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León-Cabrera P, Hjortdal A, Berthelsen SG, Rodríguez-Fornells A, Roll M. Neurophysiological signatures of prediction in language: A critical review of anticipatory negativities. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 160:105624. [PMID: 38492763 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Revised: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/18/2024]
Abstract
Recent event-related potential (ERP) studies in language comprehension converge in finding anticipatory negativities preceding words or word segments that can be pre-activated based on either sentence contexts or phonological cues. We review these findings from different paradigms in the light of evidence from other cognitive domains in which slow negative potentials have long been associated with anticipatory processes and discuss their potential underlying mechanisms. We propose that this family of anticipatory negativities captures common mechanisms associated with the pre-activation of linguistic information both within words and within sentences. Future studies could utilize these anticipatory negativities in combination with other, well-established ERPs, to simultaneously track prediction-related processes emerging at different time intervals (before and after the perception of pre-activated input) and with distinct time courses (shorter-lived and longer-lived cognitive operations).
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia León-Cabrera
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Unit, Department of Cognition, Development and Educational Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; Department of Basic Sciences, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya, Sant Cugat del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Anna Hjortdal
- Centre for Languages and Literature (SOL), Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Sabine Gosselke Berthelsen
- Centre for Languages and Literature (SOL), Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics (NorS), University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Antoni Rodríguez-Fornells
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Unit, Department of Cognition, Development and Educational Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica de Bellvitge (IDIBELL), Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mikael Roll
- Centre for Languages and Literature (SOL), Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
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Hjortdal A, Frid J, Novén M, Roll M. Swift Prosodic Modulation of Lexical Access: Brain Potentials From Three North Germanic Language Varieties. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2024; 67:400-414. [PMID: 38306498 DOI: 10.1044/2023_jslhr-23-00193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2024]
Abstract
PURPOSE According to most models of spoken word recognition, listeners probabilistically activate a set of lexical candidates, which is incrementally updated as the speech signal unfolds. Speech carries segmental (speech sound) as well as suprasegmental (prosodic) information. The role of the latter in spoken word recognition is less clear. We investigated how suprasegments (tone and voice quality) in three North Germanic language varieties affected lexical access by scrutinizing temporally fine-grained neurophysiological effects of lexical uncertainty and information gain. METHOD Three event-related potential (ERP) studies were reanalyzed. In all varieties investigated, suprasegments are associated with specific word endings. Swedish has two lexical "word accents" realized as pitch falls with different timings across dialects. In Danish, the distinction is in voice quality. We combined pronunciation lexica and frequency lists to calculate estimates of lexical uncertainty about an unfolding word and information gain upon hearing a suprasegmental cue and the segment upon which it manifests. We used single-trial mixed-effects regression models run every 4 ms. RESULTS Only lexical uncertainty showed solid results: a frontal effect at 150-400 ms after suprasegmental cue onset and a later posterior effect after 200 ms. While a model including only segmental information mostly performed better, it was outperformed by the suprasegmental model at 200-330 ms at frontal sites. CONCLUSIONS The study points to suprasegmental cues contributing to lexical access over and beyond segments after around 200 ms in the North Germanic varieties investigated. Furthermore, the findings indicate that a previously reported "pre-activation negativity" predominantly reflects forward-looking processing. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.25016486.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Hjortdal
- Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Sweden
| | - Johan Frid
- Lund University Humanities Lab, Lund University, Sweden
| | - Mikael Novén
- Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Mikael Roll
- Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Sweden
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Seghier ML. Multiple functions of the angular gyrus at high temporal resolution. Brain Struct Funct 2023; 228:7-46. [PMID: 35674917 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-022-02512-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/22/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Here, the functions of the angular gyrus (AG) are evaluated in the light of current evidence from transcranial magnetic/electric stimulation (TMS/TES) and EEG/MEG studies. 65 TMS/TES and 52 EEG/MEG studies were examined in this review. TMS/TES literature points to a causal role in semantic processing, word and number processing, attention and visual search, self-guided movement, memory, and self-processing. EEG/MEG studies reported AG effects at latencies varying between 32 and 800 ms in a wide range of domains, with a high probability to detect an effect at 300-350 ms post-stimulus onset. A three-phase unifying model revolving around the process of sensemaking is then suggested: (1) early AG involvement in defining the current context, within the first 200 ms, with a bias toward the right hemisphere; (2) attention re-orientation and retrieval of relevant information within 200-500 ms; and (3) cross-modal integration at late latencies with a bias toward the left hemisphere. This sensemaking process can favour accuracy (e.g. for word and number processing) or plausibility (e.g. for comprehension and social cognition). Such functions of the AG depend on the status of other connected regions. The much-debated semantic role is also discussed as follows: (1) there is a strong TMS/TES evidence for a causal semantic role, (2) current EEG/MEG evidence is however weak, but (3) the existing arguments against a semantic role for the AG are not strong. Some outstanding questions for future research are proposed. This review recognizes that cracking the role(s) of the AG in cognition is possible only when its exact contributions within the default mode network are teased apart.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed L Seghier
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi, UAE. .,Healthcare Engineering Innovation Center (HEIC), Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
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Söderström P, Cutler A. Early neuro-electric indication of lexical match in English spoken-word recognition. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0285286. [PMID: 37200324 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0285286] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/20/2023] Open
Abstract
We investigated early electrophysiological responses to spoken English words embedded in neutral sentence frames, using a lexical decision paradigm. As words unfold in time, similar-sounding lexical items compete for recognition within 200 milliseconds after word onset. A small number of studies have previously investigated event-related potentials in this time window in English and French, with results differing in direction of effects as well as component scalp distribution. Investigations of spoken-word recognition in Swedish have reported an early left-frontally distributed event-related potential that increases in amplitude as a function of the probability of a successful lexical match as the word unfolds. Results from the present study indicate that the same process may occur in English: we propose that increased certainty of a 'word' response in a lexical decision task is reflected in the amplitude of an early left-anterior brain potential beginning around 150 milliseconds after word onset. This in turn is proposed to be connected to the probabilistically driven activation of possible upcoming word forms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pelle Söderström
- Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
- MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour & Development, Western Sydney University, Penrith, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language, St Lucia, Australia
| | - Anne Cutler
- MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour & Development, Western Sydney University, Penrith, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language, St Lucia, Australia
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, Netherlands
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Maran M, Numssen O, Hartwigsen G, Zaccarella E. Online neurostimulation of Broca's area does not interfere with syntactic predictions: A combined TMS-EEG approach to basic linguistic combination. Front Psychol 2022; 13:968836. [PMID: 36619118 PMCID: PMC9815778 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.968836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Categorical predictions have been proposed as the key mechanism supporting the fast pace of syntactic composition in language. Accordingly, grammar-based expectations are formed-e.g., the determiner "a" triggers the prediction for a noun-and facilitate the analysis of incoming syntactic information, which is then checked against a single or few other word categories. Previous functional neuroimaging studies point towards Broca's area in the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) as one fundamental cortical region involved in categorical prediction during incremental language processing. Causal evidence for this hypothesis is however still missing. In this study, we combined Electroencephalography (EEG) and Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) to test whether Broca's area is functionally relevant in predictive mechanisms for language. We transiently perturbed Broca's area during the first word in a two-word construction, while simultaneously measuring the Event-Related Potential (ERP) correlates of syntactic composition. We reasoned that if Broca's area is involved in predictive mechanisms for syntax, disruptive TMS during the first word would mitigate the difference in the ERP responses for predicted and unpredicted categories in basic two-word constructions. Contrary to this hypothesis, perturbation of Broca's area at the predictive stage did not affect the ERP correlates of basic composition. The correlation strength between the electrical field induced by TMS and the ERP responses further confirmed this pattern. We discuss the present results considering an alternative account of the role of Broca's area in syntactic composition, namely the bottom-up integration of words into constituents, and of compensatory mechanisms within the language predictive network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Maran
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany,International Max Planck Research School on Neuroscience of Communication: Function, Structure, and Plasticity, Leipzig, Germany,*Correspondence: Matteo Maran,
| | - Ole Numssen
- Lise Meitner Research Group Cognition and Plasticity, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Gesa Hartwigsen
- Lise Meitner Research Group Cognition and Plasticity, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Emiliano Zaccarella
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
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Elmer S, Besson M, Rodríguez-Fornells A. The electrophysiological correlates of word pre-activation during associative word learning. Int J Psychophysiol 2022; 182:12-22. [PMID: 36167179 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2022.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2022] [Revised: 09/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Human beings continuously make use of learned associations to generate predictions about future occurrences in the environment. Such memory-related predictive processes provide a scaffold for learning in that mental representations of foreseeable events can be adjusted or strengthened based on a specific outcome. Learning the meaning of novel words through picture-word associations constitutes a prime example of associative learning because pictures preceding words can trigger word prediction through the pre-activation of the related mnemonic representations. In the present electroencephalography (EEG) study, we used event-related potentials (ERPs) to compare neural indices of word pre-activation between a word learning condition with maximal prediction likelihood and a non-learning control condition with low prediction. Results revealed that prediction-related N400 amplitudes in response to pictures decreased over time at central electrodes as a function of word learning, whereas late positive component (LPC) amplitudes increased. Notably, N400 but not LPC changes were also predictive of word learning performance, suggesting that the N400 component constitutes a sensitive marker of word pre-activation during associative word learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Elmer
- Computational Neuroscience of Speech & Hearing, Department of Computational Linguistics, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, 08097 Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Mireille Besson
- Université Publique de France, CNRS & Aix-Marseille University, Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives (LNC, UMR 7291) & Institute for Language and Communication in the Brain (ILCB), Marseille, France.
| | - Antoni Rodríguez-Fornells
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, 08097 Barcelona, Spain; Department of Cognition, Development and Educational Psychology, Campus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, 08097 Barcelona, Spain; Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, ICREA, 08010 Barcelona, Spain.
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Abstract
Swedish lexical word accents have been repeatedly said to have a low functional load. Even so, the language has kept these tones ever since they emerged probably over a thousand years ago. This article proposes that the primary function of word accents is for listeners to be able to predict upcoming morphological structures and narrow down the lexical competition rather than being lexically distinctive. Psycho- and neurophysiological evidence for the predictive function of word accents is discussed. A novel analysis displays that word accents have a facilitative role in word processing. Specifically, a correlation is revealed between how much incorrect word accents hinder listeners' processing and how much they reduce response times when correct. Finally, a dual-route model of the predictive use of word accents with distinct neural substrates is put forth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mikael Roll
- Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
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Mangiaruga A, D'Atri A, Scarpelli S, Alfonsi V, Camaioni M, Annarumma L, Gorgoni M, Pazzaglia M, De Gennaro L. Sleep talking versus sleep moaning: electrophysiological patterns preceding linguistic vocalizations during sleep. Sleep 2022; 45:zsab284. [PMID: 34893917 DOI: 10.1093/sleep/zsab284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2021] [Revised: 11/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
STUDY OBJECTIVES Sleep talking (ST) has been rarely studied as an isolated phenomenon. Late investigations over the psycholinguistic features of vocal production in ST pointed to coherence with wake language formal features. Therefore, we investigated the EEG correlates of Verbal ST as the overt manifestation of sleep-related language processing, with the hypothesis of shared electrophysiological correlates with wake language production. METHODS From a sample of 155 Highly frequent STs, we recorded 13 participants (age range 19-30 years, mean age 24.6 ± 3.3; 7F) via vPSG for at least two consecutive nights, and a total of 28 nights. We first investigated the sleep macrostructure of STs compared to 13 age and gender-matched subjects. We then compared the EEG signal before 21 Verbal STs versus 21 Nonverbal STs (moaning, laughing, crying, etc.) in six STs reporting both vocalization types in Stage 2 NREM sleep. RESULTS The 2 × 2 mixed analysis of variance Group × Night interaction showed no statistically significant effect for macrostructural variables, but significant main effects for Group with lower REM (%), total sleep time, total bedtime, sleep efficiency index, and greater NREM (%) for STs compared to controls. EEG statistical comparisons (paired-samples Student's t-test) showed a decrement in power spectra for Verbal STs versus Nonverbal STs within the theta and alpha EEG bands, strongly lateralized to the left hemisphere and localized on centro-parietal-occipitals channels. A single left parietal channel (P7) held significance after Bonferroni correction. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest shared neural mechanisms between Verbal ST and language processing during wakefulness and a possible functional overlapping with linguistic planning in wakefulness.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Aurora D'Atri
- Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, University of L'Aquila, Coppito, L'Aquila, Italy
| | - Serena Scarpelli
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza, University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Milena Camaioni
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza, University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Maurizio Gorgoni
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza, University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Mariella Pazzaglia
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza, University of Rome, Rome, Italy
- Action and Body Lab, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy
| | - Luigi De Gennaro
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza, University of Rome, Rome, Italy
- Action and Body Lab, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy
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Minor S, Mitrofanova N, Ramchand G. Fine-grained time course of verb aspect processing. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0264132. [PMID: 35213616 PMCID: PMC8880397 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0264132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2021] [Accepted: 02/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Sentence processing is known to be highly incremental. Speakers make incremental commitments as the sentence unfolds, dynamically updating their representations based on the smallest pieces of information from the incoming speech stream. Less is known about linguistic processing on the sub-word level, especially with regard to abstract grammatical information. This study employs the Visual World Paradigm to investigate the processing of grammatical aspect by Russian-speaking adults (n = 124). Aspectual information is encoded relatively early within the Russian verb which makes this an ideal testing ground to investigate the incrementality of grammatical processing on the sub-word level. Participants showed preference for pictures of ongoing events when they heard sentences involving Imperfective verbs, and for pictures of completed events when they heard sentences involving Perfective verbs. Crucially, the analysis of the participants’ eye-movements showed that they exhibited preference for the target picture already before they heard the end of the verb. Moreover, the latency of this effect depended on where the aspectual information was encoded within the verb. These results indicate that the processing and integration of grammatical aspect information can happen rapidly and incrementally on a fine-grained word-internal level. Methodologically, the study draws together a set of analytical techniques which can be fruitfully applied to the analysis of effect latencies in a wide range of studies within the Visual World eye-tracking paradigm.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serge Minor
- Department of Language and Culture, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
- * E-mail:
| | - Natalia Mitrofanova
- Department of Language and Culture, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Gillian Ramchand
- Department of Language and Culture, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
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Svensson Lundmark M, Frid J, Ambrazaitis G, Schötz S. Word-initial consonant-vowel coordination in a lexical pitch-accent language. PHONETICA 2021; 78:515-569. [PMID: 34786897 DOI: 10.1515/phon-2021-2014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Previous research has acknowledged the effect of prosody on inter-gestural coordination, but specifically the effect of tones is still understudied. This paper has a two-fold purpose. First, it aims to explore effects of the Swedish word accents on word-initial consonant-vowel (CV) coarticulation. Second, it aims to revisit the existing evidence for tonal integration. Based on Articulatory Phonology, it has been suggested that tones - in tone languages - are integrated in the gestural organization of a syllable-initial CV sequence in the same manner as would an additional consonant (CCV), indicated by a time lag between the gestural onsets of the C and the V gesture (CV onset time lag). However, we argue that the existing evidence is inconclusive, because previous cross-linguistic research has used small-scale data sets (one to seven speakers), and we still lack a well-grounded consensus on how gestural onsets are to be measured. This study uses Electromagnetic Articulography (EMA) to investigate word-initial CV coordination in a lexical pitch-accent language (Swedish) with a binary tonal word accent distinction: a tonal fall and a tonal rise, respectively. A selection of 13 spatial, temporal or coordinative measures of bilabial and tongue body data from 19 speakers, and acoustic fo data, were examined to study the CV sequence /ma/. Mixed effects regression models revealed a longer tongue body movement in the rising tone context and small but significant differences in tongue body height, in the closing and the opening of the lips, as well as in the CV onset time lag between the two tonal contexts. We argue that these effects are biomechanical in nature, due to the physiological connections between the tongue, the jaw, and the larynx. In addition, our results suggest either synchronized CV onsets or a CV onset time lag (as in tone languages), depending on the timing landmarks used. In order to evaluate such results as evidence for or against the integration of tone in CV coarticulation, we argue that future research needs to compare data from a variety of languages using a considerable number of speakers. The present study provides new reference values for such comparisons.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Johan Frid
- Lund University Humanities Lab, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | | | - Susanne Schötz
- Logopedics, Phoniatrics and Audiology, Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
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Hubbard RJ, Federmeier KD. Representational Pattern Similarity of Electrical Brain Activity Reveals Rapid and Specific Prediction during Language Comprehension. Cereb Cortex 2021; 31:4300-4313. [PMID: 33895819 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Predicting upcoming events is a critical function of the brain, and language provides a fertile testing ground for studying prediction, as comprehenders use context to predict features of upcoming words. Many aspects of the mechanisms of prediction remain elusive, partly due to a lack of methodological tools to probe prediction formation in the moment. To elucidate what features are neurally preactivated and when, we used representational similarity analysis on previously collected sentence reading data. We compared EEG activity patterns elicited by expected and unexpected sentence final words to patterns from the preceding words of the sentence, in both strongly and weakly constraining sentences. Pattern similarity with the final word was increased in an early time window following the presentation of the pre-final word, and this increase was modulated by both expectancy and constraint. This was not seen at earlier words, suggesting that predictions were precisely timed. Additionally, pre-final word activity-the predicted representation-had negative similarity with later final word activity, but only for strongly expected words. These findings shed light on the mechanisms of prediction in the brain: rapid preactivation occurs following certain cues, but the predicted features may receive reduced processing upon confirmation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan J Hubbard
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Kara D Federmeier
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.,Department of Psychology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.,Program in Neuroscience, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
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12
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Novén M, Schremm A, Horne M, Roll M. Cortical thickness and surface area of left anterior temporal areas affects processing of phonological cues to morphosyntax. Brain Res 2020; 1750:147150. [PMID: 33039411 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2020.147150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2019] [Revised: 09/04/2020] [Accepted: 10/05/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Lack of methods to experimentally assess the perceptual processing of sound features and allow one to measure differences in phonological proficiency has been a limitation for speech processing studies in native speakers. Tonal features associated with Swedish word-stems, word accents, which cue grammatical suffixes, constitute, however, such sound features that can be exploited to generate measures of reliance on morphosyntactically relevant phonological information during word processing. Specifically, there is a natural variance between native speakers in response time (RT) difference between phonologically valid and invalid word accent-suffix combinations that can be used to quantify perceptual phonological proficiency. This study uses ultra-high field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to investigate word accents as phonological cues to morphosyntactic meaning. The study adds to the understanding of the neural basis for both morphosyntactically relevant phonological cues by reporting correlations between differences in listeners' RT for validly and invalidly cued suffixes and cortical thickness in left anterior and middle temporal gyrus, and the left anterior superior temporal sulcus as well as cortical surface area in the left middle and inferior temporal gyri. The cortical areas studied are known constituents of the ventral speech processing stream, necessary for word and phrase recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mikael Novén
- Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Box 201 221 00, Lund, Sweden.
| | - Andrea Schremm
- Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Box 201 221 00, Lund, Sweden
| | - Merle Horne
- Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Box 201 221 00, Lund, Sweden
| | - Mikael Roll
- Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Box 201 221 00, Lund, Sweden
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Gosselke Berthelsen S, Horne M, Shtyrov Y, Roll M. Different neural mechanisms for rapid acquisition of words with grammatical tone in learners from tonal and non-tonal backgrounds: ERP evidence. Brain Res 2020; 1729:146614. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2019.146614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2019] [Revised: 09/16/2019] [Accepted: 12/15/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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14
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Söderström P, Horne M, Mannfolk P, van Westen D, Roll M. Rapid syntactic pre-activation in Broca's area: Concurrent electrophysiological and haemodynamic recordings. Brain Res 2018; 1697:76-82. [PMID: 29883624 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2018.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2017] [Revised: 05/04/2018] [Accepted: 06/04/2018] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Listeners are constantly trying to predict what the speaker will say next. We concurrently measured the electrophysiological and haemodynamic correlates of syntactic pre-activation, investigating when and where the brain processes speech melody cues to upcoming word order structure. Pre-activation of syntactic structure was reflected in a left-lateralised pre-activation negativity (PrAN), which was subserved by Broca's area in the left inferior frontal gyrus, as well as the contiguous left anterior insula.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pelle Söderström
- Department of Linguistics, Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Box 201, 221 00 Lund, Sweden; MARCS Institute, Western Sydney University, Sydney, Australia.
| | - Merle Horne
- Department of Linguistics, Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Box 201, 221 00 Lund, Sweden.
| | - Peter Mannfolk
- Skane University Hospital, Department of Medical Imaging and Physiology, Lund, Sweden.
| | - Danielle van Westen
- Lund University, Skane University Hospital, Department of Clinical Sciences, Diagnostic Radiology, Lund, Sweden.
| | - Mikael Roll
- Department of Linguistics, Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Box 201, 221 00 Lund, Sweden.
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15
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Theta oscillations mediate pre-activation of highly expected word initial phonemes. Sci Rep 2018; 8:9503. [PMID: 29934613 PMCID: PMC6015046 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-27898-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 06/13/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Prediction has been proposed to be a fundamental neurocognitive mechanism. However, its role in language comprehension is currently under debate. In this magnetoencephalography study we aimed to find evidence of word-form phonological pre-activation and to characterize the oscillatory mechanisms supporting this. Participants were presented firstly with a picture of an object, and then, after a delay (fixed or variable), they heard the corresponding word. Target words could contain a phoneme substitution, and participants’ task was to detect mispronunciations. Word-initial phonemes were either fricatives or plosives, generating two experimental conditions (expect-fricative and expect-plosive). In the pre-word interval, significant differences (α = 0.05) emerged between conditions both for fixed and variable delays. Source reconstruction of this effect showed a brain-wide network involving several frequency bands, including bilateral superior temporal areas commonly associated with phonological processing, in a theta range. These results show that phonological representations supported by the theta band may be active before word onset, even under temporal uncertainty. However, in the evoked response just prior to the word, differences between conditions were apparent under variable- but not fixed-delays. This suggests that additional top-down mechanisms sensitive to phonological form may be recruited when there is uncertainty in the signal.
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