times and response choices, which are the standard measures, when people judge attribute amounts. Trial-by-trial analysis of the data show these factors also determine performance on individual trials. Moreover, these momentary data cannot be predicted from the overall data. The opposite is not true; the averaged data can be predicted from the momentary details. These results are consistent with a model having two simple assumptions: Successive sounds (not just their attributes) assimilate toward one another in memory, and judgments are based on comparisons of these remembered events. It is suggested that relations between attributes, rather than the magnitudes of the attributes themselves, are the basis for judgment.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 07, 1991
- Accession Number
- ADA240006
Entities
People
- Gregory R. Lockhead
Organizations
- Duke University