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memory
You process known words faster than scrambled letters.
The priming effect allows you to identify a word significantly faster after seeing a related concept.
When participants are shown a target word like 'nurse' immediately after 'doctor,' their reaction time decreases compared to unrelated pairs. This suggests that related concepts are linked in memory, with activation spreading through the network to prepare you for the next item. It happens automatically without your awareness.
Your mind pre-loads information based on context.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Meyer and Schvaneveldt, 1971
- What the check found
- The core phenomenon is a well-established finding in cognitive psychology, specifically within lexical decision task research.
- Confidence
- Well replicated
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.