Unconscious Pattern Learning Using Facial and Abstract Stimuli
| dc.contributor.advisor | Dudukovic, Nicole | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Tublitz, Nathan | |
| dc.contributor.author | Slaikjer, Delaney | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2023-08-18T16:00:24Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2023-08-18T16:00:24Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2023 | |
| dc.description | 37 pages | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | We are constantly processing information from our environment, although we are not conscious of most stimuli that reach our central nervous system. For this reason, some of our interactions with the world are based on unconscious processes. For the present experiment, unconscious, or implicit, learning was tested using abstract objects and faces. I compared the difference between unconsciously learning sequences with or without a social component, in this case, a face. Participants were given spot-the-difference trials consisting of sets of abstract objects or faces. A sequence of seven trials was repeatedly shown to participants with a distractor round of trials in the middle. The average mean reaction times for the seven spot-the-difference trials in each repetition of the sequence were used to assess participant improvement and learning over time. Analysis of the collected data was conducted in two parts. First, a paired samples t-test was used to compare average mean reaction times in the initial sequence and the final sequence to show whether learning occurred. Additionally, a repeated measures ANOVA was used to analyze the difference in average mean reaction times between the abstract objects and faces tasks to determine if the ability to unconsciously learn changed based on the presence of a facial social cue. The results showed implicit learning in both paradigms, as evidenced by faster reaction times and no reports of noticing the sequence in the post-task questionnaire. The faces task had a smaller change in reaction time between the initial and final pattern compared to the abstract objects, although this trend was not significant. An explanation of the potential difference and data trend could be due to the way information is processed. There is evidence faces are holistically processed in the brain, so it takes time to break down a face into its component parts, while abstract objects use part-by-part processing (Wang, 2019). These results add to the increasing body of knowledge regarding how our unconscious influences our interactions with the people around us and our daily decisions. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.orcid | 0009-0000-1585-2298 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/1794/28722 | |
| dc.language.iso | en_US | |
| dc.publisher | University of Oregon | |
| dc.rights | CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 | |
| dc.subject | unconscious learning | en_US |
| dc.subject | implicit | en_US |
| dc.subject | holistic processing | en_US |
| dc.subject | sequence learning | en_US |
| dc.subject | faces | en_US |
| dc.title | Unconscious Pattern Learning Using Facial and Abstract Stimuli | |
| dc.type | Thesis/Dissertation |