The role of parallelism in the real-time processing of anaphora

Abstract

Parallelism effects refer to the facilitated processing of a target structure when it follows a similar, parallel structure. In coordination, a parallelism-related conjunction triggers the expectation that a second conjunct with the same structure as the first conjunct should occur. It has been proposed that parallelism effects reflect the use of the first structure as a template that guides the processing of the second. In this study, we examined the role of parallelism in real-time anaphora resolution by charting activation patterns in coordinated constructions containing anaphora, Verb-Phrase Ellipsis (VPE) and Noun-Phrase Traces (NP-traces). Specifically, we hypothesised that an expectation of parallelism would incite the parser to assume a structure similar to the first conjunct in the second, anaphora-containing conjunct. The speculation of a similar structure would result in early postulation of covert anaphora. Experiment 1 confirms that following a parallelism-related conjunction, first-conjunct material is activated in the second conjunct. Experiment 2 reveals that an NP-trace in the second conjunct is posited immediately where licensed, which is earlier than previously reported in the literature. In light of our findings, we propose an intricate relation between structural expectations and anaphor resolution.

The Processing and Interpretation of Verb Phrase Ellipsis Constructions by Children at Normal and Slowed Speech Rates

“…We are not aware of any studies that examined elliptical constructions in children using online tasks, although several were conducted with adults with and without cognitive impairments (Callahan et al, 2010; Poirier, Shapiro, Love, & Grodzinsky, 2009; Poirier, Walenski, & Shapiro, 2011; Shapiro et al, 2003; Shapiro & Hestvik, 1995). These online studies of VP ellipsis constructions suggest the involvement of at least two processes that may, at times, produce overlapping effects: (a) a syntactic process of VP reconstruction and (b) an effect of parallelism that results in sustained activation of first-conjunct material.…”

“…According to the sustained reactivation hypothesis (Callahan et al, 2010), cues associated with parallelism, such as the conjunction and , induce sustained activation and maintenance of first-conjunct material in the second conjunct of a conjoined sentence. In one study of VP ellipsis constructions that examined sentences with two conjuncts conjoined with and —as illustrated in Example 13—the subject of the first conjunct was primed in the second conjunct at a baseline test point (*1) prior to the ellipsis phrase as well as at the ellipsis phrase (*2; Poirier et al, 2011): 13. [The dog disappeared in the crowded street fair] and [the child with the blue jump *1 suit on did *2 too ], much to the family’s dismay.…”

“…According to this view, priming for the sloppy interpretation with normal rate speech input (priming for the subject of the second conjunct) reflects the syntactic processes of VP reconstruction and anaphor–antecedent linking. Priming for the strict interpretation with normal rate input could come from one of two effects (or both): either (a) the syntactic process of VP reconstruction (again, with concomitant anaphor–antecedent linking) or (b) a sustained reactivation effect, whereby the subject of the first conjunct is reactivated and maintained throughout the second conjunct, independent from any syntactic reconstruction processes (Poirier et al, 2011). With slowed speech input, temporally sensitive syntactic processes are disrupted, entailing no VP reconstruction, no anaphor–antecedent linking, and hence no syntactic mechanism underlying priming either for the sloppy or for the strict interpretations.…”

Grammatical Role Parallelism Influences Ambiguous Pronoun Resolution in German

“…Especially, the third type has been shown to have a strong impact on sentence processing (e.g., Sheldon, 1974; Frazier et al, 1984; Carlson, 2001; Callahan et al, 2010; Poirier et al, 2012 on English; Weskott, 2003; Knoeferle and Crocker, 2009 on German).…”

Conjunction meaning can modulate parallelism facilitation: Eye-tracking evidence from German clausal coordination

“…Alternatively, the meaning of the conjunction may be what modulates constituent order parallelism 3 For a discussion of alternatives such as copy-a (Frazier & Clifton, 2001) or pointers to representations in memory (Martin & McElree, 2008) see Knoeferle and Crocker (2009). 4 See Callahan, Shapiro, and Love (2010) for evidence on the re-activation of verb meaning in response to a related vs. unrelated probe word following the conjunction and, and see Poirier, Walenski, and Shapiro (2011) for relevant evidence on anaphora processing.…”