Rapid acquisition of novel written word-forms: ERP evidence

Abstract Background Novel word acquisition is generally believed to be a rapid process, essential for ensuring a flexible and efficient communication system; at least in spoken language, learners are able to construct memory traces for new linguistic stimuli after just a few exposures. However, such rapid word learning has not been systematically found in visual domain, with different confounding factors obscuring the orthographic learning of novel words. This study explored the changes in human brain activity occurring online, during a brief training with novel written word-forms using a silent reading task Results Single-trial, cluster-based random permutation analysis revealed that training caused an extremely fast (after just one repetition) and stable facilitation in novel word processing, reflected in the modulation of P200 and N400 components, possibly indicating rapid dynamics at early and late stages of the lexical processing. Furthermore, neural source estimation of these effects revealed the recruitment of brain areas involved in orthographic and lexico-semantic processing, respectively. Conclusions These results suggest the formation of neural memory traces for novel written word-forms after a minimal exposure to them even in the absence of a semantic reference, resembling the rapid learning processes known to occur in spoken language.

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Lexical Processing as Revealed by Lateralized Event-Related Brain Potentials

Journal of Psychophysiology ◽

10.1027/0269-8803/a000218 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 33 (3) ◽

pp. 148-164 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Judith Koppehele-Gossel ◽

Robert Schnuerch ◽

Henning Gibbons

Keyword(s):

Word Processing ◽

Semantic Processing ◽

Semantic Analysis ◽

Lexical Processing ◽

Word Reading ◽

Recognition Task ◽

Time Range ◽

Processing Negativity ◽

Written Word ◽

Single Word Reading

Abstract. Neurocognitive models of written-word processing from low-level perceptual up to semantic analysis include the notion of a strongly left-lateralized posterior-to-anterior stream of activation. Two left-lateralized components in the event-related brain potential (ERP), N170 and temporo-parietal PSA (posterior semantic asymmetry; peak at 300 ms), have been suggested to reflect sublexical analysis and semantic processing, respectively. However, for intermediate processing steps, such as lexical access, no posterior left-lateralized ERP signature has yet been observed under single-word reading conditions. In combination with a recognition task, lexicality and depth of processing were varied. Left-minus-right difference ERPs optimally suited to accentuate left-lateralized language processes revealed an occipito-temporal processing negativity (210–270 ms) for all stimuli except alphanumerical strings. This asymmetry showed greater sensitivity to the combined effects of attention and lexicality than other ERPs in this time range (i.e., N170, P1, and P2). It is therefore introduced as “lexical asymmetry.”

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Neurocognitive Mechanisms Supporting the Generalization of Concepts Across Languages

10.31234/osf.io/7g6dk ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Usman Ayub Sheikh ◽

Manuel Carreiras ◽

David Soto

Keyword(s):

Word Processing ◽

Semantic Processing ◽

Semantic Network ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Semantic Category ◽

Semantic Representations ◽

Depth Of Processing ◽

Shallow Processing ◽

Cross Language

The neurocognitive mechanisms that support the generalization of semantic representations across different languages remain to be determined. Current psycholinguistic models propose that semantic representations are likely to overlap across languages, although there is evidence also to the contrary. Neuroimaging studies observed that brain activity patterns associated with the meaning of words may be similar across languages. However, the factors that mediate cross-language generalization of semantic representations are not known. We here identify a key factor: the depth of processing. Human participants were asked to process visual words as they underwent functional MRI. We found that, during shallow processing, multivariate pattern classifiers could decode the word semantic category within each language in putative substrates of the semantic network, but there was no evidence of cross-language generalization in the shallow processing context. By contrast, when the depth of processing was higher, significant cross-language generalization was observed in several regions, including inferior parietal, ventromedial, lateral temporal, and inferior frontal cortex. These results support the distributed-only view of semantic processing and favour models based on multiple semantic hubs. The results also have ramifications for psycholinguistic models of word processing such as the BIA+, which by default assumes non-selective access to both native and second languages.

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How Consonants and Vowels Shape Spoken-Language Recognition

Annual Review of Linguistics ◽

10.1146/annurev-linguistics-011718-011919 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 25-47 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Thierry Nazzi ◽

Anne Cutler

Keyword(s):

Phonological Processing ◽

Lexical Processing ◽

Spoken Language ◽

Language Recognition ◽

New Words ◽

Relative Contribution ◽

Early Acquisition ◽

Written Word ◽

Vowel Contrast ◽

Different Levels

All languages instantiate a consonant/vowel contrast. This contrast has processing consequences at different levels of spoken-language recognition throughout the lifespan. In adulthood, lexical processing is more strongly associated with consonant than with vowel processing; this has been demonstrated across 13 languages from seven language families and in a variety of auditory lexical-level tasks (deciding whether a spoken input is a word, spotting a real word embedded in a minimal context, reconstructing a word minimally altered into a pseudoword, learning new words or the “words” of a made-up language), as well as in written-word tasks involving phonological processing. In infancy, a consonant advantage in word learning and recognition is found to emerge during development in some languages, though possibly not in others, revealing that the stronger lexicon–consonant association found in adulthood is learned. Current research is evaluating the relative contribution of the early acquisition of the acoustic/phonetic and lexical properties of the native language in the emergence of this association.

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Does consonant–vowel skeletal structure play a role early in lexical processing? Evidence from masked priming

Applied Psycholinguistics ◽

10.1017/s0142716417000431 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

pp. 169-186 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

MANUEL PEREA ◽

ANA MARCET ◽

JOANA ACHA

Keyword(s):

Word Processing ◽

Lexical Processing ◽

Word Identification ◽

Incongruent Condition ◽

Masked Priming ◽

Skeletal Structure ◽

Basic Source ◽

Written Word ◽

Source Of Information

ABSTRACTIs the specific consonant–vowel (CV) letter combination of a word a basic source of information for lexical access in the early stages of processing? We designed two masked priming lexical decision experiments to respond to this question by directly examining the role of CV skeletal structure in written-word recognition. To that aim, each target word was preceded by a one-letter different nonword prime that kept the same CV skeletal structure or not. We also included an identity prime as a control. Results showed faster word identification times in the CV congruent condition than in the CV incongruent condition when a consonant was replaced from the target (paesaje–PAISAJE < parsaje–PAISAJE), but not when it was a vowel (alusno–ALUMNO = alueno–ALUMNO). This dissociation poses problems for those accounts based on an early activation of the CV skeletal structure during lexical processing. Instead, this pattern of data favors the view that it is the word's consonant skeleton rather than the CV skeletal structure that is the key element in the early phases of word processing. We discuss the theoretical and methodological implications of these findings.

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Hipercorrección ortográfica en la marcación del acento en documentos académicos y divulgativos en Costa Rica (Orthographic Hypercorrection Using Accent Marks in Academic and Informative Documents in Costa Rica)

LETRAS ◽

10.15359/rl.2-58.2 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 2 (58) ◽

pp. 29

Author(s):

Judit Tomcsányi

Keyword(s):

Costa Rica ◽

Word Processing ◽

Lexical Processing ◽

Special Kind ◽

Psycholinguistic Research ◽

Metrical Theory ◽

Written Word ◽

Specific Orientation

Trata el tema de la hipercorrección ortográfica, relacionada con el uso abusivo y la dislocación del acento ortográfico en ciertos tipos de textos en el medio costarricense. Desde el análisis fonológico de Harris, basado en la teoría métrica, y de estudios psicolingüísticos sobre el procesamiento de la palabra escrita (Frost, Taft), se sostiene que esa hipercorrección obedece a un procesamiento lexical de la escritura, típica de sistemas ortográficos opacos, y deja de lado el carácter transparente de la ortografía española. Se identifica una orientación de este procesamiento lexical hacia características marcadas del acento que podría ser la expresión de una concepción particular de la ortografía por parte del hablante.This paper examines data of a special kind of misuse of orthographic accent in Spanish, namely its abusive or dislocated application in certain types of texts in Costa Rica. From the perspective of phonological analysis (Harris) in the frame of metrical theory, and of psycholinguistic research on written word processing (Frost, Taft) we argue that this type of hypercorrection is due to lexical processing, typically related to deep orthographies, leaving aside the basically transparent nature of Spanish orthography. A specific orientation of this lexical processing to accent markedness is identified suggesting a particular conception users have of orthography.

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Evidence of Semantic Processing in Parafoveal Reading: A Rapid Parallel Visual Presentation (Rpvp) Study

Brain Sciences ◽

10.3390/brainsci11010028 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 28

Author(s):

Danila Rusich ◽

Lisa S. Arduino ◽

Marika Mauti ◽

Marialuisa Martelli ◽

Silvia Primativo

Keyword(s):

Eye Movement ◽

Word Frequency ◽

Word Processing ◽

Semantic Processing ◽

Reaction Times ◽

Visual Presentation ◽

Semantic Relation ◽

Facilitatory Effect ◽

Written Word ◽

Stimulus Length

This study explores whether semantic processing in parafoveal reading in the Italian language is modulated by the perceptual and lexical features of stimuli by analyzing the results of the rapid parallel visual presentation (RPVP) paradigm experiment, which simultaneously presented two words, with one in the fovea and one in the parafovea. The words were randomly sampled from a set of semantically related and semantically unrelated pairs. The accuracy and reaction times in reading the words were measured as a function of the stimulus length and written word frequency. Fewer errors were observed in reading parafoveal words when they were semantically related to the foveal ones, and a larger semantic facilitatory effect was observed when the foveal word was highly frequent and the parafoveal word was short. Analysis of the reaction times suggests that the semantic relation between the two words sped up the naming of the foveal word when both words were short and highly frequent. Altogether, these results add further evidence in favor of the semantic processing of words in the parafovea during reading, modulated by the orthographic and lexical features of the stimuli. The results are discussed within the context of the most prominent models of word processing and eye movement controls in reading.

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Brain Activation During Reading in Deep Dyslexia: An MEG Study

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/089892900562381 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 622-634 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Matti Laine ◽

Riitta Salmelin ◽

Päivi Helenius ◽

Reijo Marttila

Keyword(s):

Semantic Processing ◽

Semantic Analysis ◽

Right Hemisphere ◽

Word Reading ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Temporal Cortex ◽

Single Word ◽

Lexical Semantic ◽

Deep Dyslexia ◽

Single Word Reading

Magnetoencephalographic (MEG) changes in cortical activity were studied in a chronic Finnish-speaking deep dyslexic patient during single-word and sentence reading. It has been hypothesized that in deep dyslexia, written word recognition and its lexical-semantic analysis are subserved by the intact right hemisphere. However, in our patient, as well as in most nonimpaired readers, lexical-semantic processing as measured by sentence-final semantic-incongruency detection was related to the left superior-temporal cortex activation. Activations around this same cortical area could be identified in single-word reading as well. Another factor relevant to deep dyslexic reading, the morphological complexity of the presented words, was also studied. The effect of morphology was observed only during the preparation for oral output. By performing repeated recordings 1 year apart, we were able to document significant variability in both the spontaneous activity and the evoked responses in the lesioned left hemisphere even though at the behavioural level, the patient's performance was stable. The observed variability emphasizes the importance of estimating consistency of brain activity both within and between measurements in brain-damaged individuals.

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N170 reflects visual familiarity and automatic sublexical phonological access in L2 written word processing

Bilingualism Language and Cognition ◽

10.1017/s1366728920000759 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-11

Author(s):

Yen Na Yum ◽

Sam-Po Law

Keyword(s):

Phonological Processing ◽

Word Processing ◽

Time Window ◽

Mixed Effects Models ◽

Linear Mixed Effects Models ◽

Linear Mixed Effects ◽

Repetition Detection ◽

Korean Chinese ◽

Written Word ◽

Bilingual Readers

Abstract The literature has mixed reports on whether the N170, an early visual ERP response to words, signifies orthographic and/or phonological processing, and whether these effects are moderated by script and language expertise. In this study, native Chinese readers, Japanese–Chinese, and Korean–Chinese bilingual readers performed a one-back repetition detection task with single Chinese characters that differed in phonological regularity status. Results using linear mixed effects models showed that Korean–Chinese readers had bilateral N170 response, while native Chinese and Japanese–Chinese groups had left-lateralized N170, with stronger left lateralization in native Chinese than Japanese–Chinese readers. Additionally, across groups, irregular characters had bilateral increase in N170 amplitudes compared to regular characters. These results suggested that visual familiarity to a script rather than orthography-phonology mapping determined the left lateralization of the N170 response, while there was automatic access to sublexical phonology in the N170 time window in native and non-native readers alike.

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Lateralızatıon of Non-Word Processıng in Monolınguals

Psycholinguistics in a Modern World ◽

10.31470/10.31470/2706-7904-2020-15-185-190 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 15 ◽

pp. 185-190

Author(s):

Filiz Mergen ◽

Gulmira Kuruoglu

Keyword(s):

Lexical Decision ◽

Lexical Decision Task ◽

Left Hemisphere ◽

Word Processing ◽

Lexical Processing ◽

Response Times ◽

Hemispheric Dominance ◽

Decision Task ◽

Visual Hemifield ◽

Overwhelming Evidence

A great bulk of research in the psycholinguistic literature has been dedicated to hemispheric organization of words. An overwhelming evidence suggests that the left hemisphere is primarily responsible for lexical processing. However, non-words, which look similar to real words but lack meaningful associations, is underrepresented in the laterality literature. This study investigated the lateralization of Turkish non-words. Fifty-three Turkish monolinguals performed a lexical decision task in a visual hemifield paradigm. An analysis of their response times revealed left-hemispheric dominance for non-words, adding further support to the literature. The accuracy of their answers, however, were comparable regardless of the field of presentation. The results were discussed in light of the psycholinguistic word processing views.

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Neural evidence for the prediction of animacy features during language comprehension: Evidence from MEG and EEG Representational Similarity Analysis

10.1101/709394 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Lin Wang ◽

Edward Wlotko ◽

Edward Alexander ◽

Lotte Schoot ◽

Minjae Kim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Spatial Patterns ◽

Language Comprehension ◽

Neural Activity ◽

Semantic Processing ◽

Sentence Comprehension ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Coarse Grained ◽

Similarity Analysis ◽

Semantic Features ◽

Representational Similarity Analysis

AbstractIt has been proposed that people can generate probabilistic predictions at multiple levels of representation during language comprehension. We used Magnetoencephalography (MEG) and Electroencephalography (EEG), in combination with Representational Similarity Analysis (RSA), to seek neural evidence for the prediction of animacy features. In two studies, MEG and EEG activity was measured as human participants (both sexes) read three-sentence scenarios. Verbs in the final sentences constrained for either animate or inanimate semantic features of upcoming nouns, and the broader discourse context constrained for either a specific noun or for multiple nouns belonging to the same animacy category. We quantified the similarity between spatial patterns of brain activity following the verbs until just before the presentation of the nouns. The MEG and EEG datasets revealed converging evidence that the similarity between spatial patterns of neural activity following animate constraining verbs was greater than following inanimate constraining verbs. This effect could not be explained by lexical-semantic processing of the verbs themselves. We therefore suggest that it reflected the inherent difference in the semantic similarity structure of the predicted animate and inanimate nouns. Moreover, the effect was present regardless of whether a specific word could be predicted, providing strong evidence for the prediction of coarse-grained semantic features that goes beyond the prediction of individual words.Significance statementLanguage inputs unfold very quickly during real-time communication. By predicting ahead we can give our brains a “head-start”, so that language comprehension is faster and more efficient. While most contexts do not constrain strongly for a specific word, they do allow us to predict some upcoming information. For example, following the context, “they cautioned the…”, we can predict that the next word will be animate rather than inanimate (we can caution a person, but not an object). Here we used EEG and MEG techniques to show that the brain is able to use these contextual constraints to predict the animacy of upcoming words during sentence comprehension, and that these predictions are associated with specific spatial patterns of neural activity.

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