*Result*: The effect of inter-letter spacing on the N170 during visual word recognition: An event-related potentials experiment.
Title:
The effect of inter-letter spacing on the N170 during visual word recognition: An event-related potentials experiment.
Authors:
Civera T; ERI-Lectura, Universitat de València, Av. Blasco Ibáñez, 21, 46010, Valencia, Spain. Teresa.Civera@uv.es., Perea M; ERI-Lectura, Universitat de València, Av. Blasco Ibáñez, 21, 46010, Valencia, Spain., Leone-Fernandez B; ERI-Lectura, Universitat de València, Av. Blasco Ibáñez, 21, 46010, Valencia, Spain., Vergara-Martínez M; ERI-Lectura, Universitat de València, Av. Blasco Ibáñez, 21, 46010, Valencia, Spain.
Source:
Cognitive, affective & behavioral neuroscience [Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci] 2024 Dec; Vol. 24 (6), pp. 1096-1108. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Sep 23.
Publication Type:
Journal Article
Language:
English
Journal Info:
Publisher: Springer Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101083946 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1531-135X (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 15307026 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci Subsets: MEDLINE
Imprint Name(s):
Publication: 2011- : New York : Springer
Original Publication: Austin, TX : Psychonomic Society, c2001-
Original Publication: Austin, TX : Psychonomic Society, c2001-
MeSH Terms:
Comments:
Erratum in: Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci. 2024 Dec;24(6):1202. doi: 10.3758/s13415-024-01233-5.. (PMID: 39354290)
References:
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Grant Information:
CIAICO/2021/172 Valencian Government; MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities; PID2020-116740GB-I00 Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities
Contributed Indexing:
Keywords: Crowding; Event-related potentials; Inter-letter spacing; Visual word recognition
Entry Date(s):
Date Created: 20240923 Date Completed: 20241031 Latest Revision: 20241125
Update Code:
20260130
PubMed Central ID:
PMC11525266
DOI:
10.3758/s13415-024-01221-9
PMID:
39313747
Database:
MEDLINE
*Further Information*
*Previous behavioral studies have shown that inter-letter spacing affects visual word recognition and reading. While condensed spacing may hinder the early stages of letter encoding because of increased crowding effects, the impact of expanded inter-letter spacing is still unclear. To examine the electrophysiological signature of inter-letter spacing on visual word recognition, we presented words in three different inter-letter spacing conditions (default, condensed [-1.5 points] or expanded [+1.5 points]) in an event-related potentials go/no-go semantic categorization task. Our focus was on the N170, an event-related potentials component associated with the early encoding of orthographic information, which also is sensitive to crowding effects. Results revealed that the N170 amplitude reached the largest values for the condensed condition than for the default and expanded spacing conditions, which did not differ. While increased crowding impacted the early encoding of orthographic information, extra letter spacing (compared with default spacing) did not. This outcome is consistent with the Modified Receptive Field hypothesis, in which letter receptors adapt their size to cope with letter crowding. These findings reveal that reducing the space between letters more than the default spacing impairs the ability to process written words, whereas slightly expanding the space between letters does not provide any additional benefit.
(© 2024. The Author(s).)*