CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 113Syntax, Semantics, Linguistic VariationNeurobiology of Language and BilingualismCategorization, perception, and language

The processing of verb-argument constructions is sensitive to form, function, frequency, contingency and prototypicality

Open access
Ellis, Nick C., O'Donnell, Matthew Brook, Römer, Ute·2014·Cognitive Linguistics
DOI 10.1515/cog-2013-0031
Open this paper in CoChat — free accountOpen PDF

Abstract

We used free association and verbal fluency tasks to investigate verb-argument constructions (VACs) and the ways in which their processing is sensitive to statistical patterns of usage (verb type-token frequency distribution, VAC-verb contingency, verb-VAC semantic prototypicality). In experiment 1, 285 native speakers of English generated the first word that came to mind to fill the V slot in 40 sparse VAC frames such as `he ____ across the. . . .', `it ____ of the. . . .', etc. In experiment 2, 40 English speakers generated as many verbs that fit each frame as they could think of in a minute. For each VAC, we compared the results from the experiments with corpus analyses of verb selection preferences in 100 million words of usage and with the semantic network structure of the verbs in these VACs. For both experiments, multiple regression analyses predicting the frequencies of verb types generated for each VAC show independent contributions of (i) verb frequency in the VAC, (ii) VAC-verb contingency and (iii) verb prototypicality in terms of centrality within the VAC semantic network. VAC processing involves rich associations, tuned by verb type and token frequencies and their contingencies of usage, which interface syntax, lexis and semantics. We consider the implications for the mental representation of VACs.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1515/cog-2013-0031

Cites

116 of 116 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Reliability influences language change and accuracy and error patterns in L1 and L2 processing and acquisition.

    “Reliability has been shown to influence language change (Bybee, 1985) as well as accuracy and error patterns in L1 (N. C. Ellis, O'Donnell, & Römer, 2014;Hay, 2001;Matthews & Theakston, 2006;Tatsumi et al., 2018) and L2 processing and acquisition (N.C. Ellis et al., 2014;Sugaya & Shirai, 2009).”

    From Effects of Availability, Contingency, and Formulaicity on the Accuracy of English Grammatical Morphemes in Second Language Writing (2022) · cites this paper as N. C. Ellis, O'Donnell, & Römer, 2014

    Section 2.2 identifies contingency/reliability as a factor in language learning, and the Discussion reports that contingency affects verb generation by fluent language users. The Introduction also reports evidence concerning L2 acquisition. However, this paper does not establish effects on accuracy or error patterns in L1 or L2 processing and acquisition; its experiments measure verb generation rather than errors (page numbers unavailable in our copy). (LLM, conf=0.85)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • The positive association between contingency and accuracy in this study is consistent with previous usage-based literature that has repeatedly demonstrated the facilitative role of contingency in language acquisition, processing, and use.

    “This finding is consistent with findings reported in the previous literature on usage-based theories that have repeatedly demonstrated the facilitative role of contingency in language acquisition, processing, and use (e.g., N. C. Ellis et al., 2014;Matthews & Theakston, 2006).”

    From Effects of Availability, Contingency, and Formulaicity on the Accuracy of English Grammatical Morphemes in Second Language Writing (2022) · cites this paper as N. C. Ellis et al., 2014

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 18

  1. Ahrens, Kathleen. 1995. The Mental Representation of Verbs. Ph.D. thesis, University of California San Diego.
  2. Barsalou, Lawrence W. 2008. Grounded cognition. Annual Review of Psychology 59, 617-645.
  3. Barsalou, Lawrence W. 2010. Ad hoc categories. In P. C. Hogan (ed.), The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the Language Sciences, 87-88. New York: Cambridge University Press.
  4. Brazil, David. 1995. A Grammar of Speech. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  5. Christiansen, Morton & Nick Chater (eds.). 2001. Connectionist Psycholinguistics. Westport: Ablex.
  6. Danon, Leon, Albert Díaz-Guilera, Jordi Duch & Alex Arenas. 2005. Comparing community structure identification methods. Journal of Statistical Mechanics 29, P09008.
  7. Ellis, Nick C. in press. Implicit and explicit learning of language. In P. Rebuschat (ed.), Implicit and Explicit Learning of Language. John Benjamins. Amsterdam.
  8. Francis, Gill, Susan Hunston & Elizabeth Manning (eds.). 1996. Grammar Patterns 1: Verbs. The COBUILD Series. London: Harper Collins.
  9. Gries, Stefan Th. & Stefanowitsch, Anatol. 2004. Extending collostructional analysis: a corpus-based perspective on 'alternations'. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 9, 97-129.
  10. Gries, Stefan Th. & Stefanie Wulff. 2005. Do foreign language learners also have constructions? Evidence from priming, sorting and corpora. Annual Review of Cognitive Linguistics 3, 182-200.
  11. Levin, Beth. 1993. English Verb Classes and Alternations: A Preliminary Analysis. Chicago: Chicago University Press.
  12. MacWhinney, Brian. 1987. The competition model. In B. MacWhinney (ed.), Mechanisms of Language Acquisition, 249-308. Hillsdale: Erlbaum.
  13. O'Donnell, Matthew B., Nick C. Ellis & Gin Corden. 2012. Exploring Semantics in Verb Argument Constructions using Community Identification Algorithms. Paper presented at the Language & Network Science Symposium: The International Conference on Network Science NETSCI 2012.
  14. Roediger, Henry, Kathleen McDermott & Kerry Robinson. 1998. The role of associative processes in producing false remembering. In M. A. Conway, S. Gathercole & C. Cornoldi (eds.), Theories of Memory II, 187-245. Hove: Psychological Press.
  15. Rosch, Eleanor, Francisco Varela & Evan Thompson. 1991. The Embodied Mind. Boston: M. I. T. Press. Brought to you by | University of Michigan Authenticated | 141.213.236.110 Download Date | 3/2/14 10:58 PM
  16. Swales, John M. 1990. Genre Analysis: English in Academic and Research Settings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  17. Trousdale, Graeme & Thomas Hoffmann (eds.). 2013. Oxford H andbook of Construction Grammar. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  18. Vitevitch, Michael S. & Thomas Hills (eds.). in press. Insights to the Study of Language from Network Science. Special issue of Frontiers in Language Science.

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Related

Authors
Ellis, N. C., O'Donnell, M. B., & Römer, U.
Affiliations
  • University of Michigan (US)
  • 2University of Michigan, Communication Neuroscience Lab, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
  • Georgia State University (US)
Corresponding author
Ellis, Nick C.
ORCID
Venue
Cognitive Linguistics
Publisher
Walter de Gruyter GmbH
Published
2014-02-01
Volume
25
Issue
1
Pages
55-98
ISSN
  • 0936-5907 (ISSN-L)
  • 1613-3641
DOI
10.1515/cog-2013-0031
OpenAlex
W2034072710
Cited by
113
References
116
Citations by year
2026: 7 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 18 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 16 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 28 · 2014: 4
FWCI
98.82
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Cognitive Linguistics (publishedVersion)
  • Deep Blue (University of Michigan) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Victoria University of Wellington
  • Victoria University
  • Bangor University
  • Economic and Social Research Council
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Language and Linguistics › Syntax, Semantics, Linguistic Variation
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Categorization, perception, and language
Keywords
verb processing, verb frequency, semantic networks, free association, verbal fluency, usage statistics

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review