言语编码和视空编码在时间——空间联结中的作用

The Role of Verbal Coding and Verbal-Spatial Coding on Time-Space Association

时间和空间存在反应编码联合效应,该效应的编码是视觉空间性还是言语性还存在争议。实验1采用言语和空间反应,它们与时距的关系分为一致和不一致。发现言语反应时,短时距用"左边"反应快,长时距用"右边"反应快;空间反应时,时距和空间的一致性效应消失。实验2用箭头朝向反应,发现视觉编码和空间编码存在于相对应的反应形式中。研究表明时空关系的编码形式与任务要求有关,但概念上的言语编码更具优势,支持了极性对应理论。

Evidence for Spatial-Temporal Associations of Response Codes （STEARC） effect reports faster reaction times to short]long durations with the left/right hand, respectively. The cognitive origin of the STEARC effect is under debate： the visuospatial account and the verbal account. According to visuospatial coding, time is mentally represented along a continuous left-to-right-oriented representational line with short/long durations located on the left/right side of the mental time line, respectively. With respect to verbal coding, time-space interactions would result from an association between the verbal categorical concepts ＂short＂ and ＂left＂ as well as ＂long＂ and ＂right＂. In Experiment 1, we not only instructed participants to respond to a certain verbal label irrespective of its physical side （verbal instruction condition）, but also required them to respond to either the left or right physical response side regardless of the displayed verbal labels （spatial instruction condition）. To dissociate the confound of both coding mechanisms （e.g., faster left-sided responses for short duration could result from an association either between the verbal concepts ＂short＂ and ＂left＂, or between short duration and the left side of physical space）, we randomly changed the position of the verbal labels ＂Left＂ and ＂Right＂ to appear on the left or right physical response sides. We created verbal congruency, referring to the congruency between the magnitude of the presented duration and the verbal label of the participant＇s response. The physical congruency referred to the congruency between the magnitude of the presented duration and the physical side of the participant＇s response. Participants were instructed to respond to the verbal labels regardless of their physical side of appearance （e.g., click on the verbal labels ＂Left＂/＂Right＂ for small/large numbers, respectively） or respond on the left/right physical response side for short/long durations, respectively, regardless of the displayed verbal labels. The result revealed the predominance of verbal coding under verbal task instructions. However, this pattern changed under spatial instruction condition, in which visuospatial STEARC effect disappeared. In order to further explore the role of response mode, in Experiment 2, we changed the verbal response into arrow direction （named as visual coding condition）. The outcome demonstrates that spatial STEARC effect occurred in spatial instruction condition, whereas visual STEARC effect occurred in visual instruction condition. The result demonstrated that the spatial code associated with time was context- dependent. In col-clusion, the predominance of verbal coding occurs under verbal task instructions. However, in the spatial instruction condition, both verbal and spatial coding mechanisms could be activated to cause the spatial STEARC effect to disappear. In visual instruction condition, STEARC effect is activated the same as in spatial response mode. Hence, these findings clearly indicate that the cognitive origin of time-space associations is context- dependent. All in all, present data leads to the conclusion that verbal account has an advantage, supporting the polarity correspondence view. This study will contribute to explore the essential relationship between time and space, as well as their relationship with language development.