Brief inductive learning but not explicit instruction of a new grammar can produce a Whorfian effect

It is known that brief training on new vocabulary and metaphors can shift how we represent concepts and categorize stimuli even when we are not using the language. But it remains unknown whether brief training on grammar can also produce such ‘Whorfian’ effects. Besides, previous studies have neglected how the way in which the language was learned might be a factor. To fill these gaps, Mandarin native speakers learned a new grammatical marker of transitivity through either inductive training or explicit instruction. In subsequent non-verbal matching task the inductively trained group based their judgments on the number of entities involved in motion events to a greater extent than controls naïve to the grammar, but the explicitly trained group did not, despite showing equivalent knowledge of the grammar in a grammaticality judgment task. We interpret the effects in terms of dynamic and unconscious top-down feedback from grammar to lower-level perceptual processes.

Representation of motion concepts in occipitotemporal cortex: fMRI activation, decoding and connectivity analyses

Embodied theories of semantic cognition predict that brain regions involved in motion perception are engaged when people comprehend motion concepts expressed in language. Left lateral occipitotemporal cortex (LOTC) is implicated in both motion perception and motion concept processing but prior studies have produced mixed findings regarding which parts of this region are engaged by motion language. We scanned participants performing semantic judgements about sentences describing motion events and static events. We performed univariate analyses, multivariate pattern analyses (MVPA) and psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analyses to investigate the effect of motion on activity and connectivity in different parts of LOTC. In multivariate analyses that decoded whether a sentence described motion or not, the whole of LOTC showed above-chance level performance, with performance exceeding that of other brain regions. Univariate ROI analyses found that the middle part of LOTC was more active for motion events than static ones. Finally, PPI analyses found that when processing motion events, the middle and posterior parts of LOTC, overlapping with motion perception regions, increased their connectivity with cognitive control regions. Taken together, these results indicate that the whole of the LOTC responds differently to motion vs. static event descriptions, and that these effects are most pronounced in more posterior sites. These findings are consistent with embodiment accounts of semantic processing, and suggest that understanding verbal descriptions of motion engages areas of the occipitotemporal cortex involved in perceiving motion.

Quantitative Distribution of English and Indonesian Motion Verbs and Its Typological Implications: A case study with the English and Indonesian versions of the Twilight novel

This paper investigates the quantitative distribution (type and token frequencies, and type-per-token ratio [TTR]) of motion verbs found in English and Indonesian versions of the novel Twilight (Meyer, 2005; Sari, 2008). The study is contextualized within two divergent views on the typological characteristics of Indonesian lexicalization patterns of motion events. One study (Son, 2009) suggests that Indonesian behaves like English, representing a satellite-framed pattern (i.e., lexicalizing Manner of motion in the main verb) while another study (Wienold, 1995) argues for the verb-framed nature of Indonesian (i.e., lexicalizing Path of motion in the main verb). We seek to offer a quantitative perspective to these two proposals. Our study shows that, compared to English, Indonesian has significantly higher number (i.e., types) and occurrences (i.e., tokens) of Path verbs (reflecting the verb-framed pattern). Moreover, the higher TTR value of Path verbs for Indonesian shows a greater lexical diversity in the inventory of Indonesian Path verbs compared to English. In contrast, the English Manner verbs are significantly higher in number and in token frequency than Indonesian (suggesting the satellite-framed pattern), and show greater lexical diversity given the higher TTR value. While these findings lean toward supporting the verb-framed pattern of Indonesian (Wienold, 1995), we caution with the limitation of our conclusion and offer suggestions for future study.

Directional Idioms in English and Welsh: A Usage-Based Perspective on Language Contact

The English verb-particle construction or phrasal verb (pv) has undergone dramatic semantic extensions from the expression of literal motion events (the ball rolled down the hill) – a pattern known as satellite-framing – to idiomatic figurative uses (the company will roll out a new plan) where selection of the particle is motivated by Conceptual Metaphors. Over the course of its long contact with English, Welsh – also satellite-framed with literal motion events – has extended the use of its verb-particle construction to replicate even highly idiomatic English pv s. Through a case study of ten metaphorical uses of up and its Welsh equivalent, we argue that this dramatic contact outcome points to the convergence by bilingual speakers on a single set of Conceptual Metaphors motivating the pv combinations. A residual Celtic possessive construction (lit. she rose on her sitting ‘she sat up’) competes with English-like pv s to express change of bodily posture.

First language versus second language effect on memory for motion events: The role of language type and proficiency

Aims and objectives/purpose/research question: This research probes for language effects on witness memory in bilingual speakers whose languages are typologically distinct, English and Spanish. The key question is whether speakers’ memory for agentive motion events is influenced by first language (L1) or second language (L2) patterns, or both, when the L2 is used for descriptions. Design/methodology/approach: Four groups were tested in an event verbalisation and recognition memory task: English monolinguals, Spanish monolinguals, Late L1 English/L2 Spanish bilinguals and late L1 Spanish/L2 English bilinguals. The video stimuli depicted complex motion events (three manners of motion per event) because complex rather than simple events have been shown to elicit language effects. Data and analysis: The data for analyses include (a) the number of mentions and the type of detail included in the verbalisation of the manner of motion (the key typological difference) and (b) recognition error rates in the memory task. Recognition errors occurred when the pairs of target videos were deemed the same while in fact they were not. Findings/conclusions: Speaking in a L2 that makes it difficult to verbalise a component of an event (manner of motion) can have a negative effect on the memory for that specific component in L2 speakers, while at the same time benefiting memory for some other event features. Originality: This work shows, for the first time, negative effects of a L2 on memory for motion events and offers a hitherto elusive explanation and theoretical justification for the reasons when and why we do, or do not, get beneficial effects on memory in bilinguals. Significance/implications: The findings contribute to understanding of the effects of late (adult L2) acquisition on cognition. They support predictions of the Complex Adaptive System Principles (CASP) for Bilingualism model, advocating fine-grained typological approaches to lexicalisation of cognitive domains and explicit teaching of typological differences that affect information content.