Electrophysiological Evidence for Two Steps in Syntactic Analysis: Early Automatic and Late Controlled Processes

1999 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anja Hahne ◽  
Angela D. Friederici
Keyword(s):  
Structural Analysis ◽  
Phrase Structure ◽  
Syntactic Analysis ◽  
Strategic Control ◽  
Brain Potential ◽  
Controlled Processes ◽  
Late Positivity ◽  
Electrophysiological Evidence ◽  
First Pass ◽  
Anterior Negativity

In this study we examined the properties of the processes involved in the structural analysis of sentences using event-related brain potential measures (ERP). Previous research had shown two ERP components to correlate with phrase structure violations: an early left anterior negativity (ELAN), which is assumed to reflect first-pass parsing processes, and a late parietally distributed positivity (P600), assumed to reflect second-pass parsing processes. We hypothesized that the first-pass parsing processes are highly automatic, whereas second-pass parsing processes are more controlled. To test this hypothesis we varied the proportion of correct sentences and sentences containing phrase structure violations with incorrect sentences being either of a low (20% violation) or a high (80% violation) proportion. Results showed that the early left anterior negativity was elicited and equally pronounced under both proportion conditions. By contrast, the late positivity was elicited for a low proportion of incorrect sentences only. This data pattern suggests that first-pass parsing processes are automatic, whereas second-pass parsing processes are under participants' strategic control.

Neural Correlates of Syntactic Processing in Two-Year-Olds

2005 ◽  
Vol 17 (10) ◽  
pp. 1667-1678 ◽  
Author(s):  
Regine Oberecker ◽  
Manuela Friedrich ◽  
Angela D. Friederici
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Phrase Structure ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Syntactic Processing ◽  
Early Language ◽  
Late Positivity ◽  
Early Language Development ◽  
First Pass ◽  
Anterior Negativity

Event-related brain potential (ERP) studies of sentence processing in adults have shown that phrase-structure violations are associated with two ERP components: an early left anterior negativity (ELAN) and a late, centro-parietal positivity (P600). Although the ELAN reflects highly automatic first-pass sentence parsing, the P600 has been interpreted to reflect later, more controlled processes. The present ERP study investigates the processing of phrase-structure violations in children below three years of age. Both children (mean age of 2.8 years) and adults passively listened to short active sentences that were either correct or syntactically incorrect. Adults displayed an ELAN that was followed by a P600 to the syntactic violation. Children also demonstrated a biphasic ERP pattern consisting of an early left hemispheric negativity and a late positivity. Both components, however, started later and persisted longer than those observed in adults. The left lateralization of the children's negativity suggests that this component can be interpreted as a child-specific precursor to the ELAN observed in adults. The appearance of the early negativity indicates that the neural mechanisms of syntactic parsing are present, in principle, during early language development.

Brain Activity Patterns Suggest Prosodic Influences on Syntactic Parsing in the Comprehension of Spoken Sentences

1998 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-62
Author(s):  
Jörg D. Jescheniak ◽  
Anja Hahne ◽  
Angela D. Friederici
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Evidence ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Phrase Structure ◽  
Syntactic Parsing ◽  
Brain Potential ◽  
First Pass ◽  
Anterior Negativity

We address the question of how syntactic and prosodic factors interact during the comprehension of spoken sentences. Previous studies using event-related brain potential measures have revealed that syntactic phrase structure violations elicit an early left anterior negativity followed by a late posterior positivity (P600). We present recent experimental evidence showing that prosodic information can modulate these components and thus the syntactic processes they reflect. We conclude that the initiation of first-pass parsing processes is affected by the appropriateness of the prosodic realization of the preceding element.

scholarly journals When Heuristics Clash with Parsing Routines: ERP Evidence for Conflict Monitoring in Sentence Perception

2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 1181-1197 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marieke van Herten ◽  
Dorothee J. Chwilla ◽  
Herman H. J. Kolk
Keyword(s):  
Event Related Potential ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Syntactic Analysis ◽  
Conflict Monitoring ◽  
N400 Effect ◽  
Word Meanings ◽  
Late Positivity ◽  
Error Related Negativity ◽  
Monitoring Process ◽  
Outcome Monitoring

Monitoring refers to a process of quality control designed to optimize behavioral outcome. Monitoring for action errors manifests itself in an error-related negativity in event-related potential (ERP) studies and in an increase in activity of the anterior cingulate in functional magnetic resonance imaging studies. Here we report evidence for a monitoring process in perception, in particular, language perception, manifesting itself in a late positivity in the ERP. This late positivity, the P600, appears to be triggered by a conflict between two interpretations, one delivered by the standard syntactic algorithm and one by a plausibility heuristic which combines individual word meanings in the most plausible way. To resolve this conflict, we propose that the brain reanalyzes the memory trace of the perceptual input to check for the possibility of a processing error. Thus, as in Experiment 1, when the reader is presented with semantically anomalous sentences such as, “The fox that shot the poacher…,” full syntactic analysis indicates a semantic anomaly, whereas the word-based heuristic leads to a plausible interpretation, that of a poacher shooting a fox. That readers actually pursue such a word-based analysis is indicated by the fact that the usual ERP index of semantic anomaly, the so-called N400 effect, was absent in this case. A P600 effect appeared instead. In Experiment 2, we found that even when the word-based heuristic indicated that only part of the sentence was plausible (e.g., “…that the elephants pruned the trees”), a P600 effect was observed and the N400 effect of semantic anomaly was absent. It thus seems that the plausibility of part of the sentence (e.g., that of pruning trees) was sufficient to create a conflict with the implausible meaning of the sentence as a whole, giving rise to a monitoring response.

scholarly journals An Event-Related Brain Potential (ERP) Study of Complex Anaphora in Spanish

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrián García-Sierra ◽  
Juan Silva-Pereyra ◽  
Graciela Catalina Alatorre-Cruz ◽  
Noelle Wig
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Event Related Potentials ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Brain Potential ◽  
Single Entity ◽  
Demonstrative Pronouns ◽  
Frontal Negativity ◽  
Related Potentials ◽  
Anterior Negativity

This study examines the event- related brain potential (ERP) of 25 Mexican monolingual Spanish-speakers when reading Spanish sentences with single entity anaphora or complex anaphora. Complex anaphora is an expression that refer to propositions, states, facts or events while, a single entity anaphora is an expression that refers back to a concrete object. Here we compare the cognitive cost in processing a single entity anaphora [éstafeminine; La renuncia (resignation)] from a complex anaphora [estoneuter; La renuncia fue aceptada (The resignation was accepted)]. Ésta elicited a larger positive peak at 200 ms, and esto elicited a larger frontal negativity around 400 ms. The positivity resembles the P200 component, and its amplitude is thought to represent an interaction between predictive qualities in sentence processing (i.e., graphical similarity and frequency of occurrence). Unlike parietal negativities (typical N400), frontal negativities are thought to represent the ease by which pronouns are linked with its antecedent, and how easy the information is recovered from short-term memory. Thus, the complex anaphora recruited more cognitive resources than the single entity anaphora. We also included an ungrammatical control sentence [éstemasculine; La renuncia (resignation)] to better understand the unique processes behind complex anaphoric resolution, as opposed to just general difficulty in sentence processing. In this case, event-related potentials (ERPs) elicited by éstemasculine and éstafeminine were compared. Again, ésta elicited a larger P200. However, different from the experimental condition, a left anterior negativity (LAN) effect was observed for éste; the ungrammatical condition. Altogether, the present research provides electrophysiological evidence indicating that demonstrative pronouns with different morphosyntactic features (i.e., gender) and discourse parameters (i.e., single entity or complex referent) interact during the first stage of anaphoric processing of anaphora. This stage initiated as early as 200 milliseconds after the pronoun onset and probably ends around 400 ms.

scholarly journals Hierarchical and Linear Sequence Processing: An Electrophysiological Exploration of Two Different Grammar Types

2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (11) ◽  
pp. 1829-1842 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörg Bahlmann ◽  
Thomas C. Gunter ◽  
Angela D. Friederici
Keyword(s):  
Phrase Structure ◽  
Phrase Structure Grammar ◽  
Brain Potentials ◽  
Late Positivity ◽  
Sequence Processing ◽  
Linear Sequence ◽  
Artificial Grammars ◽  
Finite State ◽  
State Grammar ◽  
Finite State Grammar

The present study investigated the processing of two types of artificial grammars by means of event-related brain potentials. Two categories of meaningless CV syllables were applied in each grammar type. The two grammars differed with regard to the type of the underlying rule. The finite-state grammar (FSG) followed the rule (AB)n, thereby generating local transitions between As and Bs (e.g., n = 2, ABAB). The phrase structure grammar (PSG) followed the rule AnBn, thereby generating center-embedded structures in which the first A and the last B embed the middle elements (e.g., n = 2, [A[AB]B]). Two sequence lengths (n = 2, n = 4) were used. Violations of the structures were introduced at different positions of the syllable sequences. Early violations were situated at the beginning of a sequence, and late violations were placed at the end of a sequence. A posteriorly distributed early negativity elicited by violations was present only in FSG. This effect was interpreted as the possible reflection of a violated local expectancy. Moreover, both grammar-type violations elicited a late positivity. This positivity varied as a function of the violation position in PSG, but not in FSG. These findings suggest that the late positivity could reflect difficulty of integration in PSG sequences.

Linguistic issues in the development of ReGra: A grammar checker for Brazilian Portuguese

1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 287-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
RONALDO TEIXEIRA MARTINS ◽  
RICARDO HASEGAWA ◽  
MARIA DAS GRAÇAS VOLPE NUNES ◽  
GISELE MONTILHA ◽  
OSVALDO NOVAIS DE OLIVEIRA
Keyword(s):  
Phrase Structure ◽  
Brazilian Portuguese ◽  
Word Processor ◽  
Syntactic Analysis ◽  
Production Rules ◽  
Phrase Structure Grammar ◽  
Computational Performance

This paper presents a number of linguistic and computational issues identified during the implementation of a general use grammar checker for contemporary Brazilian Portuguese, ReGra, that has been incorporated in the word processor REDATOR by Itautec/Philco (Brazil). Two main strategies were employed in the implementation of correction rules: an error-driven, localist approach based on the identification of patterns indicative of grammatical mistakes; and a more generic approach that requires automatic syntactic analysis. In this discussion, particular emphasis is given to the development of a parser based on a phrase structure grammar comprising over 600 production rules. As for the computational performance, ReGra permits texts to be revised at a rate of ca. 200 words per second.

scholarly journals MVPA does not reveal neural representations of hierarchical linguistic structure in MEG

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie Arana ◽  
Jan-Mathijs Schoffelen ◽  
Tom Mitchell ◽  
Peter Hagoort
Keyword(s):  
Semantic Information ◽  
Human Subjects ◽  
Attachment Site ◽  
Phrase Structure ◽  
Hierarchical Structures ◽  
Syntactic Analysis ◽  
Neural Signal ◽  
Linear Classifiers ◽  
Part Of Speech ◽  
Multivariate Pattern

AbstractDuring comprehension, the meaning extracted from serial language input can be described by hierarchical phrase structure. Whether our brains explicitly encode hierarchical structure during processing is, however, debated. In this study we recorded Magnetoencephalography (MEG) during reading of structurally ambiguous sentences to probe neural activity for representations of underlying phrase structure. 10 human subjects were presented with simple sentences, each containing a prepositional phrase that was ambiguous with respect to its attachment site. Disambiguation was possible based on semantic information. We applied multivariate pattern analyses (MVPA) to the MEG data using linear classifiers as well as representational similarity analysis to probe various effects of phrase structure building on the neural signal. Using MVPA techniques we successfully decoded both syntactic (part-of-speech) as well as semantic information from the brain signal. Importantly, however, we did not find any patterns in the neural signal that differentiate between different hierarchical structures. Nor did we find neural traces of syntactic or semantic reactivation following disambiguating sentence material. These null findings suggest that subjects may not have processed the sentences with respect to their underlying phrase structure. We discuss methodological limits of our analysis as well as cognitive theories of “shallow processing”, i.e. in how far rich semantic information can prevent thorough syntactic analysis during processing.

The syntax and semantics of descriptive V-de constructions

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-93
Author(s):  
Cheng-Yu Edwin Tsai
Keyword(s):  
Phrase Structure ◽  
The Other ◽  
Syntactic Analysis ◽  
Event Argument ◽  
Focus Semantics ◽  
The One ◽  
Syntactic Properties ◽  
Secondary Predicates ◽  
Event Quantification ◽  
Standing Problem

Abstract This paper tackles the long-standing problem of the phrase structure of the descriptive V-de construction in Mandarin, and proposes a variant of the Primary Predication analysis. I argue that the suffix -de is a nominalizing head that turns the verb to which it attaches into a nominal event argument, which is in turn predicated over by the descriptive adjectival phrase, the primary predicate of the construction. This syntactic analysis allows for a straightforward explanation for the presupposition-focus semantics of this construction based on structured event quantification. In addition, it is shown that previous arguments that go against the Primary Predication hypothesis (including the distribution of the A-not-A form and negation, and the scope relation between an IP-level element and the adjectival phrase) either do not constitute counterevidence or are simply irrelevant. Further support for the proposal is provided that draws on a number of syntactic properties of the descriptive V-de construction and on the distinction between the descriptive adjectival phrase on the one hand and secondary predicates and adverbial adjuncts on the other hand.

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