title: Are scalar implicatures automatically processed and different for each individual? A mismatch negativity (MMN) study.
abstract: Scalar implicatures are ordinarily activated in human communication when the speaker uses a weak expression (e.g., some) from a set of stronger alternatives (e.g., many, all). It has been debated whether scalar inferences are generated by default. To clarify this issue and examine whether individual pragmatic ability will affect the mechanism of scalar inference processing, we performed experiment with an MMN paradigm to capture the neurophysiological indicators of automatic processing of spoken sentences and divided participants into high and low pragmatic ability groups. Experimental results showed that compared with the condition that an informative sentence ("Some animals have tails") is the deviant stimuli, when an underinformative sentence ("Some tigers have tails") is the deviant stimuli, the high pragmatic ability group induced mismatch negativity (MMN) and sustained negativity, while the low pragmatic ability group had no ERP effects. These results indicated that at least some people can automatically activate the scalar implicatures when encountering scalar trigger words, even in the inattentive status.
authors.affiliation: School of Literature, Law & Politics, China University of Mining and Technology, China; Bio-X Laboratory, Department of Physics, Zhejiang University, China. Electronic address: mmzhao1@163.com.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Language and Cognitive Neuroscience, Jiangsu Normal University, China.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: School of Foreign Studies, Anhui University, China.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Bio-X Laboratory, Department of Physics, Zhejiang University, China. Electronic address: chenfy@zju.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Feiyan
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D032882:Comprehension; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005071:Evoked Potentials; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D008297:Male; D011578:Psycholinguistics; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012660:Semantics; D013060:Speech; D013067:Speech Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Automatic processing; Individual differences; MMN (mismatch negativity); Pragmatic abilities; SN (sustained negativity); Scalar implicatures