Govor, Vol. 41 No. 2, 2024.
Izvorni znanstveni članak
https://doi.org/10.22210/govor.2024.41.07
Speech and language processing of typicality in the dichotomy of semantic categories “animate/ inanimate”
Martina Sekulić Sović
; Filozofski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu
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* Dopisni autor.
Sažetak
The aim of this study was to identify differences in the proportion of highly typical and low typical words between animate lexical-semantic categories (domestic animals, birds, fruits, vegetables, and flowers) and categories denoting artefacts (clothing, furniture, means of transport, tools, and musical instruments). A total of 49 healthy participants took part in the research and completed two tasks. In the first task, the data on linguistic typicality was collected for members of eleven lexical-semantic categories: domestic animals, birds, fruits, vegetables, clothes, furniture, means of transport, musical instruments, occupations, and sports, and the second task tested the linguistic estimation of typicality for members of the above-mentioned lexical-semantic categories. The results of this research showed that in most lexical-semantic categories, high typicality is dominant for animate concepts, and low typicality for inanimate concepts. The trend of a higher percentage of highly typical words in the categories denoting animate concepts was found in the lexical-semantic categories: domestic animals, birds, fruits, and vegetables, while it was not found in the flowers category. Furthermore, the trend of a higher percentage of low typical words in the categories related to inanimate concepts was found in the lexical-semantic categories clothing, means of transport, and tools. In contrast, this effect was not found in the categories furniture and musical instruments. A further analysis showed that the lexical-semantic category domestic animals had a significant proportion of highly typical words, while the category tools had a significantly larger proportion of low typical words. The results of this research are consistent with theories and models that focus on the correlations between semantic structural features and evolutionary important domains of the animate/inanimate dichotomy. Based on these results, we can conclude that the lexicalsemantic processing of typicality and animacy plays an important role in speech and language production and perception both in healthy speakers and in the methodological choice of material for examining atypical language changes.
Ključne riječi
speech-language processing; lexical-semantic features; typicality; animate/inanimate
Hrčak ID:
323373
URI
Datum izdavanja:
11.12.2024.
Posjeta: 0 *