31.5.2023 The involvement of the motor system in language understanding (Tian)
Opponent Professor Liina Pylkkänen (New York University) and Custos Associate Professor Tiina Parviainen (Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥).
The involvement of the motor system in language understanding
Reading is an important cognitive activity in everyday life. It has long been assumed that, reading involves predominantly left-lateralized language network. The embodied view of language cognition proposed that language cognition needs to be considered in the context of body-mind interaction and highlighted the importance of the sensorimotor system in meaning understanding.
The dissertation investigated if the motor cortex is differentially involved in reading in different linguistic circumstances, such as when reading native language vs. second (non-native) language or when reading sentences with concrete, metaphorical or abstract meaning. Brain data were obtained by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and magnetoencephalography (MEG).
Results showed that, compared with the native language, reading a second language involves a greater extent of motor cortex involvement at a later stage of meaning understanding, accompanied by an inadequate involvement of language network at an earlier stage. The level of abstractness (concrete, metaphorical vs. abstract meaning) did not influence the motor activation. Tian and her co-authors interpreted these results as higher demand for cognitive resources to compensate for the inadequate engagement of the language network, i.e., a compensatory role of the motor cortex in second language understanding.
The dissertation proposes the hypothesis of the dual-functional role of the motor system in language understanding, and discusses alternative interpretations regarding the role of the motor system in language understanding.
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