Hemispheric asymmetries in semantic processing: evidence from false memories for ambiguous words

Brain and Language
Miriam FaustItay Harel

Abstract

Previous research suggests that the left hemisphere (LH) focuses on strongly related word meanings; the right hemisphere (RH) may contribute uniquely to the processing of lexical ambiguity by activating and maintaining a wide range of meanings, including subordinate meanings. The present study used the word-lists false memory paradigm [Roediger, H. L. III., & McDermott, K. B. (1995). Creating false memories: Remembering words not presented in lists. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 21, 803-814.] to examine whether these differences between the two cerebral hemispheres in semantic processing also affect memory representations for different meanings of ambiguous words. Specifically, we tested the differences between the LH and RH in recollecting unpresented, semantically related, ambiguous words following the presentation of lists of words all related to either the dominant or the subordinate meanings of these ambiguous words. Findings showed that for the unpresented ambiguous words, the LH made more false alarms than the RH for the dominant lists, whereas the opposite pattern emerged for subordinate lists. Moreover, d' analyses showed that, whereas the LH was more sensitive to subordinate than...Continue Reading

Citations

Aug 19, 2014·Brain and Cognition·Luciano Grüdtner BurattoLilian Milnitsky Stein
May 26, 2012·Brain and Cognition·Jeannette Giammattei, Jason Arndt
Oct 23, 2009·Brain and Cognition·Kyle Lovseth, Ruth Ann Atchley
Jan 15, 2014·Neuropsychologia·Bálint ForgácsCsaba Pléh
Jan 18, 2011·Neuropsychologia·Ruth Ann AtchleyLinzi Gibson
Jul 24, 2012·Cortex; a Journal Devoted to the Study of the Nervous System and Behavior·Rémy SchmitzPhilippe Peigneux
May 26, 2016·Brain and Language·Padraic MonaghanChloe R Newbury

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