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van Scherpenberg C, Abdel Rahman R, Regenbrecht F, Obrig H. Semantic Interference through Multiple Distractors in Picture Naming in People with Aphasia. J Cogn Neurosci 2021; 33:1612-1633. [PMID: 34496369 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
When we refer to an object or concept by its name, activation of semantic and categorical information is necessary to retrieve the correct lexical representation. Whereas in neurotypical individuals it is well established that semantic context can interfere with or facilitate lexical retrieval, these effects are much less studied in people with lesions to the language network and impairment at different steps of lexical-semantic processing. Here, we applied a novel picture naming paradigm, where multiple categorically related and unrelated words were presented as distractors before a to-be-named target picture. Using eye tracking, we investigated preferential fixation on the cohort members versus nonmembers. Thereby, we can judge the impact of explicit acknowledgment of the category and its effect on semantic interference. We found that, in contrast to neurotypical participants [van Scherpenberg, C., Abdel Rahman, R., & Obrig, H. A novel multiword paradigm for investigating semantic context effects in language production. PLoS One, 15, e0230439, 2020], participants suffering from mild to moderate aphasia did not show a fixation preference on category members but still showed a large interference effect of ∼35 msec, confirming the implicit mechanism of categorical interference. However, preferential fixation on the categorically related cohort words correlated with clinical tests regarding nonverbal semantic abilities and integrity of the anterior temporal lobe. This highlights the role of supramodal semantics for explicit recognition of a semantic category, while semantic interference is triggered if the threshold of lexical cohort activation is reached. Confirming psycholinguistic evidence, the demonstration of a large and persistent interference effect through implicit lexico-semantic activation is important to understand deficits in people with a lesion in thelanguage network, potentially relevant for individualized intervention aiming at improving naming skills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cornelia van Scherpenberg
- Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.,Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig.,University Clinic Leipzig
| | | | | | - Hellmuth Obrig
- Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.,Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig.,University Clinic Leipzig
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2
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Faroqi-Shah Y, Gehman M. The Role of Processing Speed and Cognitive Control on Word Retrieval in Aging and Aphasia. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2021; 64:949-964. [PMID: 33621116 DOI: 10.1044/2020_jslhr-20-00326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Purpose When speakers retrieve words, they do so extremely quickly and accurately-both speed and accuracy of word retrieval are compromised in persons with aphasia (PWA). This study examined the contribution of two domain-general mechanisms: processing speed and cognitive control on word retrieval in PWA. Method Three groups of participants, neurologically healthy young and older adults and PWA (n = 15 in each group), performed processing speed, cognitive control, lexical decision, and word retrieval tasks on a computer. The relationship between word retrieval speed and other tasks was examined for each group. Results Both aging and aphasia resulted in slower processing speed but did not affect cognitive control. Word retrieval response time delays in PWA were eliminated when processing speed was accounted for. Word retrieval speed was predicted by individual differences in cognitive control in young and older adults and additionally by processing speed in older adults. In PWA, word retrieval speed was predicted by severity of language deficit and cognitive control. Conclusions This study shows that processing speed is compromised in aphasia and could account for their slowed response times. Individual differences in cognitive control predicted word retrieval speed in healthy adults and PWA. These findings highlight the need to include nonlinguistic cognitive mechanisms in future models of word retrieval in healthy adults and word retrieval deficits in aphasia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasmeen Faroqi-Shah
- Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park
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3
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How the speed of word finding depends on ventral tract integrity in primary progressive aphasia. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2020; 28:102450. [PMID: 33395954 PMCID: PMC7586239 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2020.102450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2020] [Revised: 09/22/2020] [Accepted: 09/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Noise words influence naming time, but not accuracy, more in PPA than in controls. Noise effect difference between PPA and controls reflects ventral tract integrity. The noise effect is smaller when ventral tract integrity is lower in the individuals with PPA. Simulations reveal that propagation of noise is reduced when tract integrity is low.
Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) is a clinical neurodegenerative syndrome with word finding problems as a core clinical symptom. Many aspects of word finding have been clarified in psycholinguistics using picture naming and a picture-word interference (PWI) paradigm, which emulates naming under contextual noise. However, little is known about how word finding depends on white-matter tract integrity, in particular, the atrophy of tracts located ventrally to the Sylvian fissure. To elucidate this question, we examined word finding in individuals with PPA and healthy controls employing PWI, tractography, and computer simulations using the WEAVER++ model of word finding. Twenty-three individuals with PPA and twenty healthy controls named pictures in two noise conditions. Mixed-effects modelling was performed on naming accuracy and reaction time (RT) and fixel-based tractography analyses were conducted to assess the relation between ventral white-matter integrity and naming performance. Naming RTs were longer for individuals with PPA compared to controls and, critically, individuals with PPA showed a larger noise effect compared to controls. Moreover, this difference in noise effect was differentially related to tract integrity. Whereas the noise effect did not depend much on tract integrity in controls, a lower tract integrity was related to a smaller noise effect in individuals with PPA. Computer simulations supported an explanation of this paradoxical finding in terms of reduced propagation of noise when tract integrity is low. By using multimodal analyses, our study indicates the significance of the ventral pathway for naming and the importance of RT measurement in the clinical assessment of PPA.
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Hepner CR, Nozari N. The dual origin of lexical perseverations in aphasia: Residual activation and incremental learning. Neuropsychologia 2020; 147:107603. [PMID: 32877655 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107603] [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: 01/17/2020] [Revised: 08/27/2020] [Accepted: 08/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Lexical perseveration, the inappropriate repetition of a previous response, is common in aphasia. Two underlying mechanisms have been proposed: residual activation and incremental learning. Previous attempts to differentiate the two have relied on experimental paradigms that encourage semantically related errors and analysis techniques designed to detect perseverations over short distances, resulting in a bias towards detecting short-lag, semantically related perseverations that both mechanisms can account for. Two key predictions that differentiate these accounts remain untested: only residual activation can explain short-lag, semantically unrelated perseverations, whereas only incremental learning can explain long-lag, semantically related perseverations. In this paper, we used a large set of picture naming trials and a novel analysis technique to test these key predictions in a multi-session study involving six individuals with aphasia. We found clear evidence for both mechanisms in different individuals, demonstrating that either one is sufficient to cause perseveration. Importantly, perseverations due to residual activation were associated with more severely impaired systems than those due to incremental learning, suggesting that a certain degree of structural and functional integrity was necessary for incremental learning. Finally, the results supported a key prediction of the incremental learning account by showing perseverations over longer lags than have previously been reported.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Nazbanou Nozari
- Department of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
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5
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Todorova L, Neville DA, Piai V. Lexical-semantic and executive deficits revealed by computational modelling: A drift diffusion model perspective. Neuropsychologia 2020; 146:107560. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2019] [Revised: 04/30/2020] [Accepted: 07/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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6
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Piai V, De Witte E, Sierpowska J, Zheng X, Hinkley LB, Mizuiri D, Knight RT, Berger MS, Nagarajan SS. Language Neuroplasticity in Brain Tumor Patients Revealed by Magnetoencephalography. J Cogn Neurosci 2020; 32:1497-1507. [PMID: 32286133 PMCID: PMC8330634 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Little is known about language impairment in brain tumor patients, especially in the presurgical phase. Impairment in this population may be missed because standardized tests fail to capture mild deficits. Additionally, neuroplasticity may also contribute to minimizing language impairments. We examined 14 presurgical patients with brain tumors in the language-dominant hemisphere using magnetoencephalography (MEG) while they performed a demanding picture-word interference task, that is, participants name pictures while ignoring distractor words. Brain tumor patients had behavioral picture-naming effects typically observed in healthy controls. The MEG responses also showed the expected pattern in its timing and amplitude modulation typical of controls, but with an altered spatial distribution of right hemisphere sources, in contrast to the classic left hemisphere source found in healthy individuals. This finding supports tumor-induced neural reorganization of language before surgery. Crucially, the use of electrophysiology allowed us to show the "same" neuronal response in terms of its timing and amplitude modulation in the right hemisphere, supporting the hypothesis that the processes performed by the right hemisphere following reorganization are similar in nature to those (previously) performed by the left hemisphere. We also identified one participant with a fast-growing tumor affecting large parts of critical language areas and underlying ventral and dorsal white matter tracts who showed a deviant pattern in behavior and in the MEG event-related responses. In conclusion, our results attest to the validity of using a demanding picture-naming task in presurgical patients and provide evidence for neuroplasticity, with the right hemisphere performing similar computations as the left hemisphere typically performs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vitória Piai
- Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Elke De Witte
- Free University of Brussels
- University of California, San Francisco
| | - Joanna Sierpowska
- Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
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Zyryanov A, Malyutina S, Dragoy O. Left frontal aslant tract and lexical selection: Evidence from frontal lobe lesions. Neuropsychologia 2020; 147:107385. [PMID: 32057935 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Revised: 12/28/2019] [Accepted: 02/09/2020] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The frontal aslant tract (FAT) is a white-matter tract connecting the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and the supplementary motor complex (SMC). Damage to either component of the network causes spontaneous speech dysfluency, indicating its critical role in language production. However, spontaneous speech dysfluency may stem from various lower-level linguistic deficits, precluding inferences about the nature of linguistic processing subserved by the IFG-SMC network. Since the IFG and the SMC are attributed a role in conceptual and lexical selection during language production, we hypothesized that these processes rely on the IFG-SMC connectivity via the FAT. We analysed the effects of FAT volume on conceptual and lexical selection measures following frontal lobe stroke. The measures were obtained from the sentence completion task, tapping into conceptual and lexical selection, and the picture-word interference task, providing a more specific measure of lexical selection. Lower FAT volume was not associated with lower conceptual or lexical selection abilities in our patient cohort. Current findings stand in marked discrepancy with previous lesion and neuroimaging evidence for the joint contribution of the IFG and the SMC to lexical and conceptual selection. A plausible explanation reconciling this discrepancy is that the IFG-SMC connectivity via the FAT does contribute to conceptual and/or lexical selection but its disrupted function undergoes reorganisation over the course of post-stroke recovery. Thus, our negative findings stress the importance of testing the causal role of the FAT in lexical and conceptual selection in patients with more acute frontal lobe lesions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrey Zyryanov
- Center for Language and Brain, National Research University Higher School of Economics, 21/4 Staraya Basmannaya St., Office 510, Moscow, 105066, Russia.
| | - Svetlana Malyutina
- Center for Language and Brain, National Research University Higher School of Economics, 21/4 Staraya Basmannaya St., Office 510, Moscow, 105066, Russia
| | - Olga Dragoy
- Center for Language and Brain, National Research University Higher School of Economics, 21/4 Staraya Basmannaya St., Office 510, Moscow, 105066, Russia; Department of Medical Rehabilitation, Federal Center for Cerebrovascular Pathology and Stroke, 1 Ostrovityanova St., 117997, Russia
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Task difficulty modulates brain-behavior correlations in language production and cognitive control: Behavioral and fMRI evidence from a phonological go/no-go picture-naming paradigm. COGNITIVE AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2019; 18:964-981. [PMID: 29923097 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-018-0616-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Language production and cognitive control are complex processes that involve distinct yet interacting brain networks. However, the extent to which these processes interact and their neural bases have not been thoroughly examined. Here, we investigated the neural and behavioral bases of language production and cognitive control via a phonological go/no-go picture-naming task. Naming difficulty and cognitive control demands (i.e., conflict monitoring and response inhibition) were manipulated by varying the proportion of naming trials (go trials) and inhibition trials (no-go trials) across task runs. The results demonstrated that as task demands increased, participants' behavioral performance declined (i.e., longer reaction times on naming trials, more commission errors on inhibition trials) whereas brain activation generally increased. Increased activation was found not only within the language network but also in domain-general control regions. Additionally, right superior and inferior frontal and left supramarginal gyri were sensitive to increased task difficulty during both language production and response inhibition. We also found both positive and negative brain-behavior correlations. Most notably, increased activation in sensorimotor regions, such as precentral and postcentral gyri, was associated with better behavioral performance, in both successful picture naming and successful inhibition. Moreover, comparing the strength of correlations across conditions indicated that the brain-behavior correlations in sensorimotor regions that were associated with improved performance became stronger as task demands increased. Overall, our results suggest that cognitive control demands affect language production, and that successfully coping with increases in task difficulty relies on both language-specific and domain-general cognitive control regions.
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Higby E, Cahana-Amitay D, Vogel-Eyny A, Spiro A, Albert ML, Obler LK. The Role of Executive Functions in Object- and Action-Naming among Older Adults. Exp Aging Res 2019; 45:306-330. [PMID: 31216948 DOI: 10.1080/0361073x.2019.1627492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Background/Study Context: Lexical retrieval abilities and executive function skills decline with age. The extent to which these processes might be interdependent remains unknown. The aim of the current study was to examine whether individual differences in three executive functions (shifting, fluency, and inhibition) predicted naming performance in older adults. Methods: The sample included 264 adults aged 55-84. Six measures of executive functions were combined to make three executive function composites scores. Lexical retrieval performance was measured by accuracy and response time on two tasks: object naming and action naming. We conducted a series of multiple regressions to test whether executive function performance predicts naming abilities in older adults. Results: We found that different executive functions predicted naming speed and accuracy. Shifting predicted naming accuracy for both object and action naming while fluency predicted response times on both tests as well as object naming accuracy, after controlling for education, gender, age, working memory span, and speed of processing in all regressions. Interestingly, inhibition did not contribute to naming accuracy or response times on either task. Conclusion: The findings support the notion that preservation of some executive functions contributes to successful naming in older adults and that different executive functions are associated with naming speed and accuracy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eve Higby
- a Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences , California State University , East Bay, Hayward , CA , USA.,b Department of Psychology , University of California , Riverside , CA , USA
| | - Dalia Cahana-Amitay
- c Department of Neurology , Boston University School of Medicine , Boston , MA.,d Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System , Boston , MA
| | - Amy Vogel-Eyny
- e Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences , The Graduate Center of the City University of New York , New York , NY
| | - Avron Spiro
- d Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System , Boston , MA.,f Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health , Boston University , Boston , MA.,g Department of Psychiatry , Boston University School of Medicine , Boston , MA
| | - Martin L Albert
- c Department of Neurology , Boston University School of Medicine , Boston , MA.,d Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System , Boston , MA
| | - Loraine K Obler
- c Department of Neurology , Boston University School of Medicine , Boston , MA.,d Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System , Boston , MA.,e Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences , The Graduate Center of the City University of New York , New York , NY
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10
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Gauvin HS, McMahon KL, Meinzer M, de Zubicaray GI. The Shape of Things to Come in Speech Production: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study of Visual Form Interference during Lexical Access. J Cogn Neurosci 2019; 31:913-921. [PMID: 30747589 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Studies of context effects in speech production have shown that semantic feature overlap produces interference in naming of categorically related objects. In neuroimaging studies, this semantic interference effect is consistently associated with involvement of left superior and middle temporal gyri. However, at least part of this effect has recently been shown to be attributable to visual form similarity, as categorically related objects typically share visual features. This fMRI study examined interference produced by visual form overlap in the absence of a category relation in a picture-word interference paradigm. Both visually similar and visually dissimilar distractors led to increased BOLD responses in the left inferior frontal gyrus compared with the congruent condition. Naming pictures in context with a distractor word denoting an object visually similar in form slowed RTs compared with unrelated words and was associated with reduced activity in the left posterior middle temporal gyrus. This area is reliably observed in lexical level processing during language production tasks. No significant differential activity was observed in areas typically engaged by early perceptual or conceptual feature level processing or in areas proposed to be engaged by postlexical language processes, suggesting that visual form interference does not arise from uncertainty or confusion during perceptual or conceptual identification or after lexical processing. We conclude that visual form interference has a lexical locus, consistent with the predictions of competitive lexical selection models.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Katie L McMahon
- Queensland University of Technology.,Royal Brisbane & Women's Hospital
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11
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Abstract
According to most models of language production, to name a picture one must first map semantic features onto lexical items. Even if both sets of representations are intact, problems in mapping semantic to lexical representations can impair production. Individuals with this problem, sometimes referred to as "access deficit", often demonstrate evidence of preserved semantic knowledge (e.g., good comprehension), increased rate of lexical (usually semantic) errors in production, and inconsistent accuracy on naming the same picture on different occasions. In this paper, I argue that access deficit can have two distinct etiologies. I will present a case of double dissociation between two individuals with chronic post-stroke aphasia, one of whom shows a profile compatible with impaired activation of the target lexical item from semantic features (activation deficit), while the other shows a profile compatible with impaired inhibition of competing lexical items (inhibition deficit). These results have three key implications: (a) they provide support for the theoretical separation between activation and selection processes in computational models of word production, (b) they point to the critical role of inhibitory control in lexical selection, and (c) they invite a closer inspection of the origin of semantic errors in individuals with access deficit in order to choose the best treatment option.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nazbanou Nozari
- a Department of Neurology , Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore , MD, USA
- b Department of Cognitive Science , Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore , MD, USA
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12
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Abstract
According to the competition account of lexical selection in word production, conceptually driven word retrieval involves the activation of a set of candidate words in left temporal cortex and competitive selection of the intended word from this set, regulated by frontal cortical mechanisms. However, the relative contribution of these brain regions to competitive lexical selection is uncertain. In the present study, five patients with left prefrontal cortex lesions (overlapping in ventral and dorsal lateral cortex), eight patients with left lateral temporal cortex lesions (overlapping in middle temporal gyrus), and 13 matched controls performed a picture-word interference task. Distractor words were semantically related or unrelated to the picture, or the name of the picture (congruent condition). Semantic interference (related vs. unrelated), tapping into competitive lexical selection, was examined. An overall semantic interference effect was observed for the control and left-temporal groups separately. The left-frontal patients did not show a reliable semantic interference effect as a group. The left-temporal patients had increased semantic interference in the error rates relative to controls. Error distribution analyses indicated that these patients had more hesitant responses for the related than for the unrelated condition. We propose that left middle temporal lesions affect the lexical activation component, making lexical selection more susceptible to errors.
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The involvement of left inferior frontal and middle temporal cortices in word production unveiled by greater facilitation effects following brain damage. Neuropsychologia 2018; 121:122-134. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.10.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2018] [Revised: 09/26/2018] [Accepted: 10/29/2018] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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Nozari N, Hepner CR. To select or to wait? The importance of criterion setting in debates of competitive lexical selection. Cogn Neuropsychol 2018; 36:193-207. [PMID: 29869940 DOI: 10.1080/02643294.2018.1476335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Competitive accounts of lexical selection propose that the activation of competitors slows down the selection of the target. Non-competitive accounts, on the other hand, posit that target response latencies are independent of the activation of competing items. In this paper, we propose a signal detection framework for lexical selection and show how a flexible selection criterion affects claims of competitive selection. Specifically, we review evidence from neurotypical and brain-damaged speakers and demonstrate that task goals and the state of the production system determine whether a competitive or a non-competitive selection profile arises. We end by arguing that there is conclusive evidence for a flexible criterion in lexical selection, and that integrating criterion shifts into models of language production is critical for evaluating theoretical claims regarding (non-)competitive selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nazbanou Nozari
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.,Department of Cognitive Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
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15
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Freund M, Nozari N. Is adaptive control in language production mediated by learning? Cognition 2018; 176:107-130. [PMID: 29550688 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2018.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2017] [Revised: 03/06/2018] [Accepted: 03/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Recent work using the Picture Word Interference (PWI) paradigm has revealed that language production, similar to non-verbal tasks, shows a robust Congruency Sequence Effect (CSE), defined as a decreased congruency effect following incongruent trials. Although CSE is considered an index of adaptive control, its mechanism is debated. In two experiments, we tested the predictions of a learning model of adaptive control in production, using a task-switching paradigm fully balanced to evaluate CSE on a PWI trial as a function of the congruency of a 2-back PWI trial (within-task CSE), as well as a 1-back trial belonging to a different task (cross-task CSE). The second task was a visuospatial task with congruent and incongruent trials in Experiment 1, and a self-paced reading task with ambiguous and unambiguous sentences in Experiment 2 that imposed a gap between the two PWI trials twice as long of that in Experiment 1. A learning model posits that CSE is the result of changes to the connection weights between task-specific representations and a control center, which leads to two predictions in our paradigm: (a) a robust within-task CSE unaffected by the intervening trial and the gap duration, and (b) an absent or reversed cross-task CSE. These predictions were contrasted with two versions of an activation model of CSE. In accord with the predictions of the learning model, we found robust within-task CSE in PWI in both Experiments with a comparable effect size. Similarly, evidence of within-task CSE was also found in the visuospatial and sentence reading tasks. On the other hand, examination of cross-task CSE from PWI to the other tasks and vice versa revealed either absent or reversed CSE. Collectively, these results support a learning model of adaptive control in language production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Freund
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University, 1629 Thames Street, Suite 350, Baltimore, MD 21231, USA
| | - Nazbanou Nozari
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University, 1629 Thames Street, Suite 350, Baltimore, MD 21231, USA; Department of Cognitive Science, Johns Hopkins University, 1629 Thames Street, Suite 350, Baltimore, MD 21231, USA.
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Chen Q, Middleton E, Mirman D. Words fail: Lesion-symptom mapping of errors of omission in post-stroke aphasia. J Neuropsychol 2018; 13:183-197. [PMID: 29411521 DOI: 10.1111/jnp.12148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2017] [Revised: 01/03/2018] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Impaired object naming is a core deficit in post-stroke aphasia, which can manifest as errors of commission - producing an incorrect word or a non-word - or as errors of omission - failing to attempt to name the object. Detailed behavioural, computational, and neurological investigations of errors of commission have played a key role in the development of neurocognitive models of word production. In contrast, the neurocognitive basis of omission errors is radically underspecified despite being a prevalent phenomenon in aphasia and other populations. The prevalence of omission errors makes their neurocognitive basis important for characterizing an individual's deficits and, ideally, for personalizing treatment and evaluating treatment outcomes. This study leveraged established relationships between lesion location and errors of commission to investigate omission errors in picture naming. Omission error rates from the Philadelphia Naming Test for 123 individuals with post-stroke aphasia were analysed using support vector regression lesion-symptom mapping. Omission errors were most strongly associated with left frontal and mid-anterior temporal lobe lesions. Computational model analysis further showed that omission errors were positively associated with impaired semantically driven lexical retrieval rather than phonological retrieval. These results suggest that errors of omission in aphasia predominantly arise from lexical-semantic deficits in word retrieval and selection from a competitor set.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Chen
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Erica Middleton
- Moss Rehabilitation Research Institute, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Daniel Mirman
- Moss Rehabilitation Research Institute, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA
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Spatiotemporal dynamics of word retrieval in speech production revealed by cortical high-frequency band activity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:E4530-E4538. [PMID: 28533406 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1620669114] [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] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Word retrieval is core to language production and relies on complementary processes: the rapid activation of lexical and conceptual representations and word selection, which chooses the correct word among semantically related competitors. Lexical and conceptual activation is measured by semantic priming. In contrast, word selection is indexed by semantic interference and is hampered in semantically homogeneous (HOM) contexts. We examined the spatiotemporal dynamics of these complementary processes in a picture naming task with blocks of semantically heterogeneous (HET) or HOM stimuli. We used electrocorticography data obtained from frontal and temporal cortices, permitting detailed spatiotemporal analysis of word retrieval processes. A semantic interference effect was observed with naming latencies longer in HOM versus HET blocks. Cortical response strength as indexed by high-frequency band (HFB) activity (70-150 Hz) amplitude revealed effects linked to lexical-semantic activation and word selection observed in widespread regions of the cortical mantle. Depending on the subsecond timing and cortical region, HFB indexed semantic interference (i.e., more activity in HOM than HET blocks) or semantic priming effects (i.e., more activity in HET than HOM blocks). These effects overlapped in time and space in the left posterior inferior temporal gyrus and the left prefrontal cortex. The data do not support a modular view of word retrieval in speech production but rather support substantial overlap of lexical-semantic activation and word selection mechanisms in the brain.
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