Abstract
We used a sentence-picture matching task to demonstrate that heuristics can influence language comprehension. Interpretation of quantifier scope ambiguous sentences such as Every kid climbed a tree was investigated. Such sentences are ambiguous with respect to the number of trees inferred; either several trees were climbed or just one. The availability of the NOUN VERB NOUN (N-V-N) heuristic, e.g., KID CLIMB TREE, should contribute to the interpretation of how many trees were climbed. Specifically, we hypothesized that number choices for these stimuli would be predicted by choices previously made to corresponding (full) sentences. 45 participants were instructed to treat N-V-N triplets such as KID CLIMB TREE as telegrams and select a picture, regarding the quantity (“several” vs. “one”) associated with tree. Results confirmed that plural responses to quantifier scope ambiguous sentences significantly predict increased plural judgments in the picture-matching task. This result provides empirical evidence that the N-V-N heuristic, via conceptual event knowledge, can influence sentence interpretation. Furthermore, event knowledge must include the quantity of participants in the event (especially in terms of “several” vs. “one”). These findings are consistent with our model of language comprehension functioning as “Heuristic first, algorithmic second.” Furthermore, results are consistent with judgment and decision making in other cognitive domains.
Highlights
In previous work [2], we argued that language comprehension operates via “Heuristic first, algorithmic second” mechanisms
Using logistic regression, this work empirically demonstrated that variation in sentence interpretation with respect to number, for identical syntactic constructions, is a function of lexical factors that contribute to event interpretation
Our findings reveal that conceptual event interpretation must include information regarding the number of participants in a script
Summary
In English, we can use a simple NOUN VERB NOUN (N-V-N) heuristic [1], or rule of thumb, to create events in our minds, where some events are more likely to occur than others. If the same words, in the same order as DOG BITE MAN, are inserted into grammatically complex sentences, such as It was the dog that the man bit, or The dog was bitten by the man, the grammar dictates that the interpretation is consistent with the unlikely scene indicated in MAN BITE DOG. It is clear that two systems are important for language comprehension, one relying on context and experience (heuristics), and the other relying on grammatical form and rules (algorithms). At first pass, the processes people use in other cognitive domains are consistent with processes used in language comprehension
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