Abstract
This study investigated whether the degree of semantic relationship between audible distracter words and visually displayed to-be-remembered words impact short-term memory recall. Semantic relationship was defined as the level of synonymity between the two categories of words. Participants were divided into a control group receiving no distracter, a group in which distracter words and to-be-remembered words were closely synonymous, and a group in which distracter words and to-be-remembered words were loosely synonymous. The results indicate that semantic relationships have no impact on the number of words correctly recalled However, closely synonymous relationships caused more replacement errors than silence or loosely synonymous relationships. One possible explanation is that auditory stimuli are more readily perceived than visual stimuli when synonymity is high.
Recommended Citation
(2006)
"The Effects of Semantic Relationships on the Irrelevant Sound Effect,"
Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology: Vol. 2:
Iss.
1, Article 5.
Available at:
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/intuition/vol2/iss1/5