Once again on norms and comparison classes

Datos Bibliográficos

ID3987310
AutoresElena Tribushinina (0000-0003-1688-7307, University of Antwerp, autor de correspondencia)
Año2011
Volumen49
Número3
Fecha de publicación2011-01-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaLinguistics (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0024-3949 • E-ISSN: 1613-396X
EditorialWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1515/ling.2011.016
OpenAlexW1969977018
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas37
Referencias citadas49

A central assumption about relative adjectives (e.g. big, old) is that their positive form is interpreted vis-à-vis a class-specific reference point located in the mid-zone of a series (norm). More recently, functional-cognitive studies argued that other reference points (e.g. argumentative zero, endpoints) are more relevant in actual language use than a norm. This paper argues that the two positions are not necessarily irreconcilable and experimentally tests a hypothesis that a norm is a default reference point used for the interpretation of relative adjectives in zero-contexts. Experiment 1 addressed the location of a norm in the mid-zone of a series and its category-dependence. As predicted by the traditional semantic studies, the cut-off point between ‘big’ and ‘small’ is located around the midpoint of a scale. Furthermore, its location is category-dependent and sensitive to prototypicality effects. The results further indicate that adults easily compute a contextually relevant norm by integrating their world knowledge with the visually provided information. Experiment 2 investigated the relevance of a norm in the on-line processing of relative adjectives. The results suggest that language users indeed exploit norms for the interpretation of relative adjectives in real time

Argumentative · Cognition · Cognitive psychology · Epistemology · Interpretation (philosophy) · Linguistics · Norm (philosophy) · Categorization, perception, and language · Computer Science · Language, Metaphor, and Cognition · Mathematics · Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism · Philosophy · Psychology