The negative compatibility effect: Unconscious inhibition influences reaction time and response selection.

In the negative compatibility effect (NCE) a masked prime arrow, pointing left or right, is followed by an unmasked (visible) target arrow. The task is to press the left or right switch corresponding to the visible arrow. Surprisingly, reaction time is longer (slowed) when the prime and target indicate the same, rather than different, responses. By contrast, the effect of an unmasked prime is positive-opposite to the NCE. This indicates that the...