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Access Type
WSU Access
Date of Award
January 2012
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Lee H. Wurm
Abstract
Most research supports a non-selective (or exhaustive) account of activation whereby multiple meanings of a word are initially activated (as discussed in Degani & Tokowicz, 2009). But what happens to the non-selected meaning of an ambigious word (e.g., bark) and how is the decision made to select one meaning over the other? A great deal research by Gernsbacher and colleagues suggests that the non-selected meaning is "discarded" via active suppression, but a competing activation-only account is also proposed by Gorfein's research group. The present dissertation examines meaning-selection in ambiguous words using a word to elicit meaning context (rather than a sentence). Additionally, manipulations of perceptual focus (Experiment 2) and cognitive load (Experiment 3) were employed to examine these processes. Results agree with Gernsbacher's Structure-Building Framework (a suppression account) of meaning selection. An updated conceptualization of ambiguity resolution is proposed.
Recommended Citation
Kennette, Lynne, "On the disambiguation of meaning: the effects of perceptual focus and cognitive load" (2012). Wayne State University Dissertations. Paper 513.
http://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/513