LG462-7-SP-CO:
Topics in Psycholinguistics
PLEASE NOTE: This module is inactive. Visit the Module Directory to view modules and variants offered during the current academic year.
2023/24
Language and Linguistics
Colchester Campus
Spring
Postgraduate: Level 7
Inactive
Monday 15 January 2024
Friday 22 March 2024
15
04 October 2018
Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
Understanding spoken or written language requires the rapid, incremental processing of novel compositional structures, as well as the integration of the incoming language stream with multiple sources of information, such as the prior discourse, physical context, social information, etc. How are humans able to efficiently accomplish this task? To address this question, this course will consider principles of sentence and discourse processing that guide language understanding and features of sentence & discourse structure that facilitate comprehension. Specific topics are likely to include reference processing, memory & forgetting, individual differences in comprehension ability, the role of context, and computational models of language comprehension.
No information available.
By the end of the term you will:
(i) have an overview of existing models of parsing and current issues in sentence processing research,
(ii) be able to understand and assess current scientific debates in this area,
(iii) Understand and appreciate the relationship between syntactic theory and sentence processing.
No additional information available.
This module consists of 10 weekly 2-hour lectures.
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Traxler, M.J. and dawsonera (2011)
Introduction to psycholinguistics: understanding language science. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell. Available at:
https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/universityofessex-ebooks/detail.action?docID=697786.
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Van Gompel, R.P.G. (2013)
Sentence Processing. Hove: Psychology Press. Available at:
http://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9780203488454.
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Swinney, David A (no date) ‘Lexical Access during Sentence Comprehension: (Re)Consideration of Context Effects’,
Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 18(6). Available at:
https://search.proquest.com/docview/1297349433/fulltextPDF/5C638DD6557F471CPQ/4?accountid=10766.
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Glenberg, A.M. and Kaschak, M.P. (2002) ‘Grounding language in action’,
Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 9(3), pp. 558–565. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03196313.
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Indefrey, P. and Levelt, W.J.. (2004) ‘The spatial and temporal signatures of word production components’,
Cognition, 92(1-2), pp. 101–144. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2002.06.001.
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Frazier, L. and Fodor, J.D. (1978) ‘The sausage machine: A new two-stage parsing model’,
Cognition, 6(4), pp. 291–325. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1016/0010-0277(78)90002-1.
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Frazier, L. and Rayner, K. (1987) ‘Resolution of syntactic category ambiguities: Eye movements in parsing lexically ambiguous sentences’,
Journal of Memory and Language, 26(5), pp. 505–526. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-596X(87)90137-9.
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Traxler, M.J. and Pickering, M.J. (1996) ‘Plausibility and the Processing of Unbounded Dependencies:An Eye-Tracking Study’,
Journal of Memory and Language, 35(3), pp. 454–475. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1006/jmla.1996.0025.
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Gordon, P.C., Grosz, B.J. and Gilliom, L.A. (1993) ‘Pronouns, Names, and the Centering of Attention in Discourse’,
Cognitive Science, 17(3), pp. 311–347. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1207/s15516709cog1703_1.
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Baddeley, A. (2003) ‘Working memory: looking back and looking forward’,
Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 4(10), pp. 829–839. Available at:
https://essex.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/44UOES_INST/1h1udbn/cdi_proquest_miscellaneous_75729981.
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King, Jonathan & Just, Marcel Adam (1991) ‘Individual Differences in Syntactic Processing: The Role of Working Memory’,
Journal of Memory and Language, 30(5). Available at:
https://search.proquest.com/docview/1297354876/C6B4AD11BD4749D3PQ/5?accountid=10766.
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Trueswell, J.C.
et al. (1999) ‘The kindergarten-path effect: studying on-line sentence processing in young children’,
Cognition, 73(2), pp. 89–134. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0010-0277(99)00032-3.
The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's
reading list.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
| Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Dr Laurel Lawyer
Dr Laurel Lawyer, Office: 4.340, tel: 01206 872082, email: ll17971@essex.ac.uk
No
No
No
Dr Ian Cunnings
University of Reading
Associate Professor in Psycholinguistics
Available via Moodle
No lecture recording information available for this module.
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