Working Memory Effects of Gap-Predictions in Normal Adults: An Event-Related Potentials Study

Hestvik, Arild; Bradley, Evan D.; Bradley, Catherine

doi:10.1007/s10936-011-9197-8

Cited by 14 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 16 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Furthermore, individuals with low WM spans did not show a P600 to the disambiguating word in a complex sentence, whereas high-span individuals did (Vos & Friederici, 2003). When parsing sentences containing long-distance syntactic dependencies, low-span individuals were about 200 ms delayed, based on the longer latency of their P600 responses (Hestvik et al, 2012). However, although the N400 and P600 have both been associated with WM, the English sentence stimuli in our study were simple enough that they neither taxed WM nor revealed its variability.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Native-language N400 and P600 predict dissociable language-learning abilities in adults

Beach

Finn

et al. 2017

Neuropsychologia

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Language learning aptitude during adulthood varies markedly across individuals. An individual’s native-language ability has been associated with success in learning a new language as an adult. However, little is known about how native-language processing affects learning success and what neural markers of native-language processing, if any, are related to success in learning. We therefore related variation in electrophysiology during native-language processing to success in learning a novel artificial language. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded while native English speakers judged the acceptability of English sentences prior to learning an artificial language. There was a trend towards a double dissociation between native-language ERPs and their relationships to novel syntax and vocabulary learning. Individuals who exhibited a greater N400 effect when processing English semantics showed better future learning of the artificial language overall. The N400 effect was related to syntax learning via its specific relationship to vocabulary learning. In contrast, the P600 effect size when processing English syntax predicted future syntax learning but not vocabulary learning. These findings show that distinct neural signatures of native-language processing relate to dissociable abilities for learning novel semantic and syntactic information.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Native-language N400 and P600 predict dissociable language-learning abilities in adults

Beach

Finn

et al. 2017

Neuropsychologia

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The median L2WMC of all the 46 participants was 67.5. Following the study of Hestvik, Bradley and Bradley () and also that of Roberts et al (), we assigned participants to a low L2WMC group if their span was less than or equal to the median of their L2 reading span, and to a high L2WMC group if their span was greater than the median. This resulted in 23 high‐span participants (mean = 77.83, SD = 8.34) and 23 low span participants (mean = 55.26, SD = 9.65).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of working memory capacity in processing wh‐extractions: eye‐movement evidence from Chinese–English bilinguals

Zhou

Rossi

et al. 2016

Journal Research in Reading

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

By using the eye-tracking method, the present study explores whether working memory capacity assessed via the second language (L2) reading span (L2WMC) as well as the operational span task (OSPAN) affects the processing of subject-extraction and object-extraction in Chinese-English bilinguals. Results showed that L2WMC has no effects on the grammatical judgement accuracies, the first fixation duration, gaze duration, go-past times and total fixation duration of the critical regions in whextractions. In contrast, OSPAN influences the first fixation duration and go-past times of the critical regions in wh-extractions. Specifically, in region 1, (e.g., Who do you think loved the comedian [region 1] with [region 2] all his heart [subject-extraction]? versus Who do you think the comedian loved [region 1] with [region 2] all his heart? [object-extraction]), participants with high OSPAN were much slower than those with low OSPAN in their first fixation duration in reading subject-extractions, whereas there were no differences between participants with different OSPANs in reading objectextractions. In region 2, participants with high OSPAN were much faster than those with low OSPAN in their go-past times of object-extractions. These results indicated that individual differences in OSPAN rather than in L2WMC more strongly affect processing of wh-extractions. Thus, OSPAN results to be more suitable to explore the influences of working memory while processing L2 sentences with complex syntax, at least for intermediate proficient bilinguals. Results of the study also provide further support for the Capacity Theory of Comprehension. HighlightsWhat is already known about this topic?• Some studies suggest that working memory capacity (WMC) measured by reading span is not a determining factor in second language (L2) syntactic processing; • Other studies suggest that reading span can be a good predictor in L2 syntactic processing;• Findings concerning the role of WMC in L2 sentence processing are mixed. What this paper adds?• Individual differences in operation span task (OSPAN) play a more important role during L2 syntactic processing than L2WMC; • This study employed the eye-movement method to explore whether WMC measured via both the L2WMC and OSPAN influences the processing of subject-and objectextractions in Chinese-English bilinguals for the first time; • The results offer further support for the Capacity Theory of Comprehension as the limited WMC in humans seems to influence both the online and offline sentence processing. Implications for theory, policy and practiceOperation span task (OSPAN) can reduce the contribution of task-specific variations in WMC's measurement and are more likely to reflect the genuine WMC of participants. Study on the potential moderating effects of OSPAN on WM effects can help to examine the precise nature of WM's role in L2 sentence processing.WORKING MEMORY CAPACITY 421

show abstract

“…The processing of filler-gap sentences in particular might be expected to draw on working memory because resolving the dependency between the filler and the gap requires connecting elements that are at some distance from each other. The role of working memory in the highly automatic syntactic parsing that occurs in monolingual adults is controversial (e.g., Hestvik, Bradley, & Bradley 2012;Kluender & Kutas, 1993;Müller, King, & Kutas, 1997;but cf. Caplan & Waters, 1999).…”

Section: Individual Differences: Working Memory and Proficiencymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The role of working memory in the highly automatic syntactic parsing that occurs in monolingual adults is controversial (e.g., Hestvik, Bradley, & Bradley ; Kluender & Kutas, ; Müller, King, & Kutas, ; but cf. Caplan & Waters, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Event‐Related Potential (ERP) Investigation of Filler‐Gap Processing in Native and Second Language Speakers

2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The current study employed a neuro-imaging technique, Event-Related Potentials (ERP), to investigate real-time processing of sentences containing filler-gap dependencies by late-learning speakers of English as a second language (L2) with a Chinese native language background. An individual differences approach was also taken to examine the role of proficiency and working memory. Materials included a plausibility manipulation to look at whether a plausibility effect, the N400 effect, was found at the point of resolution, the verb, in filler-gap dependencies. The results suggest that, although the L2 speakers as a group are not sensitive to plausibility variations, correlational analysis indicates that more proficient L2 speakers, like the first-language (L1) speakers, are sensitive to plausibility variations while processing filler-gap sentences. Working memory was not found to be associated with more native-like processing of these constructions.

show abstract

Working Memory Effects of Gap-Predictions in Normal Adults: An Event-Related Potentials Study

Cited by 14 publications

References 16 publications

Native-language N400 and P600 predict dissociable language-learning abilities in adults

Native-language N400 and P600 predict dissociable language-learning abilities in adults

Effects of working memory capacity in processing wh‐extractions: eye‐movement evidence from Chinese–English bilinguals

An Event‐Related Potential (ERP) Investigation of Filler‐Gap Processing in Native and Second Language Speakers

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About