Numerical Sequence Recognition: Is Familiarity or Ordinality the Primary Factor in Performance?

Lyons and Beilock (2009) suggested that the degree of ordinal association in 3-digit numerical sequences is a primary factor in the speed and accuracy with which people recognize numerical sequences. Using two experiments I examined an alternative hypothesis, specifically that having automatic access to a larger set of memorized (i.e., familiar) sequences is the determining factor in performance. Participants were shown four types of ordered stimuli, with corresponding unordered sequences. In general, highly-skilled participants responded faster than their less-skilled counterparts. All participants were slower to reject unordered sequences that shared numbers with highly familiar sequences (e.g., 3 1 2) than with relatively unfamiliar unordered sequences (e.g., 7 1 2): this pattern is referred to as an interference effect. Participants were faster to identify familiar ascending than descending sequences, despite being equally ordered. These results support familiarity, and not ordinality, as the determining factor in sequence recognition.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Master's

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Psychology

Grantor dc:publisher

Carleton University

Year dc:date.issued

2014

Author dc:creator

• Bourassa, Angelle

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright © 2014 the author(s). Theses may be used for non-commercial research, educational, or related academic purposes only. Such uses include personal study, research, scholarship, and teaching. Theses may only be shared by linking to Carleton University Institutional Repository and no part may be used without proper attribution to the author. No part may be used for commercial purposes directly or indirectly via a for-profit platform; no adaptation or derivative works are permitted without consent from the copyright owner.

Language dc:language.iso

en

DOI

10.22215/etd/2014-10567

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:carleton.scholaris.ca:20.500.14718/32386