Conceptual priming in a generative problem-solving task

Three experiments explored how participants solved a very open-ended generative problem-solving task. Previous research has shown that when participants are shown examples, novel creations will tend to conform to features shared across those examples (Smith, Ward, & Schumacher, 1993). We made the shared features of the examples conceptually related to one another. We found that when the features were related to the concept of hostility, participants' creations contained hostile features that were not part of any of the examples. These results suggest that participants will design novel entities to be consistent with emergent properties of examples shown to them. We also found that a mild hostility prime from unscrambling sentences had a similar conceptual effect. Together, the two effects suggest that conceptual priming of generative cognitive tasks will influence the cognitive aspects of the creative process.     

Locational representation in imagery: a moving spot task

Subjects with eyes closed imagined a spot moving from cell to cell in a matrix in response to spoken instructions: Up, Down, Left, and Right. After 12 such moves from a given starting point, the subject indicated the final position of the spot. Accuracy was studied as a function of matrix order, which varied from 3 X 3 to 8 X 8. (Visual angles of the displayed matrices were also varied, from 4.6 degrees/cell in one experiment to 1 degree/cell in another, but with little or no effect on results.) The greatest decrement in accuracy occurred between 3 X 3 and 4 X 4 cells. Moreover, showing the subjects a systematic way of structuring matrices (i.e., of dividing them into parts that could be visualized more or less individually) improved performance markedly on all but the 3 X 3 matrix. These results, which agree fairly well with the verbal reports of the subjects, indicate that some capacity limitation of the image system is exceeded in going from a 3 X 3 to a 4 X 4 grid. Implications concerning the nature of imagery are discussed.     

Conceptual clusters in figurative language production

Although most prior research on figurative language examines comprehension, several recent studies on the production of such language have proved to be informative. One of the most noticeable traits of figurative language production is that it is produced at a somewhat random rate with occasional bursts of highly figurative speech (e.g., Corts & Pollio, 1999). The present article seeks to extend these findings by observing production during speech that involves a very high base rate of figurative language, making statistically defined bursts difficult to detect. In an analysis of three Baptist sermons, burst-like clusters of figurative language were identified. Further study indicated that these clusters largely involve a central root metaphor that represents the topic under consideration. An interaction of the coherence, along with a conceptual understanding of a topic and the relative importance of the topic to the purpose of the speech, is offered as the most likely explanation for the clustering of figurative language in natural speech.     

Spatial language and spatial representation: a cross-linguistic comparison

We examined the relationship between spatial language and spatial memory by comparing native English, Japanese, and Korean speakers' naming of spatial locations and their spatial memory for the same set of locations. We focused on two kinds of spatial organization: axial structure of the reference object, and contact/support with respect to its surface. The results of two language (naming) tasks showed similar organization across the three language groups in terms of axial structure, but differences in organization in terms of contact/support. In contrast, the results of two memory tasks were the same across language groups for both axial structure and contact/support. Moreover, the relationship between spatial language and spatial memory in the two sets of tasks did not show a straightforward isomorphism between the two systems. We conclude that spatial language and spatial memory engage the same kinds of spatial properties, suggesting similarity in the foundations of the two systems. However, the two systems appear to be partially independent: the preservation of particular spatial properties was not mandatory across languages, nor across memory tasks, and cross-linguistic differences in spatial language did not lead to differences in the non-linguistic encoding of location. We speculate that the similarity in linguistic and non-linguistic representations of space may emerge as a functional consequence of negotiating the spatial world.     

Neural aspects of second language representation and language control

A basic issue in the neurosciences of language is whether an L2 can be processed through the same neural mechanism underlying L1 acquisition and processing. In the present paper I review data from functional neuroimaging studies focusing on grammatical and lexico-semantic processing in bilinguals. The available evidence indicates that the L2 seems to be acquired through the same neural structures responsible for L1 acquisition. This fact is also observed for grammar acquisition in late L2 learners contrary to what one may expect from critical period accounts. However, neural differences for an L2 may be observed, in terms of more extended activity of the neural system mediating L1 processing. These differences may disappear once a more 'native-like' proficiency is established, reflecting a change in language processing mechanisms: from controlled processing for a weak L2 system (i.e., a less proficient L2) to more automatic processing. The neuroimaging data reviewed in this paper also support the notion that language control is a crucial aspect specific to the bilingual language system. The activity of brain areas related to cognitive control during the processing of a 'weak' L2 may reflect competition and conflict between languages which may be resolved with the intervention of these areas.     

The impact of external representation in a rule discovery task

The 2-4-6 rule discovery task introduced by Wason (1960) elicits generally poor hypothesis-testing behaviour as reflected by the underwhelming effort and creativity participants invest in the process before announcing their “best” guess. The traditional task departs from real-world hypothesis testing in a significant respect: Reasoners proceed to discover the rule solely from an internal representation of the problem space. Two studies reported here examined representational effects in the 2-4-6 task by developing task isomorphs that offered external, physically manipulable, representations of the dimensions of the problem space. These isomorphs led to a significantly higher incidence of successful rule discovery, driven by significantly greater diligence and creative exploration of the problem space, compared to other task isomorphs that did not offer such an external representation. These results confirm the fruitfulness of a research programme that explores the contextual determinants of sound hypothesis testing.     

Distraction and action slips in an everyday task: Evidence for a dynamic representation of task context

We report here a novel and counterintuitive effect of distraction on routine sequential action. The effect, predicted by a recent computational model of sequential behavior, relates to the tendency for a momentary distraction, such as a brief interruption, to lead to subsequent slips of action. The specific prediction is that errors should be more likely following a distraction occurring toward the middle of a subtask sequence than following a distraction occurring at the end of a subtask. This was tested and confirmed in an experiment involving repeated performance of an everyday task (coffee making) under conditions involving frequent interruption. The observed effect provides differential support for existing models of sequential behavior and offers a highly constraining benchmark for future theories.     

On the representation of task information in task switching: Evidence from task and dimension switching

Task switching research has revealed that task changes lead to a performance switch cost. The present study focuses on the organization of task components in the task set. Three different views of task set organization have been distinguished and evidence in favor of each of these has been reported in the literature. In four experiments, we orthogonally varied the categorization task (magnitude and parity) and the stimulus dimension on which the categorization was to be made. Experiments 1, 2, and 4 used Stroop-like number stimuli, whereas Experiment 3 used global-local stimuli to define the stimulus dimension. In Experiments 2-4, the cue-stimulus interval was also varied. The findings showed that a change of any component resulted in a cost, without any reliable difference in the size of these costs. These results are consistent with the flat view on task-set organization, which assumes that the task set binds all elements in an unstructured representation, which is completely reconfigured each time a change to the task set is required. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to other findings and the different views on task-set organization.     

The effects of mental representation on performance in a navigation task

In three experiments, we investigated the mental representations employed when instructions were followed that involved navigation in a space displayed as a grid on a computer screen. Performance was affected much more by the number of instructional units than by the number of words per unit. Performance in a three-dimensional space was independent of the number of dimensions along which participants navigated. However, memory for and accuracy in following the instructions were reduced when the task required mentally representing a three-dimensional space, as compared with representing a two-dimensional space, although the words used in the instructions were identical in the two cases. These results demonstrate the interdependence of verbal and spatial memory representations, because individuals' immediate memory for verbal navigation instructions is affected by their mental representation of the space referred to by the instructions.     

Verbal representation in task order control: An examination with transition and task cues in random task switching

Recent task-switching studies in which a predictable task sequence has been used have indicated that verbal representation contributes to the control of task order information. The present study focused on the role of verbal representation in sequential task decisions, which are an important part of task order control, and examined the effects of articulatory suppression in a random-task-cuing paradigm with two different types of cues presented just before the presentation of a stimulus: a transition cue and a task cue. The former cue provided information only about switching or repeating the task, whereas the latter was associated directly with the identity of the task (i.e., indicating a parity or a magnitude task). In Experiment 1, in which transition cues guided task sequences, articulatory suppression impaired performance in both repetition and switch trials, thereby increasing the mixing costs. In Experiment 2, in which a task cue, rather than a transition cue, was presented to examine the influence of a cue-decoding process, articulatory suppression had no specific effect on task performance. Experiment 3, in which the transition cue and the task cue were randomly presented in the same block to equalize the memory load and task strategy for the two types of cues, confirmed that articulatory suppression significantly increased the mixing costs only in transition cue trials. The results from the three experiments indicated that the use of verbal representation is effective in sequential task decision—that is, in selecting a task set on the basis of transient task order information in both repetition and switch trials.     

Evidence for internal representation of a static nonlinearity in a visual tracking task

A group of 24 participants was given over 3 h practice at a visual pursuit tracking task with a pronounced static nonlinearity between movement of the joystick and the resulting deflection of the response cursor. The aim was twofold: (1) to determine whether or not participants compensated for the nonlinearity and (2) to show that any such compensation involved the formation of an internal representation of the nonlinear relationship between movement of the joystick as sensed kinaesthetically and/or visually and movement of the response cursor as sensed visually. Results show that participants introduce partial compensation for the static nonlinearity. Furthermore, partial compensation was present even during open-loop tracking when participants were deprived of visual feedback of the position of the response cursor. This implies that participants are able to form an internal representation of the nonlinear relationship between movement of the joystick and the resulting movement of the response cursor.     

Religious language and the task of theology in a scientific and eco-sensitive age

In this paper I shall evaluate a trend in theology; an attempt to naturalize and reinterpret the task of theology and the nature and function of religious language. I propose that religious naturalists adopt a pragmatic view of religious language, and I also introduce the notion of Ecologically Mindful Attitude (EMA). I reach the conclusion that this pragmatic understanding of religion is not successful and that it can be challenged on several levels.     

Inference and exact numerical representation in early language development

How do children as young as 2 years of age know that numerals, like one, have exact interpretations, while quantifiers and words like a do not? Previous studies have argued that only numerals have exact lexical meanings. Children could not use scalar implicature to strengthen numeral meanings, it is argued, since they fail to do so for quantifiers [Papafragou, A., & Musolino, J. (2003). Scalar implicatures: Experiments at the semantics–pragmatics interface. Cognition, 86, 253–282]. Against this view, we present evidence that children’s early interpretation of numerals does rely on scalar implicature, and argue that differences between numerals and quantifiers are due to differences in the availability of the respective scales of which they are members. Evidence from previous studies establishes that (1) children can make scalar inferences when interpreting numerals, (2) children initially assign weak, non-exact interpretations to numerals when first acquiring their meanings, and (3) children can strengthen quantifier interpretations when scalar alternatives are made explicitly available.     

Conditional reasoning, representation, and empirical evidence on a concrete task

This study examined interactions between empirical data, internal representations, and reasoning performance on a conditional reasoning task using a concrete apparatus. Subjects were asked an initial series of questions in order to determine the pattern of inferences they made after simple exposure to the apparatus. They were subsequently shown two different experimental manipulations designed to provide data about the internal structure of the apparatus without giving information about specific inferences. Some subjects did change their reasoning in response to the new data, although most remained stable throughout the experiment. These results are consistent with the idea that reasoning may require generation of an internal representation of a problem space. It was also concluded that the relation between reasoning and empirical evidence cannot be understood without supposing that evidence is often interpreted by subjects according to their reasoning patterns.     

Conceptual accessibility and sentence production in a free word order language (Odawa)

The study reported here was conducted in the Algonquian language of Odawa (a.k.a. Ottawa), with the goal of gaining new insight into the ways that conceptual accessibility affects human sentence production. The linguistic characteristics of Odawa are quite different from those found in the languages most often examined by psycholinguists. The data obtained from the sentence production experiment reported here are thus relevant to production in a heretofore unexamined language. Moreover, the data inform broader theoretical issues, such as the extent to which sentence production can be considered as an incremental process, and the interaction of the various factors affecting conceptual accessibility. In addition, the study stands as evidence that experimental psycholinguistic research can and should be carried out in typologically diverse languages.     

Conceptual models and functions of meditation in psychotherapy

Although meditation is increasingly being employed as an adjunct in psychotherapy, there has been practically no comprehensive evaluation of its usefulness in this respect. This paper seeks to address this issue through conceptual models of the meditation experience. It is concluded that meditation practice may be associated with the acquisition of some useful skills (e.g., focused attention), that practice may be physiologically relaxing, that meditation may decrease anxiety, insomnia and drug usage, while enhancing hypnotic induction and self-actualization. There is still no compelling evidence, however, that meditation practice is associated with unique state effects compared with other relaxational procedures. Those who appear to benefit most from meditation appear to be those who present with milder disorders. The clinical value of meditation, therefore, appears to be limited. Furthermore, the long-term objectives of meditation are not in general congruent with those of mainstream psychotherapy, as they go beyond therapeutic gain in the clinical sense.