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August 19, 2026Journal of Memory and LanguageOpen Access

Is case-invariant word recognition truly abstract? Insights from the diffusion model

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Authors

ZOZeynep Gunes OzkanPGPablo GómezMFMaría Fernández‐López

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Overview

Experimental study demonstrates rapid activation of abstract orthographic identities in skilled readers, indicating that early word recognition is largely case-invariant.

Key Points

  • To examine whether letter-case alternation disrupts abstract orthographic access or modulates early perceptual encoding during the initial moments of visual word recognition.
  • Conducted two masked priming lexical decision experiments comparing matched-case and alternating-case identity primes (e.g., TABLE–TABLE vs. tAbLe–TABLE) to unrelated baseline primes.
  • Manipulated prime–target visual overlap by presenting primes at equal or reduced font sizes relative to targets.
  • Applied diffusion-model analyses to estimate nondecision time (Ter) and isolate early perceptual encoding from decision processes.
  • Observed a robust masked identity priming effect across both experiments, with matched-case primes showing a slightly larger priming benefit than alternating-case primes.
  • Diffusion-model analyses revealed that identity priming effects were primarily driven by reductions in nondecision time (Ter), reflecting speeded early encoding.
  • Demonstrated that early orthographic processing rapidly activates abstract letter representations, with a minor residual facilitation for exact visual matches.

Cite This Study

Ozkan et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a8563d703308d306e2d7421https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jml.2026.104798
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Also Consider

Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context:

  1. 1Are letter identity and letter order encoding functionally separable? Evidence from masked priming with visual similarity and letter transpositions2026
  2. 2Opposite Priming Effects on Identity vs. Category Recognition Require Conscious Awareness2025
  3. 3Associative and categorical priming in a word-picture paradigm: a diffusion model analysis2026
  4. 4Revisiting Orthographic Effects in Spoken Word Recognition: Insights from Pretrained Language Models2025
  5. 5Orthographic codes in visual word recognition: Task-dependent effects with insertions and deletions of repeated and unique letters2026