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Context matters: How do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing?

Many theories of semantic representation propose that simulations of sensorimotor experience contribute to language processing. This can be seen in the body-object interaction effect (BOI; how easily the human body can interact with a word’s referent). Words with high BOI ratings (e.g., ball) are pr...

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Autores principales: Muraki, Emiko J., Doyle, Alison, Protzner, Andrea B., Pexman, Penny M.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Frontiers Media S.A. 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9886877/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36733894
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2022.976954
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author Muraki, Emiko J.
Doyle, Alison
Protzner, Andrea B.
Pexman, Penny M.
author_facet Muraki, Emiko J.
Doyle, Alison
Protzner, Andrea B.
Pexman, Penny M.
author_sort Muraki, Emiko J.
collection PubMed
description Many theories of semantic representation propose that simulations of sensorimotor experience contribute to language processing. This can be seen in the body-object interaction effect (BOI; how easily the human body can interact with a word’s referent). Words with high BOI ratings (e.g., ball) are processed more quickly than words with low BOI ratings (e.g., cloud) in various language tasks. This effect can be modulated by task demands. Previous research established that when asked to decide if a word is an object (entity condition), a BOI effect is observed, but when asked to decide if a word is an action (action condition), there is no BOI effect. It is unclear whether the null behavioral effect in the action condition reflects top-down modulation of task-relevant sensorimotor information or the absence of bottom-up activation of sensorimotor simulations. We investigated this question using EEG. In Experiment 1 we replicated the previous behavioral findings. In Experiment 2, 50 participants were assigned to either the entity or action conditions and responded to the same word stimuli. In both conditions we observed differences in ERP components related to the BOI effect. In the entity condition the P2 mean amplitude was significantly more positive for high compared to low BOI words. In the action condition the N400 peak latency was significantly later for high compared to low BOI words. Our findings suggest that BOI information is generated bottom-up regardless of task demands and modulated by top-down processes that recruit sensorimotor information relevant to the task decision.
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spelling pubmed-98868772023-02-01 Context matters: How do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing? Muraki, Emiko J. Doyle, Alison Protzner, Andrea B. Pexman, Penny M. Front Hum Neurosci Neuroscience Many theories of semantic representation propose that simulations of sensorimotor experience contribute to language processing. This can be seen in the body-object interaction effect (BOI; how easily the human body can interact with a word’s referent). Words with high BOI ratings (e.g., ball) are processed more quickly than words with low BOI ratings (e.g., cloud) in various language tasks. This effect can be modulated by task demands. Previous research established that when asked to decide if a word is an object (entity condition), a BOI effect is observed, but when asked to decide if a word is an action (action condition), there is no BOI effect. It is unclear whether the null behavioral effect in the action condition reflects top-down modulation of task-relevant sensorimotor information or the absence of bottom-up activation of sensorimotor simulations. We investigated this question using EEG. In Experiment 1 we replicated the previous behavioral findings. In Experiment 2, 50 participants were assigned to either the entity or action conditions and responded to the same word stimuli. In both conditions we observed differences in ERP components related to the BOI effect. In the entity condition the P2 mean amplitude was significantly more positive for high compared to low BOI words. In the action condition the N400 peak latency was significantly later for high compared to low BOI words. Our findings suggest that BOI information is generated bottom-up regardless of task demands and modulated by top-down processes that recruit sensorimotor information relevant to the task decision. Frontiers Media S.A. 2023-01-17 /pmc/articles/PMC9886877/ /pubmed/36733894 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2022.976954 Text en Copyright © 2023 Muraki, Doyle, Protzner and Pexman. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
spellingShingle Neuroscience
Muraki, Emiko J.
Doyle, Alison
Protzner, Andrea B.
Pexman, Penny M.
Context matters: How do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing?
title Context matters: How do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing?
title_full Context matters: How do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing?
title_fullStr Context matters: How do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing?
title_full_unstemmed Context matters: How do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing?
title_short Context matters: How do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing?
title_sort context matters: how do task demands modulate the recruitment of sensorimotor information during language processing?
topic Neuroscience
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9886877/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36733894
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2022.976954
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