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Bains A, Barber A, Nell T, Ripollés P, Krishnan S. The role of intrinsic reward in adolescent word learning. Dev Sci 2024:e13513. [PMID: 38685611 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Revised: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
Relatively little work has focused on why we are motivated to learn words. In adults, recent experiments have shown that intrinsic reward signals accompany successful word learning from context. In addition, the experience of reward facilitated long-term memory for words. In adolescence, developmental changes are seen in reward and motivation systems as well as in reading and language systems. Here, in the face of this developmental change, we ask whether adolescents experience reward from word learning, and how the reward and memory benefit seen in adults is modulated by age. We used a naturalistic reading paradigm, which involved extracting novel word meanings from sentence context without the need for explicit feedback. By exploring ratings of enjoyment during the learning phase, as well as recognition memory for words a day later, we assessed whether adolescents show the same reward and learning patterns as adults. We tested 345 children between the ages of 10-18 (N > 84 in each 2-year age-band) using this paradigm. We found evidence for our first prediction: children aged 10-18 report greater enjoyment for successful word learning. However, we did not find evidence for age-related change in this developmental period, or memory benefits. This work gives us greater insight into the process of language acquisition and sets the stage for further investigations of intrinsic reward in typical and atypical development. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: We constantly learn words from context, even in the absence of explicit rewards or feedback. In adults, intrinsic reward experienced during word learning is linked to a dopaminergic circuit in the brain, which also fuels enhancements in memory for words. We find adolescents also report enhanced reward or enjoyment when they successfully learn words from sentence context. The relationship between reward and learning is maintained between the ages of 10 and 18. Unlike in adults, we did not observe ensuing memory benefits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amrita Bains
- Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham Hill, UK
| | - Annaliese Barber
- Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham Hill, UK
| | - Tau Nell
- Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham Hill, UK
| | - Pablo Ripollés
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York, USA
- Music and Audio Research Lab (MARL), New York University, New York, New York, USA
- Center for Language, Music and Emotion (CLaME), New York University, Max-Planck Institute, New York, New York, USA
| | - Saloni Krishnan
- Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham Hill, UK
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2
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Xu S, Wang H, Li S, Ouyang G. Neural manifestation of L2 novel concept acquisition from multi-contexts via both episodic memory and semantic memory systems. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1320675. [PMID: 38384355 PMCID: PMC10879312 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1320675] [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: 10/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024] Open
Abstract
This study aims to examine the process of L2 novel word learning through the combination of episodic and semantic memory, and how the process differs between the formation of thematic and taxonomic relations. The major approach adopted was observing the neural effects of word learning, which is manifested in the N400 from event-related potentials (ERPs). Eighty-eight participants were recruited for the experiment. In the learning session, L2 contextual discourses related to novel words were learned by participants. In the testing session, discourses embedded with incongruous and congruous novel words in the final position were used for participants to judge the congruency which affected the N400 neural activity. The results showed that both recurrent and new-theme discourses elicited significant N400 effects, while taxonomic sentences did not. These results confirmed the formation of episodic and semantic memory during L2 new word learning, in which semantic memory was mainly supported by thematic relations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuang Xu
- Faculty of Education, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Hailing Wang
- School of Psychology, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China
| | - Shouxin Li
- School of Psychology, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China
| | - Guang Ouyang
- Faculty of Education, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
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3
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Ding J, Liang P, Guo X, Yang Y. The influence of conceptual concreteness on the reading acquisition and integration of novel words into semantic memory via thematic relations. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1132039. [PMID: 37251046 PMCID: PMC10211391 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1132039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2022] [Accepted: 04/14/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Plenty of studies have been conducted to reveal neurocognitive underpinnings of conceptual representation. Compared with that of concrete concepts, the neurocognitive correlates of abstract concepts remain elusive. The current study aimed to investigate the influence of conceptual concreteness on the reading acquisition and integration of novel words into semantic memory. We constructed two-sentence contexts in which two-character pseudowords were embedded as novel words. Participants read the contexts to infer the meaning of novel words which were either concrete or abstract, and then performed a lexical decision task and a cued-recall memory task. In lexical decision task, primed by the learned novel words, their corresponding concepts, thematically related or unrelated words as well as unlearned pseudowords were judged whether they were words or not. In memory task, participants were presented with the novel words and asked to write down their meaning. The contextual reading and memory test can demonstrate the modulation of conceptual concreteness on novel word learning and the lexical decision task can reveal whether concrete and abstract novel words are integrated into semantic memory similarly or not. During contextual reading, abstract novel words presented for the first time elicited a larger N400 than concrete ones. In memory task, the meaning of concrete novel words was recollected better than abstract novel words. These results indicate that abstract novel words are more difficult to acquire during contextual reading, and to retain afterwards. For lexical decision task behavioral and ERPs were graded, with the longest reaction time, the lowest accuracy and the largest N400s for the unrelated words, then the thematically related words and finally the corresponding concepts of the novel words, regardless of conceptual concreteness. The results suggest that both concrete and abstract novel words can be integrated into semantic memory via thematic relations. These findings are discussed in terms of differential representational framework which posits that concrete words connect with each other via semantic similarities, and abstract ones via thematic relations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinfeng Ding
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Panpan Liang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xinyu Guo
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yufang Yang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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Stephan-Otto C, Núñez C, Lombardini F, Cambra-Martí MR, Ochoa S, Senior C, Brébion G. Neurocognitive bases of self-monitoring of inner speech in hallucination prone individuals. Sci Rep 2023; 13:6251. [PMID: 37069194 PMCID: PMC10110610 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-32042-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2022] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 04/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Verbal hallucinations in schizophrenia patients might be seen as internal verbal productions mistaken for perceptions as a result of over-salient inner speech and/or defective self-monitoring processes. Similar cognitive mechanisms might underpin verbal hallucination proneness in the general population. We investigated, in a non-clinical sample, the cerebral activity associated with verbal hallucinatory predisposition during false recognition of familiar words -assumed to stem from poor monitoring of inner speech-vs. uncommon words. Thirty-seven healthy participants underwent a verbal recognition task. High- and low-frequency words were presented outside the scanner. In the scanner, the participants were then required to recognize the target words among equivalent distractors. Results showed that verbal hallucination proneness was associated with higher rates of false recognition of high-frequency words. It was further associated with activation of language and decisional brain areas during false recognitions of low-, but not high-, frequency words, and with activation of a recollective brain area during correct recognitions of low-, but not high-, frequency words. The increased tendency to report familiar words as targets, along with a lack of activation of the language, recollective, and decisional brain areas necessary for their judgement, suggests failure in the self-monitoring of inner speech in verbal hallucination-prone individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Stephan-Otto
- Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain
- Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain
| | - Christian Núñez
- Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain
- Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Spain
| | | | | | - Susana Ochoa
- Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain
- Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain
| | - Carl Senior
- School of Life & Health Sciences, Aston University, Birmingham, UK.
- University of Gibraltar, Gibraltar, UK.
| | - Gildas Brébion
- Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain.
- Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Spain.
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain.
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Li E, Xiao F, Zou T, Guo J. Positive emotion of self-referential contexts could facilitate adult's novel word learning: An fNIRS study. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2021; 221:104994. [PMID: 34303109 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2021.104994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 07/05/2021] [Accepted: 07/06/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Learning words through contextual inference is a key way to enlarge one's vocabulary especially for adults. However, few studies focused on the effects of different information contained in contexts on novel word learning. The present study used behavioral and fNIRS techniques to investigate the influences of positive, neutral and negative emotions inherent in self-related or other-related referential contexts. Participants were asked to perform a semantic consistency and a source judgment task after learning the relations between novel words and concepts in different contexts. The results showed that self-reference during lexical encoding could promote word learning generally. More importantly, there existed a self-positivity bias which is manifested in the significant interactions between contextual emotions and referential value. These interactions are related to the neural activities of the DLPFC and IFG. These results revealed the contextual information's integrative contributions to semantic meaning acquisition and episodic source memory related with novel word learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Enhui Li
- Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, PR China
| | - Feng Xiao
- Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, PR China
| | - Tiantian Zou
- Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, PR China
| | - Jingjing Guo
- Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, PR China.
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6
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The interplay between domain-general and domain-specific mechanisms during the time-course of verbal associative learning: An event-related potential study. Neuroimage 2021; 242:118443. [PMID: 34352392 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2020] [Revised: 07/17/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans continuously learn new information. Here, we examined the temporal brain dynamics of explicit verbal associative learning between unfamiliar items. In the first experiment, 25 adults learned object-pseudoword associations during a 5-day training program allowing us to track the N400 dynamics across learning blocks within and across days. Successful learning was accompanied by an initial frontal N400 that decreased in amplitude across blocks during the first day and shifted to parietal sites during the last training day. In Experiment 2, we replicated our findings with 38 new participants randomly assigned to a consistent learning or an inconsistent learning group. The N400 amplitude modulations that we found, both within and between learning sessions, are taken to reflect the emergence of novel lexical traces even when learning concerns items for which no semantic information is provided. The shift in N400 topography suggests that different N400 neural generators may contribute to specific word learning steps through a balance between domain-general and language-specific mechanisms.
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7
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Yu F, Zhang J, Luo J, Zhang W. Enhanced insightfulness and neural activation induced by metaphorical solutions to appropriate mental distress problems. Psychophysiology 2021; 58:e13886. [PMID: 34173239 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13886] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2020] [Revised: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Although the neural correlates of novelty and appropriateness of creative insight during cognitive tasks have been investigated in several studies, they have not been examined during mental distress in a psychotherapeutic setting. This study aimed to reveal the promoting effects of novelty and appropriateness processing on therapeutic insight in a micro-psychotherapeutic setting. We examined the effects of appropriateness (between-subject factor: appropriateness group, 20 participants; inappropriateness group, 21 participants) by manipulating the preceding negative scenarios that either fit or did not fit the subsequent solutions, and those of novelty (within-subject factor) by varying the linguistic expressions for describing solutions (metaphorical, literal, or problem-restatement). Event-related functional magnetic resonance images were collected. We found the following effects: an interactive effect of the two factors on insightfulness and activation in the bilateral hippocampus and amygdala, right superior frontal gyrus, and left superior/middle temporal gyrus; a simple effect of novelty on activation in the bilateral inferior frontal gyrus, fusiform gyrus, and inferior/middle occipital gyrus; and a simple effect of appropriateness on activation in the left inferior parietal lobule. Our findings indicate that solutions with high novelty and appropriateness generate the highest levels of therapeutic insightfulness as well as the strongest activation in the hippocampus and amygdala, which may be involved in episodic memory encoding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Yu
- Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, P.R.China.,Department of Psychology, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, P.R.China
| | - Jianxin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, P.R.China
| | - Jing Luo
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, Department of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, P.R.China
| | - Wencai Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, P.R.China
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8
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Jeong H, Li P, Suzuki W, Sugiura M, Kawashima R. Neural mechanisms of language learning from social contexts. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2021; 212:104874. [PMID: 33220647 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2020.104874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2020] [Revised: 08/27/2020] [Accepted: 10/02/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Humans learn languages in real-life situations by integrating multiple signals, including linguistic forms, their meanings, and the actions and intentions of speakers. However, little is known about the neural bases underlying the social learning of a second language (L2) in adults. In this study, 36 adults were asked to learn two sets of L2 spoken words through translation versus simulated social interactive videos (social learning). Brain activation during word learning was measured using fMRI. Greater activation was observed in the bilateral superior temporal sulcus, posterior middle temporal gyri, and right inferior parietal lobule during social learning as compared with translation learning. Furthermore, higher activity in the right temporal parietal junction, right hippocampus, and motor areas was observed during the initial stage of social learning, with the more successful performance being at the time of overnight testing. We argue that social learning may strengthen the link from new L2 forms to rich L2 semantic representations wherein memory properties are embodied, multimodal, and richly contextualized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyeonjeong Jeong
- Graduate School of International Cultural Studies, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
| | - Ping Li
- Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, Faculty of Humanities, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
| | | | - Motoaki Sugiura
- Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; International Research Institute for Disaster Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Ryuta Kawashima
- Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
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Hayakawa S, Bartolotti J, van den Berg A, Marian V. Language Difficulty and Prior Learning Influence Foreign Vocabulary Acquisition. LANGUAGES (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2020; 5:10.3390/languages5010002. [PMID: 32104648 PMCID: PMC7043142 DOI: 10.3390/languages5010002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
When learning a foreign language, words that are the hardest to learn are often the easiest to forget. Yet, there is also evidence that more challenging learning contexts can lead to greater long-term retention. Here, we investigate the effect of language difficulty on vocabulary retention by teaching participants novel words that varied in both imageability and similarity to a known language over a period of four weeks. We found that easier words (high-imageability and familiar) were generally retained better than harder words (low-imageability and unfamiliar). However, when words were fully learned during training, the more difficult unfamiliar words were later recalled with higher accuracy than easier familiar words. The effect of language difficulty on vocabulary retention therefore varies depending on how well words were initially encoded. We conclude that greater challenges can reap greater long-term rewards so long as learners establish a strong foundation during initial acquisition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sayuri Hayakawa
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - James Bartolotti
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Aimee van den Berg
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Viorica Marian
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
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10
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Imageability effect on the functional brain activity during a naming to definition task. Neuropsychologia 2020; 137:107275. [PMID: 31765654 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.107275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2018] [Revised: 11/20/2019] [Accepted: 11/20/2019] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Lexical competence includes both the ability to relate words to the external world as accessed through (mainly) visual perception (referential competence) and the ability to relate words to other words (inferential competence). We investigated the role of visual imagery in lexical inferential competence by using an auditory version of an inferential naming-to-definition task, in which visual imageability of both definitions and target words was manipulated. A visual imageability-related brain activity (bilateral posterior-parietal lobe and ventrotemporal cortex, including fusiform gyrus) was found during a "pure" inferential performance. The definition effect in high vs. low imageability contrast suggests that a visual-imagery strategy is spontaneously activated during the retrieval of a word from a high imageable definition; such an effect appears to be independent of whether the target word is high or low imageable. This contributes to the understanding of the neural correlates of semantic processing and the differential role of spontaneous visual imagery, depending on the semantic properties of the processed stimuli.
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11
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Gao C, Baucom LB, Kim J, Wang J, Wedell DH, Shinkareva SV. Distinguishing abstract from concrete concepts in supramodal brain regions. Neuropsychologia 2019; 131:102-110. [PMID: 31175884 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.05.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2018] [Revised: 01/18/2019] [Accepted: 05/31/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Concrete words have been shown to have a processing advantage over abstract words, yet theoretical accounts and neural correlates underlying the distinction between concrete and abstract concepts are still unresolved. In an fMRI study, participants performed a property verification task on abstract and concrete concepts. Property comparisons of concrete concepts were predominantly based on either visual or haptic features. Multivariate pattern analysis successfully distinguished between abstract and concrete stimulus comparisons at the whole brain level. Multivariate searchlight analyses showed that posterior and middle cingulate cortices contained information that distinguished abstract from concrete concepts regardless of feature dominance. These results support the view that supramodal convergence zones play an important role in representation of concrete and abstract concepts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chuanji Gao
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 29201, USA
| | - Laura B Baucom
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 29201, USA
| | - Jongwan Kim
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 29201, USA
| | - Jing Wang
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 29201, USA
| | - Douglas H Wedell
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 29201, USA
| | - Svetlana V Shinkareva
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 29201, USA.
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Tagarelli KM, Shattuck KF, Turkeltaub PE, Ullman MT. Language learning in the adult brain: A neuroanatomical meta-analysis of lexical and grammatical learning. Neuroimage 2019; 193:178-200. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.02.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2018] [Revised: 01/24/2019] [Accepted: 02/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
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13
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Guo J, Li D, Bi Y, Chen C. Modulating Effects of Contextual Emotions on the Neural Plasticity Induced by Word Learning. Front Hum Neurosci 2018; 12:464. [PMID: 30532700 PMCID: PMC6266032 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2018.00464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2018] [Accepted: 11/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, numerous studies have investigated the neurocognitive mechanism of learning words in isolation or in semantic contexts. However, emotion as an important influencing factor on novel word learning has not been fully considered in the previous studies. In addition, the effects of emotion on word learning and the underlying neural mechanism have not been systematically investigated. Sixteen participants were trained to learn novel concrete or abstract words under negative, neutral, and positive contextual emotions over 3 days; then, fMRI scanning was done during the testing sessions on day 1 and day 3. We compared the brain activations in day 1 and day 3 to investigate the role of contextual emotions in learning different types of words and the corresponding neural plasticity changes. Behaviorally, the performance of the words learned in the negative context was lower than those in the neutral and positive contexts, which indicated that contextual emotions had a significant impact on novel word learning. Correspondingly, the functional plasticity changes of the right angular gyrus (AG), bilateral insula, and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) induced by word learning were modulated by the contextual emotions. The insula also was sensitive to the concreteness of the learned words. More importantly, the functional plasticity changes of the left inferior frontal gyrus (left IFG) and left fusiform gyrus (left FG) were interactively influenced by the contextual emotions and concreteness, suggesting that the contextual emotional information had a discriminable effect on different types of words in the neural mechanism level. These results demonstrate that emotional information in contexts is inevitably involved in word learning. The role of contextual emotions in brain plasticity for learning is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingjing Guo
- Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience in Shaanxi Province, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China
- *Correspondence: Jingjing Guo
| | - Dingding Li
- Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience in Shaanxi Province, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China
| | - Yanling Bi
- Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience in Shaanxi Province, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China
| | - Chunhui Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
- Chunhui Chen
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14
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Ripollés P, Ferreri L, Mas-Herrero E, Alicart H, Gómez-Andrés A, Marco-Pallares J, Antonijoan RM, Noesselt T, Valle M, Riba J, Rodriguez-Fornells A. Intrinsically regulated learning is modulated by synaptic dopamine signaling. eLife 2018; 7:e38113. [PMID: 30160651 PMCID: PMC6133552 DOI: 10.7554/elife.38113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2018] [Accepted: 08/29/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
We recently provided evidence that an intrinsic reward-related signal-triggered by successful learning in absence of any external feedback-modulated the entrance of new information into long-term memory via the activation of the dopaminergic midbrain, hippocampus, and ventral striatum (the SN/VTA-Hippocampal loop; Ripollés et al., 2016). Here, we used a double-blind, within-subject randomized pharmacological intervention to test whether this learning process is indeed dopamine-dependent. A group of healthy individuals completed three behavioral sessions of a language-learning task after the intake of different pharmacological treatments: a dopaminergic precursor, a dopamine receptor antagonist or a placebo. Results show that the pharmacological intervention modulated behavioral measures of both learning and pleasantness, inducing memory benefits after 24 hr only for those participants with a high sensitivity to reward. These results provide causal evidence for a dopamine-dependent mechanism instrumental in intrinsically regulated learning and further suggest that subject-specific reward sensitivity drastically alters learning success.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Ripollés
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute- IDIBELLL’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
- Department of Cognition, Development and Educational PsychologyCampus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, L’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
- Department of PsychologyNew York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
| | - Laura Ferreri
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute- IDIBELLL’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
- Department of Cognition, Development and Educational PsychologyCampus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, L’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
| | - Ernest Mas-Herrero
- Montreal Neurological InstituteMcGill UniversityMontrealCanada
- International Laboratory for Brain, Music, and Sound ResearchMontrealQCCanada
- Centre for Research on Brain, Language and MusicMontrealCanada
| | - Helena Alicart
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute- IDIBELLL’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
| | - Alba Gómez-Andrés
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute- IDIBELLL’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
| | - Josep Marco-Pallares
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute- IDIBELLL’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
- Department of Cognition, Development and Educational PsychologyCampus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, L’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
| | - Rosa Maria Antonijoan
- Department of Pharmacology and TherapeuticsUniversitat Autònoma de BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- Centre d’Investigació de MedicamentsServei de Farmacologia Clínica, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
| | - Toemme Noesselt
- Department of NeurologyOtto-von-Guericke University, Leipziger StraßeMagdeburgGermany
- Department of Biological PsychologyOtto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, PostfachMagdeburgGermany
- Center for Behavioral Brain SciencesMagdeburgGermany
| | - Marta Valle
- Department of Pharmacology and TherapeuticsUniversitat Autònoma de BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic Modeling and Simulation GroupSant Pau Institute of Biomedical ResearchBarcelonaSpain
| | - Jordi Riba
- Human Neuropsychopharmacology GroupSant Pau Institute of Biomedical ResearchBarcelonaSpain
| | - Antoni Rodriguez-Fornells
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute- IDIBELLL’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
- Department of Cognition, Development and Educational PsychologyCampus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, L’Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
- Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced StudiesBarcelonaSpain
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15
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Bechtold L, Ghio M, Bellebaum C. The Effect of Training-Induced Visual Imageability on Electrophysiological Correlates of Novel Word Processing. Biomedicines 2018; 6:biomedicines6030075. [PMID: 29966391 PMCID: PMC6165368 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines6030075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2018] [Revised: 06/20/2018] [Accepted: 06/21/2018] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The concreteness effect (CE) describes a processing advantage for concrete over abstract words. Electrophysiologically, the CE manifests in higher N400 and N700 amplitudes for concrete words. The contribution of the stimulus-inherent imageability to the electrophysiological correlates of the CE is not yet fully unraveled. This EEG study focused on the role of imageability irrespective of concreteness by examining the effects of training-induced visual imageability on the processing of novel words. In two training sessions, 21 healthy participants learned to associate novel words with pictures of novel objects as well as electron-microscopical structures and were additionally familiarized with novel words without any picture association. During a post-training EEG session, participants categorized trained novel words with or without picture association, together with real concrete and abstract words. Novel words associated with novel object pictures during the training elicited a higher N700 than familiarized novel words without picture-association. Crucially, this training-induced N700 effect resembled the CE found for real words. However, a CE on the N400 was found for real words, but no effect of imageability in novel words. The results suggest that the N400 CE for real words depends on the integration of multiple semantic features, while mere visual imageability might contribute to the CE in the N700 time window.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Bechtold
- Institute for Experimental Psychology, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.
| | - Marta Ghio
- Institute for Experimental Psychology, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.
| | - Christian Bellebaum
- Institute for Experimental Psychology, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.
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16
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Ding J, Liu W, Yang Y. The Influence of Concreteness of Concepts on the Integration of Novel Words into the Semantic Network. Front Psychol 2017; 8:2111. [PMID: 29255440 PMCID: PMC5723054 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2017] [Accepted: 11/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
On the basis of previous studies revealing a processing advantage of concrete words over abstract words, the current study aimed to further explore the influence of concreteness on the integration of novel words into semantic memory with the event related potential (ERP) technique. In the experiment during the learning phase participants read two-sentence contexts and inferred the meaning of novel words. The novel words were two-character non-words in Chinese language. Their meaning was either a concrete or abstract known concept which could be inferred from the contexts. During the testing phase participants performed a lexical decision task in which the learned novel words served as primes for either their corresponding concepts, semantically related or unrelated targets. For the concrete novel words, the semantically related words belonged to the same semantic categories with their corresponding concepts. For the abstract novel words, the semantically related words were synonyms of their corresponding concepts. The unrelated targets were real words which were concrete or abstract for the concrete or abstract novel words respectively. The ERP results showed that the corresponding concepts and the semantically related words elicited smaller N400s than the unrelated words. The N400 effect was not modulated by the concreteness of the concepts. In addition, the concrete corresponding concepts elicited a smaller late positive component (LPC) than the concrete unrelated words. This LPC effect was absent for the abstract words. The results indicate that although both concrete and abstract novel words can be acquired and linked to their related words in the semantic network after a short learning phase, the concrete novel words are learned better. Our findings support the (extended) dual coding theory and broaden our understanding of adult word learning and changes in concept organization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinfeng Ding
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wenjuan Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yufang Yang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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17
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Strength of Temporal White Matter Pathways Predicts Semantic Learning. J Neurosci 2017; 37:11101-11113. [PMID: 29025925 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1720-17.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2017] [Revised: 09/13/2017] [Accepted: 09/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Learning the associations between words and meanings is a fundamental human ability. Although the language network is cortically well defined, the role of the white matter pathways supporting novel word-to-meaning mappings remains unclear. Here, by using contextual and cross-situational word learning, we tested whether learning the meaning of a new word is related to the integrity of the language-related white matter pathways in 40 adults (18 women). The arcuate, uncinate, inferior-fronto-occipital and inferior-longitudinal fasciculi were virtually dissected using manual and automatic deterministic fiber tracking. Critically, the automatic method allowed assessing the white matter microstructure along the tract. Results demonstrate that the microstructural properties of the left inferior-longitudinal fasciculus predict contextual learning, whereas the left uncinate was associated with cross-situational learning. In addition, we identified regions of special importance within these pathways: the posterior middle temporal gyrus, thought to serve as a lexical interface and specifically related to contextual learning; the anterior temporal lobe, known to be an amodal hub for semantic processing and related to cross-situational learning; and the white matter near the hippocampus, a structure fundamental for the initial stages of new-word learning and, remarkably, related to both types of word learning. No significant associations were found for the inferior-fronto-occipital fasciculus or the arcuate. While previous results suggest that learning new phonological word forms is mediated by the arcuate fasciculus, these findings show that the temporal pathways are the crucial neural substrate supporting one of the most striking human abilities: our capacity to identify correct associations between words and meanings under referential indeterminacy.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The language-processing network is cortically (i.e., gray matter) well defined. However, the role of the white matter pathways that support novel word learning within this network remains unclear. In this work, we dissected language-related (arcuate, uncinate, inferior-fronto-occipital, and inferior-longitudinal) fasciculi using manual and automatic tracking. We found the left inferior-longitudinal fasciculus to be predictive of word-learning success in two word-to-meaning tasks: contextual and cross-situational learning paradigms. The left uncinate was predictive of cross-situational word learning. No significant correlations were found for the arcuate or the inferior-fronto-occipital fasciculus. While previous results showed that learning new phonological word forms is supported by the arcuate fasciculus, these findings demonstrate that learning new word-to-meaning associations is mainly dependent on temporal white matter pathways.
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18
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Mayer KM, Macedonia M, von Kriegstein K. Recently learned foreign abstract and concrete nouns are represented in distinct cortical networks similar to the native language. Hum Brain Mapp 2017; 38:4398-4412. [PMID: 28580681 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2016] [Revised: 04/14/2017] [Accepted: 05/17/2017] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
In the native language, abstract and concrete nouns are represented in distinct areas of the cerebral cortex. Currently, it is unknown whether this is also the case for abstract and concrete nouns of a foreign language. Here, we taught adult native speakers of German 45 abstract and 45 concrete nouns of a foreign language. After learning the nouns for 5 days, participants performed a vocabulary translation task during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Translating abstract nouns in contrast to concrete nouns elicited responses in regions that are also responsive to abstract nouns in the native language: the left inferior frontal gyrus and the left middle and superior temporal gyri. Concrete nouns elicited larger responses in the angular gyri bilaterally and the left parahippocampal gyrus than abstract nouns. The cluster in the left angular gyrus showed psychophysiological interaction (PPI) with the left lingual gyrus. The left parahippocampal gyrus showed PPI with the posterior cingulate cortex. Similar regions have been previously found for concrete nouns in the native language. The results reveal similarities in the cortical representation of foreign language nouns with the representation of native language nouns that already occur after 5 days of vocabulary learning. Furthermore, we showed that verbal and enriched learning methods were equally suitable to teach foreign abstract and concrete nouns. Hum Brain Mapp 38:4398-4412, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katja M Mayer
- MPRG Neural Mechanisms of Human Communication, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Institute for Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Manuela Macedonia
- MPRG Neural Mechanisms of Human Communication, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Institute for Information Engineering, Johannes-Kepler-University Linz, Linz, Austria
| | - Katharina von Kriegstein
- MPRG Neural Mechanisms of Human Communication, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Psychology, Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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19
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Barbeau EB, Chai XJ, Chen JK, Soles J, Berken J, Baum S, Watkins KE, Klein D. The role of the left inferior parietal lobule in second language learning: An intensive language training fMRI study. Neuropsychologia 2017; 98:169-176. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2016.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2016] [Revised: 08/15/2016] [Accepted: 10/06/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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20
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Ripollés P, Marco-Pallarés J, Alicart H, Tempelmann C, Rodríguez-Fornells A, Noesselt T. Intrinsic monitoring of learning success facilitates memory encoding via the activation of the SN/VTA-Hippocampal loop. eLife 2016; 5. [PMID: 27644419 PMCID: PMC5030080 DOI: 10.7554/elife.17441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2016] [Accepted: 08/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans constantly learn in the absence of explicit rewards. However, the neurobiological mechanisms supporting this type of internally-guided learning (without explicit feedback) are still unclear. Here, participants who completed a task in which no external reward/feedback was provided, exhibited enhanced fMRI-signals within the dopaminergic midbrain, hippocampus, and ventral striatum (the SN/VTA-Hippocampal loop) when successfully grasping the meaning of new-words. Importantly, new-words that were better remembered showed increased activation and enhanced functional connectivity between the midbrain, hippocampus, and ventral striatum. Moreover, enhanced emotion-related physiological measures and subjective pleasantness ratings during encoding were associated with remembered new-words after 24 hr. Furthermore, increased subjective pleasantness ratings were also related to new-words remembered after seven days. These results suggest that intrinsic—potentially reward-related—signals, triggered by self-monitoring of correct performance, can promote the storage of new information into long-term memory through the activation of the SN/VTA-Hippocampal loop, possibly via dopaminergic modulation of the midbrain. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.17441.001 Research shows that a reward such as money, or even simply the promise of such a reward, can boost the formation of long-term memories. However, in our everyday lives, we continually gain new knowledge and make new memories in the absence of any obvious immediate reward. Rewards activate a network of brain regions that includes the hippocampus, which has a key role in memory, plus several areas that release the chemical messenger dopamine, which boosts memory formation. However, it was not clear whether this network of brain regions also supports learning that is driven internally rather than by external rewards or incentives. Ripollés et al. have now tested this idea by asking thirty-six volunteers to try and learn the meaning of new words by reading pairs of sentences, all while lying down inside a brain scanner. Half of the paired sentences provided a clear and obvious meaning for the new word. As such, the volunteers were reasonably aware when they’d learned the meaning of a new word without any external feedback. This approach confirmed that the activity of the brain’s reward-memory loop did indeed increase whenever a volunteer learned a new word. Next, outside the brain scanner, the volunteers performed the same task but this time they had to rate how engaging and enjoyable they found it after each trial. Emotional responses such as enjoyment trigger sweating, which alters the electrical activity of the skin. Ripollés et al. observed greater changes in this “electrodermal” activity when the volunteers learned words that they would go on to remember one day later, than when they learned words that they would quickly forget. The volunteers also reported greater enjoyment when learning the words that they would subsequently remember better, even after seven days. Overall, these findings suggest that internally driven learning is in itself rewarding, and that under certain circumstances at least it can activate the brain’s reward-memory circuit. A key question for the future is whether tapping into intrinsically rewarding forms of learning might be a more effective educational strategy than relying on external feedback and incentives. This could be crucial to improving the design of educational programs – for example, in teaching literacy and foreign languages – and for improving the recovery of verbal skills lost after stroke. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.17441.002
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Ripollés
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute - IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain.,Department of Basic Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Josep Marco-Pallarés
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute - IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain.,Department of Basic Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Helena Alicart
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute - IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Claus Tempelmann
- Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Antoni Rodríguez-Fornells
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute - IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain.,Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies, ICREA, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Toemme Noesselt
- Department of Biological Psychology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany.,Center for Behavioral Brain Sciences, Magdeburg, Germany
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21
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Rapid and automatic speech-specific learning mechanism in human neocortex. Neuroimage 2015; 118:282-91. [PMID: 26074199 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2015.05.098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2015] [Revised: 04/15/2015] [Accepted: 05/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
A unique feature of human communication system is our ability to rapidly acquire new words and build large vocabularies. However, its neurobiological foundations remain largely unknown. In an electrophysiological study optimally designed to probe this rapid formation of new word memory circuits, we employed acoustically controlled novel word-forms incorporating native and non-native speech sounds, while manipulating the subjects' attention on the input. We found a robust index of neurolexical memory-trace formation: a rapid enhancement of the brain's activation elicited by novel words during a short (~30min) perceptual exposure, underpinned by fronto-temporal cortical networks, and, importantly, correlated with behavioural learning outcomes. Crucially, this neural memory trace build-up took place regardless of focused attention on the input or any pre-existing or learnt semantics. Furthermore, it was found only for stimuli with native-language phonology, but not for acoustically closely matching non-native words. These findings demonstrate a specialised cortical mechanism for rapid, automatic and phonology-dependent formation of neural word memory circuits.
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22
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Converging evidence from fMRI and aphasia that the left temporoparietal cortex has an essential role in representing abstract semantic knowledge. Cortex 2015; 69:104-20. [PMID: 26026619 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2015.04.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2014] [Revised: 01/30/2015] [Accepted: 04/25/2015] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
While the neural underpinnings of concrete semantic knowledge have been studied extensively, abstract conceptual knowledge remains enigmatic. We present two experiments that provide converging evidence for the involvement of key regions in the temporoparietal cortex (TPC) in abstract semantic representations. First, we carried out a neuroimaging study in which participants thought deeply about abstract and concrete words. A functional connectivity analysis revealed a cortical network, including portions of the TPC, that showed coordinated activity specific to abstract word processing. In a second experiment, we tested participants with lesions involving the left TPC on a spoken-to-written word matching task using abstract and concrete target words presented in arrays of related or unrelated distractors. The results revealed an interaction between concreteness and relatedness: participants with TPC lesions were significantly less accurate for abstract words presented in related arrays than in unrelated arrays, but exhibited no effect of relatedness for concrete words. These results confirm that the TPC plays an important role in abstract concept representation and that it is part of a larger network of functionally cooperative regions needed for abstract word processing.
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23
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Ferreira RA, Göbel SM, Hymers M, Ellis AW. The neural correlates of semantic richness: evidence from an fMRI study of word learning. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2015; 143:69-80. [PMID: 25797097 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2015.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2014] [Revised: 01/30/2015] [Accepted: 02/28/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
We investigated the neural correlates of concrete nouns with either many or few semantic features. A group of 21 participants underwent two days of training and were then asked to categorize 40 newly learned words and a set of matched familiar words as living or nonliving in an MRI scanner. Our results showed that the most reliable effects of semantic richness were located in the left angular gyrus (AG) and middle temporal gyrus (MTG), where activation was higher for semantically rich than poor words. Other areas showing the same pattern included bilateral precuneus and posterior cingulate gyrus. Our findings support the view that AG and anterior MTG, as part of the multimodal network, play a significant role in representing and integrating semantic features from different input modalities. We propose that activation in bilateral precuneus and posterior cingulate gyrus reflects interplay between AG and episodic memory systems during semantic retrieval.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberto A Ferreira
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK; Departamento de Lenguas, Facultad de Educación, Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción, Alonso de Ribera 2850, Concepción 4090541, Chile.
| | - Silke M Göbel
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Mark Hymers
- York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, Innovation Way, York YO10, UK
| | - Andrew W Ellis
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK
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24
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Mueller JL, Rueschemeyer SA, Ono K, Sugiura M, Sadato N, Nakamura A. Neural networks involved in learning lexical-semantic and syntactic information in a second language. Front Psychol 2014; 5:1209. [PMID: 25400602 PMCID: PMC4214356 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2014] [Accepted: 10/06/2014] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The present study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the neural correlates of language acquisition in a realistic learning environment. Japanese native speakers were trained in a miniature version of German prior to fMRI scanning. During scanning they listened to (1) familiar sentences, (2) sentences including a novel sentence structure, and (3) sentences containing a novel word while visual context provided referential information. Learning-related decreases of brain activation over time were found in a mainly left-hemispheric network comprising classical frontal and temporal language areas as well as parietal and subcortical regions and were largely overlapping for novel words and the novel sentence structure in initial stages of learning. Differences occurred at later stages of learning during which content-specific activation patterns in prefrontal, parietal and temporal cortices emerged. The results are taken as evidence for a domain-general network supporting the initial stages of language learning which dynamically adapts as learners become proficient.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jutta L Mueller
- Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Osnabrück Osnabrück, Germany ; Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences Leipzig, Germany
| | | | - Kentaro Ono
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology Obu, Japan ; Human Brain Research Center, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University Japan
| | - Motoaki Sugiura
- Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University Sendai, Japan ; Department of Cerebral Research, National Institute for Physiological Sciences Okazaki, Japan
| | - Norihiro Sadato
- Department of Cerebral Research, National Institute for Physiological Sciences Okazaki, Japan
| | - Akinori Nakamura
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroimaging, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology Obu, Japan
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25
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An fMRI study of concreteness effects in spoken word recognition. Behav Brain Funct 2014; 10:34. [PMID: 25269448 PMCID: PMC4243442 DOI: 10.1186/1744-9081-10-34] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2014] [Accepted: 06/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Evidence for the brain mechanisms recruited when processing concrete versus abstract concepts has been largely derived from studies employing visual stimuli. The tasks and baseline contrasts used have also involved varying degrees of lexical processing. This study investigated the neural basis of the concreteness effect during spoken word recognition and employed a lexical decision task with a novel pseudoword condition. Methods The participants were seventeen healthy young adults (9 females). The stimuli consisted of (a) concrete, high imageability nouns, (b) abstract, low imageability nouns and (c) opaque legal pseudowords presented in a pseudorandomised, event-related design. Activation for the concrete, abstract and pseudoword conditions was analysed using anatomical regions of interest derived from previous findings of concrete and abstract word processing. Results Behaviourally, lexical decision reaction times for the concrete condition were significantly faster than both abstract and pseudoword conditions and the abstract condition was significantly faster than the pseudoword condition (p < 0.05). The region of interest analysis showed significantly greater activity for concrete versus abstract conditions in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate and bilaterally in the angular gyrus. There were no significant differences between abstract and concrete conditions in the left superior temporal gyrus or inferior frontal gyrus. Conclusions These findings confirm the involvement of the bilateral angular gyrus, left posterior cingulate and left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in retrieving concrete versus abstract concepts during spoken word recognition. Significant activity was also elicited by concrete words relative to pseudowords in the left fusiform and left anterior middle temporal gyrus. These findings confirm the involvement of a widely distributed network of brain regions that are activated in response to the spoken recognition of concrete but not abstract words. Our findings are consistent with the proposal that distinct brain regions are engaged as convergence zones and enable the binding of supramodal input.
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26
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Visual imagery while reading concrete and abstract Japanese kanji words: an fMRI study. Neurosci Res 2013; 79:61-6. [PMID: 24512703 DOI: 10.1016/j.neures.2013.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2013] [Revised: 10/13/2013] [Accepted: 10/16/2013] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Neuroimaging studies have investigated differences in neural correlates between abstract and concrete concepts but this has not been done with Japanese participants. Concrete words have higher imageability than abstract words, such that they elicit more visual imagery. The present study used functional MRI to investigate brain activity of Japanese participants (N=16) during generation of visual images for written concrete or abstract Japanese kanji words. Concrete words elicited significantly more activation than abstract words in the left middle frontal gyrus (LMFG), bilateral superior frontal gyrus, and left fusiform gyrus (LFG). Psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analyses were performed to assess LMFG and LFG functional connections. LMFG activity was accompanied by increased functional interaction with the left superior parietal lobule (LSPL), and LFG activity was accompanied by increased functional interaction with the LMFG. This finding suggests that the LMFG plays an important role in visual imagery, with interactions between this region and both the LSPL and LFG.
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27
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Palmer SD, Macgregor LJ, Havelka J. Concreteness effects in single-meaning, multi-meaning and newly acquired words. Brain Res 2013; 1538:135-50. [PMID: 24064384 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2013.09.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2012] [Revised: 09/08/2013] [Accepted: 09/16/2013] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
This study examined the extent to which concreteness influences the acquisition and subsequent processing of novel (low frequency) concepts. Participants were trained on 70 rare English words (35 concrete, 35 abstract) paired with definitions. ERPs were then recorded while participants performed a semantic categorisation (concrete vs. abstract) and a lexical decision task on single-meaning, multi-meaning and the newly acquired words. During training there was a significant effect of concreteness, in that participants were more successful at acquiring concrete concepts. In both the semantic categorisation and the lexical decision task, concreteness effects were evident in the behavioural and in the ERP data for all word types, with concrete words eliciting more negative waveforms than abstract words in the N400 time window. Behaviourally, participants experienced greater difficulty in judging the concreteness of multi-meaning words, yet concreteness effects in the N400 were equally strong for all three word types across both tasks. These findings indicate that concreteness represents a fundamental distinction in the way that items are represented in memory, which is independent of the participant's perceived judgement. They further demonstrate that novel concepts can be acquired rapidly after minimal training, and that the neurophysiological correlates associated with processing novel words are modulated by the specific nature of the conceptual characteristics assigned to the word.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shekeila D Palmer
- Institute of Psychological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, United Kingdom.
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28
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Llano DA. Functional imaging of the thalamus in language. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2013; 126:62-72. [PMID: 22981716 PMCID: PMC4836874 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2012.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2011] [Revised: 06/09/2012] [Accepted: 06/22/2012] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
Herein, the literature regarding functional imaging of the thalamus during language tasks is reviewed. Fifty studies met criteria for analysis. Two of the most common task paradigms associated with thalamic activation were generative tasks (e.g. word or sentence generation) and naming, though activation was also seen in tasks that involve lexical decision, reading and working memory. Typically, thalamic activation was seen bilaterally, left greater than right, along with activation in frontal and temporal cortical regions. Thalamic activation was seen with perceptually challenging tasks, though few studies rigorously correlated thalamic activation with measures of attention or task difficulty. The peaks of activation loci were seen in virtually all thalamic regions, with a bias towards left-sided and midline activation. These analyses suggest that the thalamus may be involved in processes that involve manipulations of lexical information, but point to the need for more systematic study of the thalamus using language tasks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel A Llano
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, USA.
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Ye Z, Milenkova M, Mohammadi B, Kollewe K, Schrader C, Dengler R, Samii A, Münte TF. Impaired comprehension of temporal connectives in Parkinson’s disease—A neuroimaging study. Neuropsychologia 2012; 50:1794-800. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2012.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2011] [Revised: 03/29/2012] [Accepted: 04/04/2012] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Wang J, Baucom LB, Shinkareva SV. Decoding abstract and concrete concept representations based on single-trial fMRI data. Hum Brain Mapp 2012; 34:1133-47. [PMID: 23568269 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.21498] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2011] [Revised: 09/21/2011] [Accepted: 09/26/2011] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Previously, multi-voxel pattern analysis has been used to decode words referring to concrete object categories. In this study we investigated if single-trial-based brain activity was sufficient to distinguish abstract (e.g., mercy) versus concrete (e.g., barn) concept representations. Multiple neuroimaging studies have identified differences in the processing of abstract versus concrete concepts based on the averaged activity across time by using univariate methods. In this study we used multi-voxel pattern analysis to decode functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data when participants perform a semantic similarity judgment task on triplets of either abstract or concrete words with similar meanings. Classifiers were trained to identify individual trials as concrete or abstract. Cross-validated accuracies for classifying trials as abstract or concrete were significantly above chance (P < 0.05) for all participants. Discriminating information was distributed in multiple brain regions. Moreover, accuracy of identifying single trial data for any one participant as abstract or concrete was also reliably above chance (P < 0.05) when the classifier was trained solely on data from other participants. These results suggest abstract and concrete concepts differ in representations in terms of neural activity patterns during a short period of time across the whole brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Wang
- Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208, USA
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31
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Scorolli C, Binkofski F, Buccino G, Nicoletti R, Riggio L, Borghi AM. Abstract and concrete sentences, embodiment, and languages. Front Psychol 2011; 2:227. [PMID: 21954387 PMCID: PMC3173827 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2011] [Accepted: 08/25/2011] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the main challenges of embodied theories is accounting for meanings of abstract words. The most common explanation is that abstract words, like concrete ones, are grounded in perception and action systems. According to other explanations, abstract words, differently from concrete ones, would activate situations and introspection; alternatively, they would be represented through metaphoric mapping. However, evidence provided so far pertains to specific domains. To be able to account for abstract words in their variety we argue it is necessary to take into account not only the fact that language is grounded in the sensorimotor system, but also that language represents a linguistic-social experience. To study abstractness as a continuum we combined a concrete (C) verb with both a concrete and an abstract (A) noun; and an abstract verb with the same nouns previously used (grasp vs. describe a flower vs. a concept). To disambiguate between the semantic meaning and the grammatical class of the words, we focused on two syntactically different languages: German and Italian. Compatible combinations (CC, AA) were processed faster than mixed ones (CA, AC). This is in line with the idea that abstract and concrete words are processed preferentially in parallel systems - abstract in the language system and concrete more in the motor system, thus costs of processing within one system are the lowest. This parallel processing takes place most probably within different anatomically predefined routes. With mixed combinations, when the concrete word preceded the abstract one (CA), participants were faster, regardless of the grammatical class and the spoken language. This is probably due to the peculiar mode of acquisition of abstract words, as they are acquired more linguistically than perceptually. Results confirm embodied theories which assign a crucial role to both perception-action and linguistic experience for abstract words.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Giovanni Buccino
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of CatanzaroCatanzaro, Italy
| | - Roberto Nicoletti
- Department of Communication Disciplines, University of BolognaBologna, Italy
| | - Lucia Riggio
- Department of Neurosciences, University of ParmaParma, Italy
| | - Anna Maria Borghi
- Department of Psychology, University of BolognaBologna, Italy
- Institute of Cognitive Science and Technology, CNRRome, Italy
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A lifespan perspective on semantic processing of concrete concepts: does a sensory/motor model have the potential to bridge the gap? COGNITIVE AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2011; 11:551-72. [DOI: 10.3758/s13415-011-0053-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Ye Z, Mestres-Missé A, Rodriguez-Fornells A, Münte TF. Two distinct neural networks support the mapping of meaning to a novel word. Hum Brain Mapp 2010; 32:1081-90. [PMID: 20681014 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.21093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2010] [Revised: 04/08/2010] [Accepted: 04/13/2010] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Children can learn the meaning of a new word from context during normal reading or listening, without any explicit instruction. It is unclear how such meaning acquisition is supported and achieved in human brain. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study we investigated neural networks supporting word learning with a functional connectivity approach. Participants were exposed to a new word presented in two successive sentences and needed to derive the meaning of the new word. We observed two neural networks involved in mapping the meaning to the new word. One network connected the left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) with the middle frontal gyrus (MFG), medial superior frontal gyrus, caudate nucleus, thalamus, and inferior parietal lobule. The other network connected the left middle temporal gyrus (LMTG) with the MFG, anterior and posterior cingulate cortex. The LIFG network showed stronger interregional interactions for new than real words, whereas the LMTG network showed similar connectivity patterns for new and real words. We proposed that these two networks support different functions during word learning. The LIFG network appears to select the most appropriate meaning from competing candidates and to map the selected meaning onto the new word. The LMTG network may be recruited to integrate the word into sentential context, regardless of whether the word is real or new. The LIFG and the LMTG networks share a common node, the MFG, suggesting that these two networks communicate in working memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng Ye
- Department of Psychology, Peking University, Beijing, China
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34
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Mestres-Missé A, Rodriguez-Fornells A, Münte TF. Neural differences in the mapping of verb and noun concepts onto novel words. Neuroimage 2010; 49:2826-35. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2009.10.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2009] [Revised: 09/02/2009] [Accepted: 10/07/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022] Open
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Rodríguez-Fornells A, Cunillera T, Mestres-Missé A, de Diego-Balaguer R. Neurophysiological mechanisms involved in language learning in adults. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2009; 364:3711-35. [PMID: 19933142 PMCID: PMC2846313 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2009.0130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 136] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Little is known about the brain mechanisms involved in word learning during infancy and in second language acquisition and about the way these new words become stable representations that sustain language processing. In several studies we have adopted the human simulation perspective, studying the effects of brain-lesions and combining different neuroimaging techniques such as event-related potentials and functional magnetic resonance imaging in order to examine the language learning (LL) process. In the present article, we review this evidence focusing on how different brain signatures relate to (i) the extraction of words from speech, (ii) the discovery of their embedded grammatical structure, and (iii) how meaning derived from verbal contexts can inform us about the cognitive mechanisms underlying the learning process. We compile these findings and frame them into an integrative neurophysiological model that tries to delineate the major neural networks that might be involved in the initial stages of LL. Finally, we propose that LL simulations can help us to understand natural language processing and how the recovery from language disorders in infants and adults can be accomplished.
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Cunillera T, Càmara E, Toro JM, Marco-Pallares J, Sebastián-Galles N, Ortiz H, Pujol J, Rodríguez-Fornells A. Time course and functional neuroanatomy of speech segmentation in adults. Neuroimage 2009; 48:541-53. [PMID: 19580874 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2009.06.069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 100] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2009] [Revised: 06/02/2009] [Accepted: 06/28/2009] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The present investigation was devoted to unraveling the time-course and brain regions involved in speech segmentation, which is one of the first processes necessary for learning a new language in adults and infants. A specific brain electrical pattern resembling the N400 language component was identified as an indicator of speech segmentation of candidate words. This N400 trace was clearly elicited after a short exposure to the words of the new language and showed a decrease in amplitude with longer exposure. Two brain regions were observed to be active during this process: the posterior superior temporal gyrus and the superior part of the ventral premotor cortex. We interpret these findings as evidence for the existence of an auditory-motor interface that is responsible for isolating possible candidate words when learning a new language in adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toni Cunillera
- Department of Basic Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
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