Locus of rotation effects in recognition

Test-letter orientation has different effects on positive- and negative-recognition reaction time; furthermore, when two test letters are presented simultaneously, the effect of nontarget test orientation differs for positive and negative responses. Orientation is seen to affect the output but not the duration of the comparison stage; the continuously variable comparison output then influences the duration of the decision stage. These data show that the processing of rotated letters in recognition does not involve mental rotation.