Effect of Backward Priming on Word Recognition in Single-Word and Sentence Contexts

Backward priming was investigated under conditions similar to those used in lexical ambiguity research. Subjects received prime-target word pairs that were associated either unidirectionally ( BABY - STORK ) or bidirectionally ( BABY - CRY ). In the first experiment, targets were presented 500 ms following the onset of visual primes, and subjects made naming or lexical decision responses to the targets. Forward priming was obtained in all conditions, while backward priming (i.e., priming for pairs in which there was a unidirectional target-to-prime association, as in BABY - STORK ) occurred only with lexical decision. In the second experiment, primes were presented auditorily, either in isolation or in a sentence. Targets followed the offset of the primes either immediately or after 200 ms. Backward priming occurred with both response tasks, but only when the prime was an isolated word. In addition, backward priming decreased over time with the naming task, but not with lexical decision. These results suggest that the locus of the backward priming effect is different for the two response tasks. Further, the lack of a backward priming effect with sentence contexts ggests that backward priming cannot account for the demonstrations of multiple access in the lexical ambiguity literature. These results, therefore, support a context-independent view of lexical access.