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Electrophysiological Evidence for a Whorfian Double Dissociation of Categorical Perception Across Two Languages

Casaponsa, Aina ; García-Guerrero, M. Acebo ; Martinez, Alejandro ; Ojeda, Natalia ; Thierry, Guillaume and Athanasopoulos, Panos LU (2024) In Language Learning
Abstract
Taza in Spanish refers to cups and mugs in English, whereas glass refers to different glass types in Spanish: copa and vaso. It is still unclear whether such categorical distinctions induce early perceptual differences in speakers of different languages. In this study, for the first time, we report symmetrical effects of terminology on preattentive indices of categorical perception across languages. Native speakers of English or Spanish saw arrays of cups, mugs, copas, and vasos flashed in streams. Visual mismatch negativity, an implicit electrophysiological correlate of perceptual change in the peripheral visual field, was modulated for categorical contrasts marked in the participants’ native language but not for objects designated by the... (More)
Taza in Spanish refers to cups and mugs in English, whereas glass refers to different glass types in Spanish: copa and vaso. It is still unclear whether such categorical distinctions induce early perceptual differences in speakers of different languages. In this study, for the first time, we report symmetrical effects of terminology on preattentive indices of categorical perception across languages. Native speakers of English or Spanish saw arrays of cups, mugs, copas, and vasos flashed in streams. Visual mismatch negativity, an implicit electrophysiological correlate of perceptual change in the peripheral visual field, was modulated for categorical contrasts marked in the participants’ native language but not for objects designated by the same label. Conversely, P3a, an index of attentional orienting, was modulated only for missing contrasts in the participants’ native language. Thus, whereas native labels influenced participants’ preattentive perceptual encoding of objects, nonverbally encoded dissociations reoriented their attention at a later processing stage. (Less)
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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Language Learning
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • scopus:85191168446
ISSN
0023-8333
DOI
10.1111/lang.12648
language
English
LU publication?
no
id
ea257577-cf6a-43c6-8250-cacb292b5ea5
date added to LUP
2024-05-29 12:51:03
date last changed
2024-05-30 12:21:49
@article{ea257577-cf6a-43c6-8250-cacb292b5ea5,
  abstract     = {{Taza in Spanish refers to cups and mugs in English, whereas glass refers to different glass types in Spanish: copa and vaso. It is still unclear whether such categorical distinctions induce early perceptual differences in speakers of different languages. In this study, for the first time, we report symmetrical effects of terminology on preattentive indices of categorical perception across languages. Native speakers of English or Spanish saw arrays of cups, mugs, copas, and vasos flashed in streams. Visual mismatch negativity, an implicit electrophysiological correlate of perceptual change in the peripheral visual field, was modulated for categorical contrasts marked in the participants’ native language but not for objects designated by the same label. Conversely, P3a, an index of attentional orienting, was modulated only for missing contrasts in the participants’ native language. Thus, whereas native labels influenced participants’ preattentive perceptual encoding of objects, nonverbally encoded dissociations reoriented their attention at a later processing stage.}},
  author       = {{Casaponsa, Aina and García-Guerrero, M. Acebo and Martinez, Alejandro and Ojeda, Natalia and Thierry, Guillaume and Athanasopoulos, Panos}},
  issn         = {{0023-8333}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Language Learning}},
  title        = {{Electrophysiological Evidence for a Whorfian Double Dissociation of Categorical Perception Across Two Languages}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/lang.12648}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/lang.12648}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}