Negative Clauses Imply Affirmative Topics and Affirmative Antecedents

Autor/inn/en	Clifton, Charles, Jr.; Frazier, Lyn; Kaup, Barbara
Titel	Negative Clauses Imply Affirmative Topics and Affirmative Antecedents
Quelle	In: Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 50 (2021) 6, S.1261-1282 (22 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Clifton, Charles, Jr.) ORCID (Frazier, Lyn)
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0090-6905
DOI	10.1007/s10936-021-09792-1
Schlagwörter	Language Processing; Phrase Structure; Psycholinguistics; Ambiguity (Semantics); Form Classes (Languages); Verbs; Prediction; Morphemes; Reading Rate; Punctuation; Difficulty Level; Reading Processes + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Sprachverarbeitung; Phrasenstruktur; Psycholinguistik; Analytischer Sprachbau; Vorhersage; Morphem; Reading readiness; Reading speed; Lesegeschwindigkeit; Interpunktion; Schwierigkeitsgrad; Leseprozess
Abstract	We propose that negative clauses are generally interpreted as if the affirmative portion of the clause is under discussion, a likely topic. This predicts a preference for affirmative (topical) antecedents over negative antecedents of a following missing verb phrase (VP). Three experiments tested the predictions of this hypothesis in sentences containing negation in the first clause followed by an ambiguous as-clause as in "Don't cross on red as a stupid person would" and its counterpart with "smart" replacing "stupid." In Experiment 1 sentences containing an undesirable attribute adjective such as "stupid" were rated as more natural, and read faster, than their desirable attribute counterparts ("smart"), with or without a comma preceding as. The second experiment indicated that the interpretation of the missing VP reflected the attribute adjective's desirability, with processing difficulty presumably reflecting reanalysis from the initial affirmative antecedent (cross on red) to include negation when the initial interpretation violated plausibility. A third experiment generalized the effect beyond sentences with an initial contracted "don't." (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01