Research Symposium

BIO

My name is Audrey Lavender and I'm originally from Clermont, FL. I'm a senior at Florida State University pursuing a dual major in Psychology and Social Work with a minor in Criminology. I aspire to be a clinical psychologist and I am mainly interested in severe mental health disorders such as Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia. However, I also have interest in other areas of psychological science as I have assisted and conducted research in a developmental-cognitive psychology lab. After graduation, I plan to pursue a Master of Social Work while working full-time in a research lab and then complete a Clinical Psychology PhD program.

Factors in Letter Naming Speed

Abstract

It is known that letter naming speed in isolated naming tasks is a significant predictor of reading ability. However, not much is known about what specifically drives the relationship between the two. This study investigated if psycholinguistic factors such as voicing, Place of Articulation (POA), Manner of Articulation (MOA), vowel categorizations (tongue height, tongue advancement, and lip rounding), letter-sound correspondence, first sound in the letter name (consonant or vowel), and initials of participants first as well as, last names to see if they served as predictors in reaction time to letters on isolated naming tasks. Analysis revealed presence of target letters in initials of either first or last was statistically significant. Findings from this study contribute to the understanding of the relationship between isolated letter naming and reading performance while larger implications point to the consideration of these factors in research involving isolated letter naming speed.

Keywords: Isolated letter-naming, Psycholinguistic, Initial Phoneme, Rapid Automized Naming, RAN