psy 369: psycholinguistics language comprehension
TRANSCRIPT
Some of the big questions
“the horse raced past the barn”
Production
How do we turn our thoughts into a spoken or written output?
Some of the big questions
Comprehension
“the horse raced past the barn”
How do we understand language that we hear/see?
How do we turn our thoughts into a spoken or written output?
Production
Some of the big questions Comprehension Production Representation
How do we store linguistic information? How do we retrieve that information?
Lexicon
SemanticAnalysis
SyntacticAnalysis
WordRecognition
Letter/phonemeRecognition
FormulatorGrammatical EncodingPhonological Encoding
Articulator
Conceptualizer
Thought
Lexicon
SemanticAnalysis
SyntacticAnalysis
WordRecognition
Letter/phonemeRecognition
FormulatorGrammatical Encoding
Phonological Encoding
Articulator
Conceptualizer
Thought
Overview of comprehension
The cat chasedthe rat.
Input
cat
dogcapwolftreeyarncat
clawfurhat
Wordrecognition
Language perception
ca
t
/k//ae/
/t/
Syntacticanalysis
cat
S
VP
ratthe
NP
chased
Vthe
NP
Semantic &pragmaticanalysis
The Comprehender’s Problem
Ambiguity Must take a potentially ambiguous serial acoustic
(or visual) input, and recover the intended meaning
The Comprehender’s Problem
If reading were like listening
whereareyougoing
Different signals Reading and listening are very different
Where are you going?
Different speakers speak differentlyLots of differences in written/printed language
The Comprehender’s Problem
Ambiguity Must take a potentially ambiguous serial acoustic
(or visual) input, and recover the intended meaning
The cat chased the rat.
The cat chased the rat.
The cat chased the rat.
The cat chased the rat.
The Comprehender’s Problem
I scream for ice scream
The stuffy nose can lead to problems.The stuff he knows can lead to problems.
Oronyms
Why don’t you take a nice cold shower?Why don’t you take an ice cold shower?
See here for more oronyms
Ambiguity Must take a potentially ambiguous serial acoustic
(or visual) input, and recover the intended meaning
The Comprehender’s Problem
Good shot How he got into my pajamas I’ll never know
Groucho Marx shot an elephant in his pajamas
Ambiguity Must take a potentially ambiguous serial acoustic
(or visual) input, and recover the intended meaning
The Comprehender’s Problem
Money “bank” River “bank”
“Oh no, Lois has been hypnotized and is jumping
off the bank!”
Ambiguity Must take a potentially ambiguous serial acoustic
(or visual) input, and recover the intended meaning
The Comprehender’s Problem
“Uncle Bobkicked the bucket
last night”
“Sure as soon as I’m done using it.”
“Nope, somebody glued it to the table.”
Ambiguity Must take a potentially ambiguous serial acoustic
(or visual) input, and recover the intended meaning
“Can you pass the salt”
Overview of comprehension
The cat chasedthe rat.
Input
catdogcapwolftreeyarncat
clawfurhat
Wordrecognition
Language perception
ca
t
/k//ae/
/t/
Syntacticanalysis
cat
S
VP
ratthe
NP
chased
Vthe
NP
Semantic &pragmaticanalysis
Lexical Access
Lexical access How do we retrieve the linguistic
information from Long-term memory? How is the information organized/stored? What factors are involved in retrieving
information from the lexicon? Models of lexical access
Lexical access How do we retrieve the linguistic
information from Long-term memory? How is the information organized/stored? What factors are involved in retrieving
information from the lexicon? Models of lexical access
Storing linguistic information Tale of the tape:
High capacity: 40,000 – 60,000 words Fast: Recognition in as little as 200ms (often before word
ends) How do we search that many, that fast!? – suggests that there is a high
amount of organization
Excellent reading: Words in the Mind, Aitchison (1987, 2003)
Or something much more complex
“The world’s largest data bank of examples in context is dwarfed by the collection we all carry around subconsciously in our heads.”
E. Lenneberg (1967)
Storing linguistic information Interesting questions:
How are words stored? What are they made up of? How are words related to each other? How do we use them?
Some vocabulary Mental lexicon The representation of words in long term memory Lexical Access: How do we access words and their the meanings
(and other properties)?
Theoretical Metaphors: Access vs. Recognition
Recognition - finding the representation
Often used interchangeably, but sometimes a distinction is made
Here it is
dogcapwolftreeyarncat
clawfurhat
Search for a match
cat
Select word
cat
cat
catThe magic moment
Balota (1990)
Theoretical Metaphors: Access vs. Recognition
Access - getting information from the representation
Recognition - finding the representation
Often used interchangeably, but sometimes a distinction is made
Open it up and see what’s inside
dogcapwolftreeyarncat
clawfurhat
Search for a match
cat
Select wordAccess lexical
information
CatnounAnimal, pet,Meows, furry,Purrs, etc.
cat
Lexical access How do we retrieve the linguistic
information from Long-term memory? How is the information organized/stored? What factors are involved in retrieving
information from the lexicon? Models of lexical access
Studying Lexical Access Generally people ask: what makes word
identification easy or difficult? The assumption:
Measures of identification time are usually indirect Time spent identifying a word can be a measure of
difficulty
Common methodologies Measure how long people take to say a string of
letters is (or is not) a word (lexical decision) Measure how long people take to categorize a word
(“apple” is a fruit) Measure how long people take to start saying a word
(naming or pronunciation time) Measure how long people actually spend looking at a
word when reading Word by word reading Line by line reading Using eye movement monitoring techniques
Lexical accessFactors affecting lexical access
Some of these may reflex the structure of the lexicon
Some may reflect the processes of access from the lexicon
Words or morphemes? Word primitives
Morpheme primitives Economical - fewer representations Slow retrieval - some assembly required
Decomposition during comprehension Composition during production
Need a lot of representations Fast retrieval
horse horses barn barns
horse -s barn
Words or morphemes? Lexical Decision task (e.g., Taft, 1981)
See a string of letters As fast as you can determine if it is a real
English word or not “yes” if it is “no” if it isn’t
Typically speed and accuracy are the dependent measures
Words or morphemes? Lexical Decision task
daughter
hunter
Pseudo-suffixed
Multimorphemic
daught
hunt -er
-er
Takes longer
This evidence supports the morphemes as primitives view
Words or morphemes? May depend on other factors
What kind of morpheme Inflectional (e.g., singular/plural, past/present tense) Derivational (e.g., drink --> drinkable, infect --> disinfect)
Frequency of usage High frequency multimorphemic (in particular if derivational
morphology) may get represented as a single unit e.g., impossible vs. imperceptible
Compound words Semantically transparent
Buttonhole Semantically opaque
butterfly
Phonology
Words that sound alike may be stored “close together”
What word means to formally renounce the throne?
abdicate
Brown and McNeill (1966) Tip of the tongue phenomenon (TOT)
Look at what words they think of but aren’t right
e.g, “abstract,” “abide,” “truncate”
Phonology
Letters at Word beginning
Word end
10
2 3 3 2 1
20
30
40
50
1
% o
f m
atch
es
Similar-meaning words
Similar-sounding words
More likely to approximate target words with similar sounding words than similar meanings
The “Bathtub Effect” - Sounds at the beginnings and ends of words are remembered best (Aitchison, 2003)
Words that sound alike may be stored “close together” Brown and McNeill (1966) Tip of the tongue phenomenon (TOT)
Imageability Imageability, concreteness, abstractness
Umbrella
Lantern
Freedom
Apple
Knowledge
Evil
Try to imagine each word
Imageability Imageability, concreteness, abstractness
Umbrella
Lantern
Freedom
Apple
Knowledge
Evil
Try to imagine each word
How do you imagine these?
Imageability Imageability, concreteness, abstractness
Umbrella
Lantern
Freedom
Apple
Knowledge
Evil
More easily remembered
More easily accessed
Frequency
GambastyaReveryVoitleChardWefeCratilyDecoyPuldowRaflot
MulvowGovernorBlessTugletyGareReliefRuftilyHistoryPindle
Lexical Decision Task:
OrioleVulubleChaltAwrySignetTraveCrockCrypticEwe
DevelopGardotBusyEffortGarvolaMatchSardPleasantCoin
Frequency
GambastyaReveryVoitleChardWefeCratilyDecoyPuldowRaflot
MulvowGovernorBlessTugletyGareReliefRuftilyHistoryPindle
Lexical Decision Task:
OrioleVulubleChaltAwrySignetTraveCrockCrypticEwe
DevelopGardotBusyEffortGarvolaMatchSardPleasantCoin
Low frequency High(er) frequency
Typically the more common a word, the faster (and more accurately) it is named and recognized
Typical interpretation: easier to access (or recognize)
Frequency
However, Balota and Chumbley (1984) Frequency effects depend on task
Lexical decision - big effect Naming - small effect Category verification - no effect
A canary is a bird. T/F
Typically the more common a word, the faster (and more accurately) it is named and recognized
Typical interpretation: easier to access (or recognize)
Semantics Free associations
Most associates are semantically related (rather than phonologically for example)
Semantic Priming task Meyer & Schvaneveldt (1971)
For the following letter strings, decide whether it is or is not an English word
TaspNurseDoctorFractSlithestShoesDoctor
noyesyesnonoyesyes
nurse
shoes
Responded to fasterRelated
Unrelated
“Priming effect” Evidence that associative relations influence lexical access
doctor
doctor 940 msecs
855 msecs
Role of prior context
Cross Modal Priming Task:
Listen to short paragraph. At some point during theparagraph a string of letters will appear on the screen. Decide if it is an English word or not. Say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ as quickly as you can.
Role of prior context
ant
“Rumor had it that, for years, the government building has been plagued with problems. The man was not surprised when he found several spiders, roaches and other
bugs in the corner of his room.”
Role of prior context Swinney (1979)
Lexical Decision taskContext related: antContext inappropriate: spyContext unrelated: sew
Results and conclusions Within 400 msecs of hearing "bugs", both ant and spy are
primed After 700 msecs, only ant is primed
“Rumor had it that, for years, the government building has been plagued with problems. The man was not surprised when he found several spiders, roaches and other
bugs in the corner of his room.”
Lexical ambiguity Hogaboam and Pefetti (1975)
Words can have multiple interpretations The role of frequency of meaning
Task, is the last word ambiguous? The jealous husband read the letter (dominant meaning) The antique typewriter was missing a letter (subordinate meaning)
Results: Participants are faster on the second sentence.
The results may seem counterintuitive The task is the key, “is the final word ambiguous” In the first sentence, the meaning is dominant and the context strongly
biases that meaning. So the second meaning may not be around, which in turn makes the it harder to make the ambiguity judgment in the first sentence
Lexical access How do we retrieve the linguistic
information from Long-term memory? How is the information organized/stored? What factors are involved in retrieving
information from the lexicon? Models of lexical access
Models of lexical access Serial comparison models
Search model (Forster, 1976, 1979, 1987, 1989) Parallel comparison models
Logogen model (Morton, 1969) Cohort model (Marslen-Wilson, 1987, 1990)
Connectionist models Interactive Activation Model (McClelland and Rumelhart,
1981)
Logogen model (Morton 1969)Auditory stimuli
Visual stimuli
Auditory analysis
Visual analysis
Logogen system
Outputbuffer
Context system
Responses
Available Responses
Semantic Attributes
Logogen model
The lexical entry for each word comes with a logogen
The lexical entry only becomes available once the logogen ‘fires’
When does a logogen fire? When you read/hear the word
Think of a logogen as being like a ‘strength-o-meter’ at a fairground
When the bell rings, the logogen has ‘fired’
‘cat’[kæt]
• What makes the logogen fire?
– seeing/hearing the word
• What happens once the logogen has fired?
– access to lexical entry!
– High frequency words have a lower threshold for firing
–e.g., cat vs. cot
‘cat’[kæt]
• So how does this help us to explain the frequency effect?
‘cot’[kot]
Low freq takes longer
• Spreading activation from doctor lowers the threshold for nurse to fire
– So nurse take less time to fire
‘nurse’[nə:s]
‘doctor’[doktə]
nurse
doctor
Spreading activation network
doctor nurse
Search modelE
ntri
es in
ord
er o
f
Dec
reas
ing
freq
uenc
yVisual input
cat
Auditory input
/kat/
Access codes
Pointers
mat cat mouseMental lexicon
Cohort model Specifically for auditory word recognition
(covered in chapter 9 of textbook) Speakers can recognize a word very rapidly
Usually within 200-250 msec Recognition point (uniqueness point) - point at
which a word is unambiguously different from other words and can be recognized
Three stages of word recognition1) activate a set of possible candidates2) narrow the search to one candidate3) integrate single candidate into semantic and
syntactic context
Cohort model Prior context: “I took the car for a …”
/s/ /sp/ /spi/ /spin/
…soapspinachpsychologistspinspitsunspank…
spinachspinspitspank…
spinachspinspit…
spin
time
Interactive Activation Model (IAM)
McClelland and Rumelhart, (1981)
Nodes: • (visual) feature• (positional) letter• word detectors
• Inhibitory and excitatory connections between them.
Previous models posed a bottom-up flow of information (from features to letters to words).
IAM also poses a top-down flows of information
Inhibitory connections within levels If the first letter of a word is “a”, it isn’t “b” or “c” or …
Inhibitory and excitatory connections between levels (bottom-up and top-down)
If the first letter is “a” the word could be “apple” or “ant” or …., but not “book” or “church” or……
If there is growing evidence that the word is “apple” that evidence confirms that the first letter is “a”, and not “b”…..
Interactive Activation Model (IAM)
U &&&&&
A
Mask presented with alternatives above and belowthe target letter … participants must pick one as theletter they believe was presented in that position.
The Word-Superiority Effect (Reicher, 1969)
The Word-Superiority Effect (Reicher, 1969)
+
E E
& T
+
PLANE E
&&&&& T
+
KLANE E
&&&&& T
Letter only Say 60%
Letter in Nonword Say 65%
Letter in Word Say 80%
Why is identification better when a letter is presented in a word?
IAM & the word superiority effect
We are processing at the word and letter levels simultaneously Letters in words benefit from bottom-up and top-
down activation But letters alone receive only bottom-up activation.
Comparing the models Each model can account for major findings (e.g.,
frequency, semantic priming, context), but they do so in different ways. Search model is serial and bottom-up Logogen is parallel and interactive (information
flows up and down) Cohort is bottom-up but parallel initially, but then
interactive at a later stage AIM is both bottom-up and top-down, uses
facilitation and inhibition