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Abstract:
Abstract: Although shape has been considered the best cue for
visually recognizing objects, some studies have shown that surface
color can be beneficial. It is unclear, however, whether color
benefits recognition indirectly by aiding the extraction of shape
or directly by serving as another cue to access stored object
representations. We examined the integration of color and shape
cues in the recognition of novel objects. In a training phase, Ss
viewed novel 3-D objects. Each object was depicted in 1 of 4
colors. Subsequently, 'learned' objects were paired with 'foils'
and Ss made an 'old/new' shape discrimination. Half the objects
were in their training color, half in one of the other colors. For
'learned' objects, RTs were faster when objects were depicted in
the training color. Next we examined the extent to which color and
shape are integrated in memory. The top and bottom parts of objects
were depicted in different colors (e.g., red/green). Again color
was manipulated between training and test for half the objects. For
some Ss training colors were rearranged (e.g., green/red), for
others different colors were used. For 'learned' objects, RTs were
faster when object colors were depicted as in training than in a
different format, independent of how colors were manipulated. These
findings suggest that color is integrated with shape in stored
object representations, and that this information benefits
recognition.
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