Neurocognitive mechanisms of processing combinatorial unstated meaning

titleNeurocognitive mechanisms of processing combinatorial unstated meaning
start_date2024/06/20
schedule10h30-12h
onlineyes
visiohttps://cnrs.zoom.us/j/99690214434?pwd=Nk5nQll5d1pGMlR0SEVIV24xeEtRUT09
location_infoOnline only via zoom
summaryThe meaning of a sentence largely comes from the meanings of the lexical items and the way they are syntactically combined, following the Principle of Compositionality. Nonetheless, the full-fledged interpretation often goes beyond explicit morphosyntactic cues, involving a piece of meaning that is nontransparent/unstated at the compositional level. Our research aims to understand how comprehenders obtain such nontransparent meaning and the underlying neurocognitive mechanisms, by identifying the linguistic and individual factors that modulate the real-time processing. In this talk, I will discuss a line of studies that address these issues through a series of behavioral and neuroimaging experiments with cross-linguistic investigation (English, Japanese, Chinese). The results suggest that combinatorial nontransparent meaning is computed via an integrative contextual evaluation, preferentially recruiting a left-lateralized frontal-temporal/parietal network independent of morphosyntax. The processing profiles, including the activation of this cortical network, vary with both intra-/extra-sentential context and individuals’ context sensitivity tying to socio-cognitive propensity. The findings clarify the neurocognitive underpinnings of linguistic meaning composition and suggest a role of social cognition in language processing.
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