Color and texture influences in primed object categorization

Facilitation provided by texture and color with regard to conceptual processing was investigated using a priming paradigm. Using standardized sets of stimuli, priming techniques were utilized to investigate how one would typically acquire information and subsequently respond in the real world. A masked prime was briefly presented (100ms), followed by a target stimulus which participants categorized as being either "natural" or "man-made." This differs from standard priming experiments in that there were no mass study and test phases. Instead a single study and test stimuli were presented within each trial. In addition, each study stimulus was presented in a manner that would result in perceptual processing whereas the test phase required conceptual processing. It is the intent of this study to determine whether initial perceptual processing of color and texture can facilitate priming on a conceptual task. It is noteworthy that color, and often texture, have been shown to be beneficial in simple naming tasks whereas simple categorization tasks and priming studies reveal a more diverse range of results. Given the hypothesis that color and texture aids in facilitation of processing for a conceptual task, this study's intent is to test whether the addition of texture and color to experimental stimuli facilitates object processing in a conceptual manner.