This item is only available for download by members of the University of Illinois community. Students, faculty, and staff at the U of I may log in with your NetID and password to view the item. If you are trying to access an Illinois-restricted dissertation or thesis, you can request a copy through your library's Inter-Library Loan office or purchase a copy directly from ProQuest.
Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/2142/82187
Description
Title
Meaning Apprehension in the Cerebral Hemispheres
Author(s)
Kandhadai, Padmapriya A.
Issue Date
2009
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Federmeier, Kara D.
Department of Study
Psychology
Discipline
Psychology
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Language, Linguistics
Language
eng
Abstract
The first two experiments examined hemispheric differences in the breadth of semantic activation using ambiguous words that possess multiple incompatible meanings, and failed to show significant hemispheric differences in activating and maintaining multiple incompatible meanings. In experiments three and four, associated word pairs of varying associative strengths were used to investigate automatic and controlled aspects of semantic processing; the results strongly suggest that both hemispheres were equally capable of accessing associative information and similarly sensitive to associative strength. Contrary to prominent cognitive neuroscience theories of meaning apprehension, this work shows that the hemispheres exhibit broad similarity in semantic representations and breadth of semantic activation. Instead, the present results suggest that the hemispheres differ in when and how they recruit multiple top-down semantic mechanisms to shape that initial activation over time. For instance, the left hemisphere was better able to employ controlled processes to reorder non-canonical meaning relations. In contrast, the right hemisphere needed more explicit task support to recruit such strategic processes. Furthermore, the present results also revealed a left hemisphere benefit for processing predictable information, suggesting that it was better able to use top-down mechanisms to predict and prepare for likely upcoming words. In sum, this thesis provides evidence for multiple, complementary semantic processes recruited in the cerebral hemispheres and outlines how these mechanisms collectively provide robust tools for rapid language comprehension.
Use this login method if you
don't
have an
@illinois.edu
email address.
(Oops, I do have one)
IDEALS migrated to a new platform on June 23, 2022. If you created
your account prior to this date, you will have to reset your password
using the forgot-password link below.
