Abstract:
Language users rely on both linguistic and conceptual processing abilities to efficiently comprehend or produce language. According to the principle of rational adaptation, the degree to which a cognitive system relies on one process vs. another can change under different conditions or disease states with the goal of optimizing behavior. In this study, we investigated rational adaptation in reliance on linguistic versus conceptual processing in aphasia, an acquired disorder of language. In individuals living with aphasia, verb-retrieval impairments are a pervasive deficit that negatively impacts communicative function. As such, we examined evidence of adaptation in verb production, using parallel measures to index impairment in two of verb naming\'s critical subcomponents: conceptual and linguistic processing. These component processes were evaluated using a standardized assessment battery designed to contrast non-linguistic (picture input) and linguistic (word input) tasks of conceptual action knowledge. The results indicate that non-linguistic conceptual action processing can be impaired in people with aphasia and contributes to verb-retrieval impairments. Furthermore, relatively unimpaired conceptual action processing can ameliorate the influence of linguistic processing deficits on verb-retrieval impairments. These findings are consistent with rational adaptation accounts, indicating that conceptual processing plays a key role in language function and can be leveraged in rehabilitation to improve verb retrieval in adults with chronic aphasia.
摘要:
语言用户依靠语言和概念处理能力来有效地理解或产生语言。根据理性适应的原则,认知系统依赖于一个过程的程度另一种可以在不同的条件或疾病状态下改变,以优化行为为目标。在这项研究中,我们研究了在失语症中依赖语言和概念处理的理性适应,后天的语言障碍。在患有失语症的个体中,动词检索障碍是一种普遍存在的缺陷,会对交际功能产生负面影响。因此,我们检查了动词产生中适应的证据,使用并行度量来索引动词命名的两个关键子组件中的损伤:概念和语言处理。使用标准化的评估电池对这些组件过程进行了评估,该评估电池旨在对比概念动作知识的非语言(图片输入)和语言(单词输入)任务。结果表明,失语症患者的非语言概念动作处理可能会受到损害,并导致动词检索障碍。此外,相对未受损的概念动作处理可以改善语言处理缺陷对动词检索障碍的影响。这些发现与合理的适应账户是一致的,这表明概念处理在语言功能中起着关键作用,可以在康复中利用,以改善成人慢性失语症的动词检索。