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TABLE 1
UCS WORDS AND THEIR EVALUATIVE SEMANTIC DIFFERENTIAL RATINGS
After 1 sec., E read one of the UCS words permutations being randomized across 5s and
aloud, and all 5s pronounced the word after groups. Association was paced, so that 5s
him. This procedure was followed until each were given approximately 20 sec. in which to
of the three CS syllables had been paired with respond to any set of three syllables. Only
nine appropriate UCS syllables. This made those words given in the first 20 sec. associa-
a total of 27 pairings in all. The order of tion are considered in subsequent analyses.
presentation of the UCS-nonsense-syllable These words are most appropriate for demon-
pairings was random for both groups. During strating the effects of conditioned meaning on
this conditioning period 5s were told not "to word association uncontaminated by the
make any special attempt to memorize either nature of the specific word associates already
the words or the syllables." produced. Choosing the associates produced
Word association.At the conclusion of in any other association period, or the mean
the training sessions, 5s in both groups were value for all six periods, adds in the con-
asked "to write down, in the booklets given founding effect of these preceding associates.
to you as you entered, the first word that Since the purpose of this experiment is to
comes into your mind when you see the examine the effects of conditioned meaning
nonsense syllable." These booklets contained and not of prior associative responses, on
6 pages. On each of these pages the three overt word association only those associates
CS syllables appeared in one of the six produced in the first 20 sec. association period
permutations possible for three elements. provide appropriate data for this analysis.
For every S, each of the six possible orders Independent rating of associates.All of
was presented; the specific order of the the word associations given by the 77 5s of
TABLE 2
MEANS AND 5Ds OF THE SD RATINGS OF THE ASSOCIATIONS GIVEN IN RESPONSE
TO CS SYLLABLES AS A FUNCTION OF CONDITIONED MEANING PAIRING
M SD M SD M SD
TABLE 4
NUMBER AND NATURE OF CUED ASSOCIATES AND MEANS AND 5Ds OF THE SD RATINGS
OF THESE CUED ASSOCIATES AS A FUNCTION OF PAIRED UCS WORDS
M SD N M SD N M SD 2V
TABLE 6
NUMBER AND NATURE OF THE SPECIFIC UCS WORDS PRODUCED AS ASSOCIATES AS A FUNCTION
OF THE CONDITIONED MEANING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CS SYLLABLE
Conditioned
Experimental Meaning Charac- Number and Nature of Specific UCS Words Total
Group teristics of CS Produced as Associates to CS Syllables
Syllables
i Positive 17 0 1 18
Neutral 13 6 1 20
Negative 1 5 12 18
ii Positive" 18 2 1 21
Neutral" 5 6 5 16
Negative" 2 2 14 18
* A different S in each of these conditions failed to produce an associate in the 20-sec, association period,
WORD ASSOCIATION AND CONDITIONED MEANING 459
associates, however, clearly demonstrate mediate recall. /. exp. Psychol., 1959, 58,
the effect of conditioned meaning re- 17-22.
sponses on word association. Here, HOWES, D. On the relationship between the
associative responses were not contained probability of a word as an association and
in any of the original UCS word lists, its general linguistic usage. /. abnorm. soc.
although they were similar in evaluative Psychol., 1957, 54, 75-85.
connotation to these words. It seems JENKINS, J. J., RUSSELL, W. A., & Suci, G.
An atlas of semantic profiles for 360 words.
that when 5s are unable to utilize specific Amer. J. Psychol., 1958, 71, 688-699.
word-word connections (as occurs in JOHNSON, D. Word association and word
in paired-associate recall) they pro- frequency. Amer. J. Psychol., 1956, 69,
duce word associations largely on the 125-126.
basis of conditioned meaning. Perhaps MOWRER, O. H. The psychologist looks at
the absence of direct word-word con- language. Amer. Psychologist, 1954, 9,
nections is a necessary condition for 660-692.
the utilization of conditioned meaning OSGOOD, C. E. Method and theory in experi-
as the primary determiner of overt mental psychology. New York: Oxford
word association. Univer. Press, 1953.
These analyses suggest that both OSGOOD, C. E., & ANDERSON, L. Certain
recall and association are affected by the relations among experienced contingencies,
meaning response common to a group associative structure, and contingencies in
encoded messages. Amer. J. Psychol., 1957,
of words paired with an originally neutral 70, 411-420.
stimulus. In terms of recall, the present OSGOOD, C. E., Suci, G. J., & TANNENBAUM,
results indicate that intrusion errors P. H. The measurement of meaning.
occur only infrequently if the to-be- Urbana: Univer. Illinois Press, 1957.
recalled material is homogeneous with POLLIO, H. R. Word association as a function
respect to a shared connotative dimen- of semantic structure. Unpublished doc-
sion. In terms of word association, the toral dissertation, University of Michigan,
present results indicate that in the 1962.
absence of strong word-word connections ROTHKOPF, E., & COKE, E. The prediction
among words, stimulus-aroused meaning of free recall from word association meas-
responses precede and determine sub- ures. /. exp.Psychol,, 1961, 62, 433-438.
sequent associated responses. Under this STAATS, A. W. Verbal habit families, con-
condition associative responses are largely cepts, and the operant conditioning of word
classes. Psychol. Rev., 1961, 68, 190-204.
the result of similarity in meaning be-
tween the stimulus and response words. STAATS, A. W., & STAATS, C. K. Meaning
and m\ Correlated but separate. Psychol.
Rev., 1959, 66, 136-144.
REFERENCES UNDERWOOD, B. J., & SCHULZ, R. W. Mean-
ARCHER, J. A re-evaluation of the meaning- ingfulness and verbal learning. New York:
fulness of all possible CVC trigrams. Lippincott, 1960.
Psychol. Monogr., 1960, 74(10, Whole No. WOODWORTH, R. S. Experimental psychology.
497). New York: Holt, 1938.
DEESE, J. On the prediction of occurrence
of particular verbal intrusions in im- (Received November 23, 1962)