Dittrich, K. , Rothe, A. & Klauer, C.
Department of Social Psychology and Methodology. University of Freiburg. Freiburg. Germany
In previous research, it has been demonstrated that spatial compatibility effects (SCE) are eliminated in Simon tasks when stimuli from only one response category are responded to in a single Go/NoGo condition, whereas SCE re-emerge when two participants work together in a joint Go/NoGo condition - the social Simon task. While most researchers explain the so-called social Simon effect with shared task representations, an alternative explanation is provided by the salience of the spatial dimension enhanced in the social Simon task. A first experiment intensified salience of the spatial dimension in single Go/NoGo conditions by using different response devices: Results showed larger SCE for participants responding with a joystick compared to a standard key-press condition indicating that even in single Go/NoGo conditions salience of the spatial dimension can induce SCE. The second experiment manipulated salience of spatial information by the compatibility of participants' seating alignment and spatial orientations of the stimuli in a social Simon task. Only the compatible condition but not the incompatible condition showed SCE. Overall, results suggest that the salience of spatial components can account for social Simon effects more parsimoniously.