Ad-hoc thematic relations form through communication: effects on lexical-semantic processing during language production. Issue 9 (1st November 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lin, Hsin-Pei; Kuhlen, Anna K.; Abdel Rahman, Rasha
• Is Part Of: Language, cognition and neuroscience. Volume 36:Issue 9(2021)
• Page Start: 1057
• Page End: 1075
• Publication Date: 2021-11-01
• Subjects: Alignment -- ad-hoc thematic relations -- lexical selection -- semantic facilitation/interference -- blocked-cyclic picture naming; Psycholinguistics -- Periodicals; Linguistics -- Periodicals; Neurosciences -- Periodicals; Psycholinguïstiek; Cognitieve processen; Linguistics; Neurosciences; Psycholinguistics; Periodicals; 401.9
• DOI: 10.1080/23273798.2021.1900580
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2327-3798

Abstract

ABSTRACT: In this preregistered study, we investigate whether themes conveyed by task partners' narratives reveal semantic relationships between objects that would otherwise be perceived as unrelated. Such ad-hoc formation of thematic relations should result in semantic interference when naming objects related to the theme in a blocked-cyclic naming paradigm. Participants watch pre-recorded videos of presumed partners narrating real-life events, and then name pictures either thematically related or unrelated to the narrative. Experiments 1 and 2 ( N = 32 each) demonstrate semantic interference between objects related to the partner's narrative. Interestingly, this effect emerges only when unrelated pictures are named first. Interference is greatly attenuated, or even turns into facilitation when related pictures are named directly after the partner's narrative. Experiment 3 ( N = 32) confirms that semantic context effects disappear when the objects cannot be related to the narrative. Our results demonstrate how flexible semantic processing adapts to context communicated by a task partner.