scholarly journals Children’s processing of morphosyntactic and prosodic cues in overriding context-based hypotheses: an eye tracking study

Probus ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Meghan E. Armstrong ◽  
Llorenç Andreu ◽  
Núria Esteve-Gibert ◽  
Pilar Prieto
Keyword(s):  
Eye Tracking ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Contextual Information ◽  
Information Age ◽  
Linguistic Information ◽  
Prosodic Cues ◽  
Tracking Tasks ◽  
Linguistic Cues ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Initial Hypothesis

AbstractThis research explores children’s ability to integrate contextual and linguistic cues. Prior work has shown that children are not able to weigh contextual information in an adult-like way and that between the age of 4 and 6 they show difficulties in revising a hypothesis they have made based on early-arriving linguistic information in sentence processing. Therefore we considered children’s ability to confirm or override a context-based hypothesis based on linguistic information. Our objective in this study was to test (1) children’s (ages 4–6) ability to form a hypothesis based on contextual information, (2) their ability to override such a hypothesis based on linguistic information and (3) how children are able to use different types of linguistic cues (morphosyntactic versus prosodic) to confirm or override the initial hypothesis. Results from both offline (pointing) and online (eye tracking) tasks suggest that children in this age group indeed form hypotheses based on contextual information. Age effects were found regarding children’s ability to override these hypotheses. Overall, 4-year-olds were not shown to be able to override their hypotheses using linguistic information of interest. For 5- and 6-year-olds, it depended on the types of linguistic cues that were available to them. Children were better at using morphosyntactic cues to override an initial hypothesis than they were at using prosodic cues to do so. Our results suggest that children slowly develop the ability to override hypotheses based on early-arriving information, even when that information is extralinguistic and contextual. Children must learn to weight different types of cues in an adult-like way. This developmental period of learning to prioritize different cues in an adult-like way is consistent with a constraint-based model of learning.

Cue coalitions and additivity in predictive processing: The interaction between case and prosody in L2 German

2020 ◽  
pp. 026765832096315
Author(s):  
Nick Henry ◽  
Carrie N Jackson ◽  
Holger Hopp
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Eye Tracking ◽  
Semantic Information ◽  
Predictive Processing ◽  
Use Case ◽  
Thematic Roles ◽  
Prosodic Cues ◽  
Linguistic Cues ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Verbal Arguments

This article explores how multiple linguistic cues interact in predictive processing among second language (L2) learners. In a visual-world eye-tracking experiment, we investigated whether learners of German use case and prosody cues together to assign thematic roles and predict post-verbal arguments. During the experiment, participants listened to subject-first and object-first sentences that contained (1) case cues only, or (2) both case and prosody. The results showed that the learners successfully predicted post-verbal arguments on the basis of lexical-semantic information but were less successful in using case cues. However, prediction success increased when both case and prosody were present, suggesting that predictive processing is supported by prosodic cues. Additionally, results show that higher proficiency was associated with faster processing and a greater ability to generate predictions. We conclude that the presence of cue coalitions allows L2 learners to process information more efficiently, and that the L2 processor can exploit the additive use of cues for prediction.

The role of linguistic cues in bilingual negation processing

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bojana Ćoso ◽  
Irena Bogunović
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Sentence Type ◽  
Negative Concord ◽  
Bilingual Speakers ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Linguistic Cues ◽  
Different Types

Aims and objectives: A vast body of research has dealt with negation processing. There are many differences between negations across languages, which could influence negation processing in bilingual speakers. However, bilingual negation processing has rarely been experimentally investigated. This study aims at exploring whether highly proficient Croatian-English bilinguals are able to adequately adopt English negations, and whether linguistic cues from both languages have similar effect on negation processing. Methodology: A sentence–picture verification task was used to investigate the processing of affirmative sentences, sentential and constituent negations, Croatian negative concord and English sentences with negated subject. Data and analysis: 2 (language) × 4 (sentence type) × 2 (congruency) ANOVA with repeated measures was used to analyze the data. Findings: The results showed that the effect of language was not significant, except in the case of constituent negations which were processed faster in English. There was a significant difference between the processing of affirmative and negative sentences, as affirmatives were processed faster than negatives in both languages. Constituent negations in both languages were processed slower compared with other types of negations. Originality: The results suggest that strong linguistic cues, such as word order and quantifiers, influence negation processing in both languages, resulting in differences between different types of negations. The results are discussed in the light of two existing models of negation and sentence processing. A new model, as a combination of these two models, is proposed. Implications: The fact that there was no significant difference in negation processing between the bilinguals’ two languages supports the view that highly proficient successive bilinguals are able to adequately adopt negations in both their languages.

scholarly journals Children do not overcome lexical biases where adults do: the role of the referential scene in garden-path recovery

2010 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 222-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
EVAN KIDD ◽  
ANDREW J. STEWART ◽  
LUDOVICA SERRATRICE
Keyword(s):  
Eye Tracking ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Test Sentence ◽  
Visual World ◽  
Garden Path ◽  
Initial Analysis ◽  
Adults And Children ◽  
Scene Information ◽  
Lexical Cues

ABSTRACTIn this paper we report on a visual world eye-tracking experiment that investigated the differing abilities of adults and children to use referential scene information during reanalysis to overcome lexical biases during sentence processing. The results showed that adults incorporated aspects of the referential scene into their parse as soon as it became apparent that a test sentence was syntactically ambiguous, suggesting they considered the two alternative analyses in parallel. In contrast, the children appeared not to reanalyze their initial analysis, even over shorter distances than have been investigated in prior research. We argue that this reflects the children's over-reliance on bottom-up, lexical cues to interpretation. The implications for the development of parsing routines are discussed.

Taxes and Haven Activities: Evidence from Linguistic Cues

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelvin K. F. Law ◽  
Lillian Mills
Keyword(s):  
Tax Rates ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Effective Tax Rates ◽  
Tax Effects ◽  
Tax Haven ◽  
Linguistic Cues ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Information Set ◽  
Mere Existence ◽  
Offshore Activities

Users of Exhibit 21 cannot tell whether a tax haven subsidiary is actively operating or a dormant shell company.  In this paper, we develop a new set of parsimonious measures to highlight the distinct mechanisms and tax effects of offshore sales to, as opposed to purchases from, tax haven countries, offering insights on the effects of certain types of offshoring activities on firms’ tax burdens.  Our main measure has about three times the effect of the mere existence of a haven subsidiary in explaining firms’ effective tax rates.  We detail the processes to predict the offshore activities in tax haven countries for firms without an Exhibit 21 and firms reporting no subsidiary operations in a tax haven country.  Relative to the mere mention of a tax haven subsidiary in Exhibit 21, our new measures provide a richer information set to capture different types of economic activities in tax haven countries.

scholarly journals A Unique Visual Attention Profile Associated With the FMR1 Premutation

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Molly Winston ◽  
Kritika Nayar ◽  
Emily Landau ◽  
Nell Maltman ◽  
John Sideris ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Visual Attention ◽  
Eye Tracking ◽  
Picture Book ◽  
Fragile X ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Social Stimuli ◽  
Fmr1 Premutation ◽  
Tracking Tasks ◽  
Neurocognitive Profile ◽  
Areas Of Interest

Atypical visual attention patterns have been observed among carriers of the fragile X mental retardation gene (FMR1) premutation (PM), with some similarities to visual attention patterns observed in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and among clinically unaffected relatives of individuals with ASD. Patterns of visual attention could constitute biomarkers that can help to inform the neurocognitive profile of the PM, and that potentially span diagnostic boundaries. This study examined patterns of eye movement across an array of fixation measurements from three distinct eye-tracking tasks in order to investigate potentially overlapping profiles of visual attention among PM carriers, ASD parents, and parent controls. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine whether variables constituting a PM-specific looking profile were able to effectively predict group membership. Participants included 65PM female carriers, 188 ASD parents, and 84 parent controls. Analyses of fixations across the eye-tracking tasks, and their corresponding areas of interest, revealed a distinct visual attention pattern in carriers of the FMR1 PM, characterized by increased fixations on the mouth when viewing faces, more intense focus on bodies in socially complex scenes, and decreased fixations on salient characters and faces while narrating a wordless picture book. This set of variables was able to successfully differentiate individuals with the PM from controls (Sensitivity = 0.76, Specificity = 0.85, Accuracy = 0.77) as well as from ASD parents (Sensitivity = 0.70, Specificity = 0.80, Accuracy = 0.72), but did not show a strong distinction between ASD parents and controls (Accuracy = 0.62), indicating that this set of variables comprises a profile that is unique to PM carriers. Regarding predictive power, fixations toward the mouth when viewing faces was able to differentiate PM carriers from both ASD parents and controls, whereas fixations toward other social stimuli did not differentiate PM carriers from ASD parents, highlighting some overlap in visual attention patterns that could point toward shared neurobiological mechanisms. Results demonstrate a profile of visual attention that appears strongly associated with the FMR1 PM in women, and may constitute a meaningful biomarker.

scholarly journals Subject encodings and retrieval interference

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan Arnett ◽  
Matthew Wagers
Keyword(s):  
Eye Tracking ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Retrieval Cues ◽  
Syntactic Theory ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Syntactic Properties ◽  
Retrieval Interference ◽  
Processing Difficulty

Interference has been identified as a cause of processing difficulty in linguistic dependencies, such as the subject-verb relation (Van Dyke and Lewis, 2003). However, while mounting evidence implicates retrieval interference in sentence processing, the nature of the retrieval cues involved - and thus the source of difficulty - remains largely unexplored. Three experiments used self-paced reading and eye-tracking to examine the ways in which the retrieval cues provided at a verb characterize subjects. Syntactic theory has identified a number of properties correlated with subjecthood, both phrase-structural and thematic. Findings replicate and extend previous findings of interference at a verb from additional subjects, but indicate that retrieval outcomes are relativized to the syntactic domain in which the retrieval occurs. One, the cues distinguish between thematic subjects in verbal and nominal domains. Two, within the verbal domain, retrieval is sensitive to abstract syntactic properties associated with subjects and their clauses. We argue that the processing at a verb requires cue-driven retrieval, and that the retrieval cues utilize abstract grammatical properties which may reflect parser expectations.

scholarly journals Covert Attention to Gestures Is Sufficient for Information Uptake

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kendra Gimhani Kandana Arachchige ◽  
Wivine Blekic ◽  
Isabelle Simoes Loureiro ◽  
Laurent Lefebvre
Keyword(s):  
Visual Attention ◽  
Eye Tracking ◽  
Information Extraction ◽  
Sentence Context ◽  
Covert Attention ◽  
Speech Comprehension ◽  
Video Clips ◽  
Degraded Speech ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Tracking Technology

Numerous studies have explored the benefit of iconic gestures in speech comprehension. However, only few studies have investigated how visual attention was allocated to these gestures in the context of clear versus degraded speech and the way information is extracted for enhancing comprehension. This study aimed to explore the effect of iconic gestures on comprehension and whether fixating the gesture is required for information extraction. Four types of gestures (i.e., semantically and syntactically incongruent iconic gestures, meaningless configurations, and congruent iconic gestures) were presented in a sentence context in three different listening conditions (i.e., clear, partly degraded or fully degraded speech). Using eye tracking technology, participants’ gaze was recorded, while they watched video clips after which they were invited to answer simple comprehension questions. Results first showed that different types of gestures differently attract attention and that the more speech was degraded, the less participants would pay attention to gestures. Furthermore, semantically incongruent gestures appeared to particularly impair comprehension although not being fixated while congruent gestures appeared to improve comprehension despite also not being fixated. These results suggest that covert attention is sufficient to convey information that will be processed by the listener.

Utilization of prosodic and linguistic cues during perceptions of nonunderstandings in radio communication

2016 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 509-539 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAIME C. AUTON ◽  
MARK W. WIGGINS ◽  
BEN J. SEARLE ◽  
NAN XU RATTANASONE
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Distributed Environments ◽  
Hydroelectric Power ◽  
Verbal Instruction ◽  
Radio Communication ◽  
Risk Environments ◽  
Prosodic Cues ◽  
Linguistic Cues ◽  
Hydroelectric Power Generation

ABSTRACTThe readback/hearback loop is a communicative protocol used in many high-risk environments to ensure that a verbal instruction has been heard correctly by a receiver. However, it does not necessarily ensure that an instruction has been understood. Using an international sample of hydroelectric power generation controllers, this study examined whether particular linguistic (complete and partial readbacks) and prosodic (final intonation, filler, and interturn delay) cues contained within a readback response could signal to listeners the extent to which speakers had understood an instruction. The results indicated that different prosodic cues are used to detect nonunderstandings, depending upon the linguistic content of the readback. The results have implications for training and system design in distributed environments.

Lexical Segmentation in Artificial Word Learning: The Effects of Converging Sublexical Cues

2017 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Odile Bagou ◽  
Ulrich Hans Frauenfelder
Keyword(s):  
Word Learning ◽  
Synergistic Effects ◽  
New Words ◽  
Artificial Languages ◽  
Prosodic Cues ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Lexical Segmentation

This study examines how French listeners segment and learn new words of artificial languages varying in the presence of different combinations of sublexical segmentation cues. The first experiment investigated the contribution of three different types of sublexical cues (acoustic-phonetic, phonological and prosodic cues) to word learning. The second experiment explored how participants specifically exploited sublexical prosodic cues. Whereas complementary cues signaling word-initial and word-final boundaries had synergistic effects on word learning in the first experiment, the two manipulated prosodic cues redundantly signaling word-final boundaries in the second experiment were rank-ordered with final pitch variations being more weighted than final lengthening. These results are discussed in light of the notions of cue type, cue position and cue efficiency.

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