Thanks for the clarification! This reminds me of Galton's research on mental imagery, and I can see how people who do or don't subvocalize could potentially have different intuitions about various aspects of consciousness. However, I think I'm still not understanding your suggestion.
For context, here are the major responses to the Chinese Room thought experiment that I'm aware of (do you know of others?):
such a system is not possible (i.e. it wouldn't work -- you couldn't get correct answers to questions this way)
such a system is possible, and it would be sentient
such a system is possible, and it wouldn't be sentient, nor would any other artificial thinking process
such a system is possible, and it wouldn't be sentient, but other artificial thinking processes could be, depending on how they work
My own first guess is that if there is a connection between subvocalization and intuitions about the CR, it would be that subvocalizers are more likely to think explicit internal monologue is necessary for consciousness, and so would be more likely to choose #4 over #2, if they are already reductionists.
Was your suggestion that those who don't subvocalize would be more inclined to choose 1, 3, or 4 above, or something else? And likewise for those who do subvocalize.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subvocalization
I'm curious about how often or to what degree visitors to this site subvocalize as they read. I was originally interested in reducing subvocalizations as a way to increase reading speed, as the idea is mentioned in multiple pieces I've read about speed reading.
The Wikipedia entry seems to focus on subtle throat and muscle movements, but I'm more interested to know if you "say" or "hear" the words in your head as you read.
Since reading about subvocalization recently, I seem to notice that I "say/hear" what I'm reading quite frequently. I'm not sure if this is causal (in the way that the command "don't think of pink elephants" obliges you to do so), or if I just notice it more now, or both.
When I'm very engrossed in a book either I don't notice the subvocalizations or they stop happening, so seems that it could either be a cause or a symptom of distractedness.
In the comments, please describe your mental subvocalizations (or lack of them) and if they are related to how engrossed you are in the book. Any other comments relevant comments about speed reading or subvocalizations are welcome.