Constructional modeling in the formalism of cognitive-quantitative construction grammar

Abstract

This paper discusses the findings of constructional modeling in the formalism of cognitive quantitative construction grammar, a newly developed research framework within a cognitive-quantitative grammar approach. Triangulating theoretical tenets, methodological principles and research tools of cognitivesemiotic frameworks with quantitative corpus studies, cognitive quantitative construction grammar provides a comprehensive qualitative-quantitative approach to examining cognitive foundations, general and idiosyncratic linguistic features, usage patterns and distribution of linguistic constructions. In this context, constructional modeling entails applying a computerized linguoquantitative procedure for a construction profile parametrization. This procedure yields operationalized and statistically verified data on the essential parameters that determine a construction’s linguistic behavior. The modeling uses the boxbracket notation, which integrates the box notation to represent holistic construction-level information and construction’s constituent-level information, and the bracket notation to detail specific linguistic properties and constructional constraints.The constructional modeling in the integrated box-bracket notational system applied to English ꞌdetached nonfinite/nonverbal with explicit subjectꞌ-constructions allows for a comprehensive representation of their external and internal linguistic properties and captures inheritance links betweenthe constructions at macro-, meso- and micro-levels of the constructional network. The research findings demonstrate the feasibility of applying the cognitive quantitative construction grammar formalism to model the linguistic properties and constraints of complex clause-level constructions and how these constructions are likely to be represented in the mental grammar of speakers.