Rediscovering Symbols: The Role of Category Labels in Similarity Judgment

Abstract

Traditionally, category labels were treated as indices pointing to the content of categories, and the role of category labels in similarity judgment has been deemed secondary. This study focused on the symbolic property associated with category labels and investigated why category labels influence similarity judgment. In two experiments, the authors employed morphed pictures of animal tissues and contrasted the effect of indexical labels and symbolic labels on similarity judgments. The results from the experiments suggest that the influence of category labels on similarity judgment partly comes from their symbolic properties. Category labels evoke background knowledge and highlight interconnections with other labels. This symbolic property plays a critical role in the influence of category labels on similarity judgment.