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Related Experiment Videos

Gradiency and Visual Context in Syntactic Garden-Paths.

Thomas A Farmer1, Sarah A Cargill, Michael J Spivey

  • 1Cornell University.

Journal of Memory and Language
|November 27, 2007
PubMed
Summary
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Visual context immediately constrains syntactic ambiguity during sentence processing. Mouse-tracking data supports a constraint-based model where syntactic alternatives remain partially active in parallel.

Area of Science:

  • Psycholinguistics
  • Cognitive Science
  • Computational Linguistics

Background:

  • Syntactic ambiguity resolution is a key aspect of sentence processing.
  • Previous research, including eye-tracking in the visual-world paradigm, suggests context influences syntactic choices.
  • Debate exists between constraint-based and unrestricted-race models of sentence processing.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of visual context in resolving syntactic ambiguity.
  • To differentiate between constraint-based and unrestricted-race models of sentence processing using mouse-tracking.
  • To provide evidence for or against the parallel, partially active nature of syntactic alternatives.

Main Methods:

  • Recording streaming x, y coordinates of computer-mouse movements during sentence processing.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Analyzing the distribution of computer-mouse trajectory curvatures for bimodality.
  • Comparing human mouse-tracking data with simulations from a constraint-based model.
  • Conducting a nonlinguistic control study to validate the mouse-tracking paradigm.

    • Main Results:

    • Mouse-tracking data showed no bimodality in trajectory curvatures, challenging the unrestricted-race model.
    • Simulations using a constraint-based model successfully replicated human mouse-tracking trajectories.
    • Visual context was found to provide an immediate constraint on resolving syntactic ambiguity.
    • The study identified challenges for syntax-first models and provided evidence against unrestricted-race models.

    Conclusions:

    • Converging evidence from mouse-tracking and previous eye-tracking supports a constraint-based account of sentence processing.
    • Syntactic alternatives are continually partially active in parallel, influenced by various factors including visual context.
    • This parallel activation allows contextual factors to bias parsing decisions at points of ambiguity.