Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: doi:10.22028/D291-38025
Title: Situational expectancy or association? The influence of event knowledge on the N400
Author(s): Rabs, Elisabeth
Delogu, Francesca
Drenhaus, Heiner
Crocker, Matthew W.
Language: English
Title: Language, Cognition and Neuroscience
Volume: 37
Issue: 6
Pages: 766–784
Publisher/Platform: Taylor & Francis
Year of Publication: 2022
Free key words: ERPs
N400
discourse comprehension
event knowledge
association
expectancy
DDC notations: 100 Philosophy
Publikation type: Journal Article
Abstract: Electrophysiological studies suggest that situational event knowledge plays an important role in language processing, but often fail to distinguish whether observed effects are driven by combinatorial expectations, or simple association with the context. In two ERP experiments, participants read short discourses describing ongoing events. We manipulated the situational expectancy of the target word continuing the event as well as the presence of an associated, but inactive event in the context. In both experiments we find an N400 effect for unexpected compared to expected target words, but this effect is significantly attenuated when the unexpected target is nonetheless associated with non-occurring context events. Our findings demonstrate that the N400 is simultaneously influenced by both simple association with – and combinatorial expectations derived from – situational event knowledge. Thus, experimental investigations and comprehension models of the use of event knowledge must accommodate the role of both expectancy and association in electrophysiological measures.
DOI of the first publication: 10.1080/23273798.2021.2022171
URL of the first publication: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23273798.2021.2022171
Link to this record: urn:nbn:de:bsz:291--ds-380257
hdl:20.500.11880/34361
http://dx.doi.org/10.22028/D291-38025
ISSN: 2327-3801
2327-3798
Date of registration: 16-Nov-2022
Description of the related object: Supplemental material
Related object: https://ndownloader.figstatic.com/files/33282705
Faculty: P - Philosophische Fakultät
Department: P - Sprachwissenschaft und Sprachtechnologie
Professorship: P - Prof. Dr. Matthew W. Crocker
Collections:SciDok - Der Wissenschaftsserver der Universität des Saarlandes

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