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Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology
Published on: June 29, 2021
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Shape Representation of Word Was Automatically Activated in the Encoding Phase.
Tianyu Zeng1, Liling Zheng1, Lei Mo1
1Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.
Plos One
|October 28, 2016
Summary
Embodied language comprehension theories suggest sensorimotor activation. This study found shape information is activated during word encoding, supporting embodied theories of language processing.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Linguistics
Background:
- Embodied language comprehension theories propose that understanding language involves simulating perception and activating sensorimotor representations.
- Prior research using semantic size priming yielded negative results, suggesting sensorimotor representations were not activated during encoding.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the priming effect of semantic shape during word encoding.
- To provide further evidence for or against the embodied theory of language comprehension.
Main Methods:
- An eye-movement experiment measured encoding time for object names presented sequentially.
- An event-related potentials (ERP) experiment recorded brain activity (specifically N400 amplitude) during word processing.
- Participants judged the shape similarity between sequentially presented object referents.
Main Results:
- Eye-tracking data revealed a distance-priming effect: increased shape similarity between the first and second referents decreased encoding time.
- ERP data showed that a larger shape difference between referents led to a larger N400 amplitude.
- These findings indicate that shape information is activated during word encoding.
Conclusions:
- The activation of shape information during word encoding supports the embodied theory of language comprehension.
- Language processing appears to involve the activation of perceptual and sensorimotor representations.
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