In three experiments, we investigate whether speakers tend to perseverate in the assignment of emphasis to concepts with particular thematic roles across utterances. Participants matched prime sentences involving clefts (e.g., Het is de cowboy die hij slaat, “It is the cowboy that he is hitting”) to pictures and then described unrelated transitive events. Participants were more likely to produce a passive after a cleft that emphasised the patient than after a cleft that emphasised the agent. Because prime and target sentences are syntactically unrelated, our study demonstrated nonsyntactic structural priming. We propose that speakers use such priming to facilitate the construction of coherent discourse

Vernice, M., Pickering, M., Hartsuiker, R. (2012). Thematic emphasis in language production. LANGUAGE AND COGNITIVE PROCESSES, 27(5), 631-664 [10.1080/01690965.2011.572468].

Thematic emphasis in language production

VERNICE, MIRTA;
2012

Abstract

In three experiments, we investigate whether speakers tend to perseverate in the assignment of emphasis to concepts with particular thematic roles across utterances. Participants matched prime sentences involving clefts (e.g., Het is de cowboy die hij slaat, “It is the cowboy that he is hitting”) to pictures and then described unrelated transitive events. Participants were more likely to produce a passive after a cleft that emphasised the patient than after a cleft that emphasised the agent. Because prime and target sentences are syntactically unrelated, our study demonstrated nonsyntactic structural priming. We propose that speakers use such priming to facilitate the construction of coherent discourse
Articolo in rivista - Articolo scientifico
Thematic roles, Emphasis, Spoken language production, Structural priming,
produzione del linguaggio
English
2012
27
5
631
664
none
Vernice, M., Pickering, M., Hartsuiker, R. (2012). Thematic emphasis in language production. LANGUAGE AND COGNITIVE PROCESSES, 27(5), 631-664 [10.1080/01690965.2011.572468].
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/10281/23917
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