At the boundary between lexical and grammatical aspect: an eye tracking study

• Thesis title in Czech: Na rozhraní lexikální a gramatické povahy vidu: studie očních pohybů
• Thesis title in English: At the boundary between lexical and grammatical aspect: an eye tracking study
• Key words: jazyk|kognice|interakce|lexikální vid|gramatický vid|oční kamera|konceptualizace|blank screen paradigma|senzomotorický systém|nizozemština
• English key words: language|cognition|interaction|lexical aspect|grammatical aspect|eye tracking|conceptualisation|blank screen paradigm|sensorimotor system|Dutch
• Academic year of topic announcement: 2015/2016
• Thesis type: diploma thesis
• Thesis language: angličtina
• Department: Institute of Linguistics (21-ULING)
• Supervisor: doc. Mirjam Friedová, Ph.D., mimořádný profesor Univerzity Karlovy
• Author: hidden - assigned and confirmed by the Study Dept.
• Date of registration: 22.06.2016
• Date of assignment: 22.06.2016
• Administrator's approval: not processed yet
• Confirmed by Study dept. on: 29.06.2016
• Date and time of defence: 13.09.2017 09:50
• Date of electronic submission: 16.08.2017
• Date of proceeded defence: 13.09.2017
• Submitted/finalized: committed by student and finalized
• Opponents: prof. Jan Pekelder, Dr.

Guidelines

Even subtle changes in linguistic cues can lead to a change in mental representation. Among the grammatical markers and lexical categories from which linguistic cues arise, grammatical and lexical aspect have a shared influence on spatiotemporal conceptualisation. The present study aims to investigate the interaction of the lexico-semantic property of telicity and the morpho-syntactic property of verbal aspect and its effect on sensorimotor representation in Dutch speakers. The formulation of my research question is based on rich psycholinguistic evidence (e.g. Madden & Therriault, 2009; Madden & Zwaan, 2003; Magliano & Schleich, 2000; Matlock 2010; Matlock, 2011) concerning the link between conceptualisation and grammatical or lexical aspect, and on the assumption that structure, meaning, and function of language all shape and reflect our cognition:
How are different combinations of lexical and grammatical aspect of Dutch verbs reflected in eye movements?
To answer this question, I will run an eye tracking experiment using a blank screen paradigm (Altmann, 2004). Eye movements of ca. 50 Dutch native speakers will be measured while they look at a white screen, and listen to sets of appropriately designed sentences in Dutch.
Previous research has shown that the conceptualisation of spatiotemporal parameters of events can be influenced by grammatical and lexical aspect, and involves sensorimotor systems of the brain. Thus, there is reason to believe that grammatical and lexical aspect affect a whole suite of different eye movements in a situation with no explicit visual task. As such, the proposed experimental paradigm mirrors real-world passive listening circumstances.
The proposed study is novel and valuable because previous studies on the interaction between lexical and grammatical aspect yielded conflicting results. Furthermore, the results will show whether grammatical and lexical categories of verbs reveal sensorimotor representations and are able to modulate them. Additionally, data from this study can lead to subsequent research on the extent to which brain circuits devoted to language are tightly connected with perceptual areas of the brain.

References

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