Semantic activation of noun concepts in context.

Abstract

A modified Stoop procedure was used to examine the role that context plays in guiding semantic access of unambiguous nouns in sentence contexts. The sentences either emphasized a high-or a low-dominant property of a noun that was the last word in the sentence or were control sentences. Each sentence was followed by the relevant high-or low-dominant property either immediately or after a 300or a 600-ms delay. There was significant color-naming interference (relative to control) for high-dominant properties regardless of biasing context in the immediate and delayed conditions. There was also significant color-naming interference for low-dominant properties in the immediate condition regardless of context. However, in the delayed conditions, the low-dominant properties led to color-naming interference only when preceded by sentence contexts biasing interpretation toward the low-dominant property. It was concluded that high-dominant properties function as core, or invariant, aspects of meaning and that initial semantic access is context independent.

Activating Basic Category Exemplars in Sentence Contexts: A Dynamical Account

“…This finding contradicts 'constructivist' theories that claim that categories do not possess a relatively fixed internal structure and that the meaning of a category can change dramatically, depending on the context in which the name of the category is immersed (Anderson et al 1976;Anderson and Shiffrin 1980). For the present question of when context influences category structure, Whitney et al 1985 work is most relevant because it entailed an on-line investigation of processing using Cross Modal Lexical Priming (CMLP). CMLP, which has also been used in some of the studies of lexical access mentioned previously, is based on the semantic priming effect: Words closely associated with previously perceived words will be recognized faster than unrelated words (see, e.g., Neely 1977).…”

“…Other work on conceptual categorization in a sentential context was carried out by Whitney and colleagues (Whitney 1986;Whitney and Kellas 1984;Whitney et al 1985). In their 1984 study using the Stroop effect, Whitney and Kellas showed that when category names are encountered in a sentence they do not seem to be encoded as particular (contextually congruent) exemplars.…”

“…The third experiment examines the temporal characteristics of the contextual adaptation of categories. In all experiments, we use Cross Modal Lexical Priming (CMLP; see, for example, Nicol et al 2006;Shapiro et al 1998;Swinney 1979;Whitney et al 1985) as a task that appears to be sensitive to fast-acting and relatively automatic processes that underlie on-line sentence understanding. Finally, in the discussion of present results we try to reconcile the form-driven and interactive approaches to contextual adaptation of lexical items by interpreting them in a dynamical framework.…”

Toward Semantics in the Wild: Activation to Manipulable Nouns in Naturalistic Reading

“…It is conceivable that even at the lexical level only a shallow semantic access occurs in natural reading. Combining this view with the hypothesis that words have a "core" meaning that is automatically and rapidly activated (Whitney et al, 1985;Mahon and Caramazza, 2008;Dove, 2009), perhaps only this core meaning is activated in natural reading. On this view, common single-word experimental settings result in an unusually deep and/or wider processing of the concept, resulting in activation of "peripheral" semantic features, which may be grounded in sensory-motor cortices but do not represent the core aspects of the meaning, whatever they are.…”

Half a century of research on the Stroop effect: An integrative review.

“…In a series of studies, Whitney and his colleagues (Whitney, 1986;Whitney & Kellas, 1984;Whitney, McKay, Kellas, & Emerson, 1985) examined lexical access using the Stroop task. Initially, Whitney and KeUas (1984) presented sentences that biased a typical member of a category (e.g., "The guest saw the bird that landed on the branch"--robin) or an atypical member (e.g., "The guest saw the bird that roasted on the grill"--chicken), or that were neutral (e.g., "The guest saw the towels that hung in the bathroom").…”