Influence of Semantic Distance and Psycholinguistic Characteristics on Remote Associates Test Performance Under Time Constraints

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Abstract

This study examined how semantic distance and psycholinguistic characteristics influence performance on the Remote Associates Test (RAT). Using 144 English RAT items (Bowden & Jung-Beeman, 2003), we analyzed cue–cue and cue–answer semantic distance and psycholinguistic variables (word frequency, length, semantic diversity, age of acquisition, bigram frequency, lexical decision latency). Mixed-effects models assessed effects on solution time and accuracy across four time conditions (2, 7, 15, 30 seconds). Smaller semantic distances predicted higher accuracy and faster solutions, with time moderating these effects. Psycholinguistic variables were less consistent but interacted with time limits; for instance, low-frequency and later-acquired words were more difficult under shorter times. Findings emphasize the need to consider both semantic and psycholinguistic factors in RAT design and interpretation.

Authors

• Vicky Weiqing Ji, University of North Texas

• Selcuk Acar, University of North Texas

• Peyton Perduyn, University of North Texas