Sequence effects in the categorization of tones varying in frequency.
In contrast to exemplar and decision-bound categorization models, the memory and contrast models described here do not assume that long-term representations of stimulus magnitudes are available. Instead, stimuli are assumed to be categorized using only their differences from a few recent stimuli. To test this alternative, the authors examined sequential effects in a binary categorization of 10 tones varying in frequency. Stimuli up to 2 trials back in the sequence had a significant effect on the response to the current stimulus. The effects of previous stimuli interacted with one another. A memory and contrast model, according to which only ordinal information about the differences between the current stimulus and recent preceding stimuli is used, best accounted for these data.
Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry, United Kingdom. neil.stewart@warwick.ac.uk
Neil
N
Stewart
Gordon D A
GD
Brown
D006801:Humans; D008144:Loudness Perception; D011939:Mental Recall; D008960:Models, Psychological; D015233:Models, Statistical; D010897:Pitch Discrimination; D011337:Probability Learning; D011571:Psychoacoustics; D012153:Retention, Psychology; D012691:Serial Learning; D013018:Sound Spectrography