Is Passive Syntax Semantically Constrained? Evidence From Adult Grammaticality Judgment and Comprehension Studies

To explain the phenomenon that certain English verbs resist passivization (e.g., *£5 was cost by the book), Pinker (1989) proposed a semantic constraint on the passive in the adult grammar: The greater the extent to which a verb denotes an action where a patient is affected or acted upon, the greater the extent to which it is compatible with the passive. However, a number of comprehension and production priming studies have cast doubt upon this claim, finding no difference between highly affecting agent‐patient/theme‐experiencer passives (e.g., Wendy was kicked/frightened by Bob) and non‐actional experiencer theme passives (e.g., Wendy was heard by Bob). The present study provides evidence that a semantic constraint is psychologically real, and is readily observed when more fine‐grained independent and dependent measures are used (i.e., participant ratings of verb semantics, graded grammaticality judgments, and reaction time in a forced‐choice picture‐matching comprehension task). We conclude that a semantic constraint on the passive must be incorporated into accounts of the adult grammar.     

Syntactic Representations Are Both Abstract and Semantically Constrained: Evidence From Children’s and Adults’ Comprehension and Production/Priming of the English Passive

All accounts of language acquisition agree that, by around age 4, children’s knowledge of grammatical constructions is abstract, rather than tied solely to individual lexical items. The aim of the present research was to investigate, focusing on the passive, whether children’s and adults’ performance is additionally semantically constrained, varying according to the distance between the semantics of the verb and those of the construction. In a forced-choice pointing study (Experiment 1), both 4- to 6-year olds (N = 60) and adults (N = 60) showed support for the prediction of this semantic construction prototype account of an interaction such that the observed disadvantage for passives as compared to actives (i.e., fewer correct points/longer reaction time) was greater for experiencer-theme verbs than for agent-patient and theme-experiencer verbs (e.g., Bob was seen/hit/frightened by Wendy). Similarly, in a production/priming study (Experiment 2), both 4- to 6-year olds (N = 60) and adults (N = 60) produced fewer passives for experiencer-theme verbs than for agent-patient/theme-experiencer verbs. We conclude that these findings are difficult to explain under accounts based on the notion of A(rgument) movement or of a monostratal, semantics-free, level of syntax, and instead necessitate some form of semantic construction prototype account.     

The Shifting Subtypes of ADHD: Classification Depends on How Symptom Reports are Combined

Research on the correlates of ADHD subtypes has yielded inconsistent findings, perhaps because the procedures used to define subtypes vary across studies. We examined this possibility by investigating whether the ADHD subtype distribution in a community sample was sensitive to different methods for combining informant data. We conducted a study to screen all children in grades 1-5 (N = 7847) in a North Carolina County for ADHD. Teachers completed a DSM-IV behavior rating scale and parents completed a structured telephone interview. We found substantial differences in the distribution of ADHD subtypes depending on whether one or both sources were used to define the subtypes. When parent and teacher data were combined, the procedures used substantially influenced subtype distribution. We conclude the ADHD subtype distribution is sensitive to how symptom information is combined and that standardization of the subtyping process is required to advance our understanding of the correlates of different ADHD subtypes.     

Teaching relationship science: Continuity and change in the craft

Relationship science is a dynamic, flourishing enterprise, with numerous discoveries and new lines of inquiry evident in recent changes in its textbooks and the teaching activities invented by its instructors. To survey changes and challenges in the teaching of courses that introduce students to relationship science—and to pursue “news instructors can use”—we surveyed 135 instructors of relationships courses regarding their teaching tactics and experiences. Guided by their responses and suggestions for further inquiry, we also examined the changes in textbooks on which they rely and reviewed teaching activities created to assist them with their teaching over the last 20 years. At present, some topics are nearly universal components of relationships courses but idiosyncrasy exists, particularly with regard to new topics—such as coverage of technology, intersectionality, or consensual nonmonogamy—that instructors plan to include in revisions of their courses. Suggestions for both new and experienced instructors are provided.     

Testing effects in mixed- versus pure-list designs

In the present study, we investigated the role of list composition in the testing effect. Across three experiments, participants learned items through study and initial testing or study and restudy. List composition was manipulated, such that tested and restudied items appeared either intermixed in the same lists (mixed lists) or in separate lists (pure lists). In Experiment 1, half of the participants received mixed lists and half received pure lists. In Experiment 2, all participants were given both mixed and pure lists. Experiment 3 followed Erlebacher’s (Psychological Bulletin, 84, 212–219, 1977) method, such that mixed lists, pure tested lists, and pure restudied lists were given to independent groups. Across all three experiments, the final recall results revealed significant testing effects for both mixed and pure lists, with no reliable difference in the magnitude of the testing advantage across list designs. This finding suggests that the testing effect is not subject to a key boundary condition—list design—that impacts other memory phenomena, including the generation effect.