Date of Award

4-1989

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Dr. Frederick Gault

Second Advisor

Dr. Dale M. Brethower

Third Advisor

Dr. John Nangle

Abstract

This study examines the issue of cerebral hemispheric dominance for language processing of emotional quality words and tests for sex differences in cerebral hemispheric processing of emotional words.

Emotional words, nonemotional words, and nonwords constructed from emotional and nonemotional words were tachistoscopically presented in a pseudo-random order to both visual fields (and hence processed by the contralateral cerebral hemisphere) of all 24 subjects using a split visual field technique. There were 12 female and 12 male subjects.

Results of a three-factor ANOVA test on word recognition, using BMDP2V, showed some significant effects, with one interaction effect. The hemisphere by word interaction was significant at the .05 level. Subjects consistently recognized tachistoscopically presented emotional quality English words more frequently in both hemispheres than nonemotional quality words. This was significant at the .01 level. No significant differences between sexes on word recognition were found.

Access Setting

Dissertation-Campus Only

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