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Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation tDCS of Wernicke's and Broca's Areas in Studies of Language Learning and Word Acquisition
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Word selection, concreteness and brain lateralization.

Jiayi Zhao1, Yuting Zhao2, Xuanci Zheng3

  • 1School of Psychology, Research Center for Exercise and Brain Science, Shanghai University of Sport, 650 Qingyuan Ring Road, Yangpu District, Shanghai, China.

Brain and Language
|November 6, 2025
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

This study reveals distinct brain networks for semantic selection and competition in Chinese readers. Concrete words activate memory systems, while abstract words engage language processing areas.

Keywords:
ConcretenessSemantic controlWord competitionWord selection

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Linguistics

Background:

  • Semantic control is crucial for context-dependent meaning retrieval.
  • Previous research suggests left frontal and temporal involvement.
  • Dissociation of semantic selection and competition, especially in Chinese and across word types, is unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To dissociate neural correlates of semantic selection and competition.
  • To investigate the influence of word concreteness on these processes.
  • To examine brain activation and connectivity in Mandarin Chinese speakers.

Main Methods:

  • Parametric modulation fMRI design.
  • Semantic triad task using Mandarin Chinese.
  • Manipulation of cue-target and cue-distractor semantic similarity.
  • Examination of activation patterns and functional connectivity.

Main Results:

  • Semantic selection engaged left-lateralized control networks.
  • Semantic competition activated bilateral superior frontal and insular cortices.
  • Concrete words involved perceptual/episodic systems; abstract words engaged left IFG/temporal systems.
  • Connectivity analyses showed task- and stimulus-specific modulations.

Conclusions:

  • Semantic selection and competition are functionally dissociable.
  • These processes are modulated by lexical-semantic features like concreteness.
  • Findings refine understanding of the neurocognitive architecture of semantic control.