On the Value of Pictures in Verbal Cognition

Abstract: The aim of this thesis was to analyze the value of pictures in a number of cognitive tasks that are predominantly verbal in nature. Three studies, with three experiments each, are included in the thesis. The first study found automatic interference effects from pictures (facial expressions) on the affective evaluation of words. In the Stroop-like presentation of integrated picture-and-word stimuli, faces with incongruent valence slowed responding to the affective words. The results are consistent with models where pictures have privileged access to their meaning, and where affective information is available in this conceptual representation. The second study showed the effects of pictures (objects) on the later recognition of text-presented object names. The pictures were found to improve recognition, but to the same extent as words enlarged in the margins. Concrete and abstract target words both benefited to the same extent from the enlarged word enhancement. Since concrete words are more likely to evoke imagery, it was concluded that pictures functioned in a way similar to verbal repetition. The third study examined the usefulness of pictures (illustrations) in the comprehension of scientific materials. Two lengths of study-time were compared, and in the longer study-time illustrations appeared to give an illusion of full understanding. This illusion may have resulted in less improvement in comprehension with added study time for readers of text with pictures than for readers of text alone. Over a total of 280 participants in the third study, none of the experiments revealed any beneficial effects from illustrations on the comprehension of instructional materials. The results were discussed in terms of encoding activities and tasks.