Relational Memory and Language Comprehension

这个项目研究大脑如何协调人类记忆中的信息与语言理解过程中提供的新信息的呈现。重点是通过对指称表达，特别是代词的解释，动态构建话语的心理表征。本研究调查了情景记忆和语义记忆的表征方面对这一过程的调节方式，并将整合记忆和语言处理方面的知识，以解释名词短语的歧义、频率和语义内容如何影响语言理解的一个关键方面，即对前面提到的实体的表达的解释。研究中使用的主要方法是测量成年人阅读短文时的眼球运动；另一种方法是测量学生回答文章相关问题所需的时间。这项研究将为近年来一直备受争议的两个基本问题提供答案：(1)如果有的话，记忆的一般原则在解释语言处理中起什么作用；(2)如果有的话，对话语中中心（或主题）实体的引用与对非中心实体的引用的处理方式不同。

This project investigates how the mind coordinates information in human memory with the presentation of novel information provided during language comprehension. The focus is on the dynamic construction of a mental representation of discourse through the interpretation of referential expressions, typically pronouns. The work investigates the manner in which this process is mediated by representational aspects of episodic and semantic memory, and will integrate knowledge about memory and language processing to explain how the ambiguity, frequency, and semantic content of noun phrases affect a critical aspect of language comprehension, namely the interpretation of expressions that refer to entities mentioned previously. The primary method used in the research is to measure the eye movements of adults as they read short passages; an additional method involves measurement of the time that it takes to answer questions about the passages. The research will provide answers to two fundamental questions which have been the subject of substantial debate in recent years: (1) What role, if any, can general principles of memory play in explaining language processing, and (2) in what ways, if any, is reference to entities that are central (or topical) in a discourse processed differently from reference to entities that are not central.