A unified theory of the meaning of some spatial relational terms

This paper presents a unified account of the meaning of the spatial relational terms right, left, in front of, behind, above and below. It claims that each term has three types of meanings, basic, deictic and intrinsic, and that the definitions of each type of meaning are identical in form for all six terms. Restrictions on the use of the terms, which are different for above and below than for the rest, are explained by a general constraint on all uses of spatial relational terms, the framework vertical constraint. This constraint depends on the existence of a fourth type of meaning for above and below, one defined by the framework in which the related objects are located. It is argued that a theory centred on the framework vertical constraint is preferable to one centred on the principle of canonical orientation (Levelt, 1984).     

Effects of specificity on the interpretation of anaphoric noun phrases

Reading-time experiments on anaphor resolution have produced conflicting results. Some studies have been taken to support a schema-based theory of text comprehension, which claims that the ease of interpreting an anaphor depends on the schemata that are currently activated. Other studies suggest that more specific factors, such as the amount of new information carried by an anaphor, affect the amount of time needed to understand it. This paper reports an experiment designed to confirm the importance of an anaphor's information content in determining how much processing it requires. The experiment also investigates the role of schemata in anaphor resolution. It provides no evidence for schema-based processing. However, it is difficult to decide whether the materials used in the experiment should produce schematic effects. It is argued that this is a fault of schema theory, and unless this fault is rectified the theory cannot be regarded as a serious contender for an account of anaphor resolution.     

Book reviews

Lutman, M. E. and Haggard, M. P. (Eds.). Hearing Science and Hearing Disorders. London: Academic Press. 1983. Pp. 338. ISBN 0-12-460440. £15.00.

Mehler, J., Walker, E. C. T. and Garrett, M. (Eds.). Perspectives on Mental Representation: Experimental and Theoretical Studies of Cognitive Processes and Capacities. Hillsdale, N. J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 1982. Pp. xiv+485. ISBN 0-89859-194-5. £27.50.

Schacter, D. L. The Stranger Behind the Engram. Theories of Memory and the Psychology of Science. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 1982. Pp. 294. ISBN 0-89859-245-3. £19.95.

Broughton, J. M. and Freeman-Moir, D. J. (Eds.). The Cognitive Developmental Psychology of James Mark Baldwin: Current Theory and Research in Genetic Epistemology. Norwood, N. J.: Ablex Publishing Corporation. 1982. Pp. 460. ISBN 0-89391-043-0. £36.50.

Flammer, A. and Kintsch, W. (Eds.). Discourse Processing (Advances in Psychology, Vol. 8). Amsterdam: North Holland. 1982. Pp. x + 614. ISBN 0-444-86515-2. £33.19.

Beaumont, J. Graham. (Ed.). Divided Visual Field Studies of Cerebral Organisation. London: Academic Press. 1982. Pp. xiii + 305. ISBN 0-12-084080-4. £18.00.

Lloyd-Bostock, S. and Clifford, B. R. (Eds.). Evaluating Witness Evidence: Recent Psychological Research and New Perspectives. Chichester: Wiley. Pp. x - 305. ISBN 0-471-10463-9. £19.95.

Jarvella, R. J. and Klein, W. (Eds.). Speech, Place and Action: Studies in Deixis and Related Topics. Chichester: Wiley. 1982. Pp. 389. ISBN 0-471-10045-5. £22.75.

Bradshaw, J. L. and Nettleton, N. G. Human Cerebral Asymmetry. Englewood Porac, C. and Coren, S. Lateral Preferences and Human Behaviour. New York: Cliffs: Prentice Hall. 1982. Pp. 335. ISBN 0-13-444646-1. £21.00.

Porac, C. and Coren, S. Lateral Preferences and Human Behaviour. New York: Springer-Verlag. 1981. Pp. 283. ISBN 0-387-90596-0. $24.20.

Barlow, H. B. and Mollon, J. D. (Eds.). The Senses. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1982. Pp. 490. ISBN 0-521-24474-9. Hardback £30.00; paperback £12.50.

Bronson, G. W. The Scanning Patterns of Human Infants: Implications for Visual Learning. Norwood, N. J.: Ablex Publishing Corporation. 1982. Pp. 152. ISBN 0-89391-114-3. £16.00.

Walk, R. D. and Pick, Jr., H. L. (Eds.). Intersensory Perception and Sensory Integration. New York: Plenum. 1981. Pp. 415. ISBN 0-306-40610-1. $32.50.

Underwood, G. and Stevens, R. (Eds.). Aspects of Consciousness, Vol. 2: Structural Issues. London: Academic Press. 1981. Pp. 246. ISBN 0-12-708802-4. £5.00

Underwood, G. (Ed.). Aspects of Consciousness, Vol. 3: Awareness and Self-Awareness. London: Academicpress. 1982. Pp. 331. ISBN 0-12-708803-2. £9.00.

Lehnert, W. G. and Ringle, M. H. (Eds.). Strategies for Natural Language Processing. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 1982. Pp. xxii + 533. ISBN 0-89859-191-0. £ 27.50.     

Book reviews

Clark, M. S. and Fiske, S. T. (Eds.). Affect and cognition: The Seventeenth Annual Cornegie Symposium on Cognition. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 1982. Pp. 357. ISBN 0-89859-212-7. £24.00.

Norman, D. A. (Ed.). Perspectives on Cognitive Science. Norwood, New Jersey: Ablex. 1981. Pp. 303. ISBN 0-89391-071-6. $19.95

Gollin, E. S. (Ed.). Developmental Plasticity: Behavioral and Biological Aspects of Variations in Development. New York: Academic Press. 1981. Pp. 282. ISBN 0-12-289620-3. £16.60.

Rapin, I. Children with Brain Dysfunction. New York: Raven Press. 1982. Pp. 300. ISBN 0-89004-844-4. $46.50.

Schank, R. C. Reading and Understanding: Teaching from the Perspective of Artificial Intelligence. Hillsdale, N. J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 1982. Pp. xii + 196. ISBN 0-89859-169-4. £13.95.

Sheehan, P. W. and McConkey, K. M. Hypnosis and Experience: The Exploration of Phenomena and Process. Hillsdale, N. J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 1982. Pp. 297. ISBN 0-89859-195-3. £17.50.

Burton, A. (Ed.). The Pathology and Psychology of Cognition. London: Methuen. 1983. Pp. 306. ISBN 0-416-30810-4. Hardback, £13.00; paperback, £5.95.

Otto, W. and White, S. (Eds.). Reading Expository Material. London: Academic Press. 1982. Pp. xiv + 303. ISBN 0-12-531050-1. £19.60.

Lerdahl, F. and Jackendoff, R. A Generative Theory of Tonal Music. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. 1983. Pp. 368. ISBN 0-262-12094-1. £31.30.

Lewis, B. (Ed.). Bioacoustics: A Comparative Approach. London: Academic Press. 1983. Pp. 493. ISBN 0-12-446550-1. £29.50.

Carpenter, T. P., Moser, J. M. and Romberg, T. A. Addition and Subtraction: A Cognitive Perspective. Hillsdale, N. J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 1982. Pp. 245. ISBN 0-89859-171-6. £14.95.

Le Ny, J-F. and Kintsch, W. (Eds.). Language and comprehension. Amsterdam: North-Holland. 1982. Pp. 358. ISBN 0-444-86538-1.Dfl. 120.00.

Schwartz, B. and Lacey, H. Behaviorism, science and human nature. New York: W. W. Norton. 1982. Pp. 282. ISBN 0-393-01585-8. $19.95.

Cole, P. R. Language disorders in preschool children. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall. 1982. Pp. 178. ISBN 0-13-522862-X. £19.75.

Wood, M. L. Language disorders in school-age children. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall. 1982. Pp. 156. ISBN 0-13-522946-4. £19.75.

Baddeley, A. D. Your memory: A user's guide. London: Sidgwick & Jackson. 1982. Pp. 222. ISBN 0-283-98929-7. £9.95.

Lass, N. J. (Ed.). Speech and language: Advances in basic research and practice, Vol. 6. London: Academic Press. 1982. Pp. 477. ISBN 0-12-608606-0. £36.40.

Neisser, U. (Ed.). Memory observed: Remembering in natural contexts. San Francisco: W. H. Freeman. 1982. Pp. 433 + xiii. ISBN 07167-1 1371-3. £8.80 (paperback), £18.80 (hardback).

Gentner, D. and Stevens, A. L. Mental models. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 1983. Pp. viii + 348. ISBN 0-89859-242-9. £24.95.

Miles, T. R. Dyslexia: The pattern of diculties. London: Granada. 1983. Pp. 225. ISBN 0-246-11345-6. £9.95.

Humphrey, N. Consciousness regained. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1983. Pp. 222. ISBN 0-19-217732-X. £12.95.

Levinson, S. C. Pragmatics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1983. Pp. xvi + 420. ISBN 0-521-22235-4 (Case). £25.00. ISBN 0-521-29414-2 (Paper). £8.50.     

Mental models as representations of text

A theory of text representation is outlined which suggests that a text is encoded in a mental model that contains representations of only those individuals and events that are relevant to the interpretation of the text in question. Such models are constructed on-line in response to cues in the text and with reference to knowledge about the world. An experiment is reported which demonstrates that mental models represent the events most probably described in a text. The results confirm previous findings that memory for the content of a passage is not based on the construction of one of its linguistically motivated representations. However, unlike most previous findings, they do support a positive proposal about the nature of the representations on which memory for content is based.     

From synonyms to homonyms: exploring the role of metarepresentation in language understanding

Doherty and Perner (Metalinguistic awareness and theory of mind: just two words for the same thing? Cognitive Development, 13 (1998), 279–305) report that children’s understanding of synonyms and false belief is dependent on an understanding of the representational mind. Experiment 1 extends this finding by examining children’s understanding of homonyms. Children aged 3 and 4 years were asked to judge whether a puppet correctly selected the second member of a homonym pair. Performance on this task was strongly associated with performance on the false belief task even after chronological and verbal mental age had been accounted for. Experiment 2 incorporated two new tasks: a synonyms task and an adjectives task. Understanding of synonyms and homonyms significantly predicted performance on the false belief task. However, once chronological age was accounted for, only performance on the homonyms task did so. The difficulty experienced on the homonyms task was not due to a reluctance to acknowledge that the puppet can point to a different picture when the the same word label is used twice. Children had no difficulty on the adjectives task when the puppet had to point to a different picture described using the same adjective. The suggestion that the understanding of synonyms, homonyms and false belief are related by a common insight into the representational mind is therefore not supported.     

The relationship between monoaminergic gene expression,learning, and optimism in red junglefowl chicks

Animal Cognition - Intra-species cognitive variation is commonly observed, but explanations for why individuals within a species differ in cognition are still understudied and not yet clear....     

Au pairs are rarely male: Norms on the gender perception of role names across English,French, and German

A list of role names for future use in research on gender stereotyping was created and evaluated. In two studies, 126 role names were rated with reference to their gender stereotypicality by English-, French-, and German-speaking students of universities in Switzerland (French and German) and in the U.K. (English). Role names were either presented in specific feminine and masculine forms (Study 1) or in the masculine form (generic masculine) only (Study 2). The rankings of the stereotypicality ratings were highly reliable across languages and questionnaire versions, but the overall mean of the ratings was less strongly male if participants were also presented with the female versions of the role names and if the latter were presented on the left side of the questionnaires.     

Book reviews

Cleeremans, A. (1993). Mechanisms of implicit learning. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Pp. 227. ISBN 0-262-03205-8. £26.95.

Manktelow, K.l., & Over, D.E. (Eds.) (1993). Rationality: psychological and philosophical perspectives. London: Routledge. Pp. 322. ISBN 0-415-06955-6. £40.00.

Parkin, A. (1993). Memory. Oxford: Blackwell, Pp. 272. ISBN 0-631-15711-5. £40 (Hbk); ISBN 0-631-15712-3. £12.99 (Pbk).

Hellige, J.B. (1993). Hemispheric asymmetry: What's right and what's left. (Perspectives in cognitive neuroscience series.) Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Pp. 396. ISBN 0-674-38730-9. £27.95 (Hbk).