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Emotion Words Graham G. Scott (supervisor: Dr. Sara C. Sereno)

Emotion Words Graham G. Scott (supervisor: Dr. Sara C. Sereno). How do we process emotional stimuli?. But What about Words?. Behavioural Evidence: Most studies show that negative stimuli are responded to fastest (e.g., Wurm et al., 2003).

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Emotion Words Graham G. Scott (supervisor: Dr. Sara C. Sereno)

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  1. Emotion WordsGraham G. Scott(supervisor: Dr. Sara C. Sereno)

  2. How do we processemotional stimuli?

  3. But What about Words? • Behavioural Evidence: • Most studies show that negative stimuli are responded to fastest (e.g., Wurm et al., 2003). • A growing minority of studies demonstrate faster responses to positive stimuli (e.g., Kakolewski et al., 1999). • But previous research is limited.

  4. But What about Words? • Electrophysiological Evidence: • It is well-established that the amygdala is involved in the processing of negative stimuli, including words. Hamann & Mao (2002) suggest it also plays a role in positive processing. • Tabert et al. (2001) found a correlation between amygdala and occipital cortex activity, indicating that the amygdala might influence early visual processing.

  5. But What about Words? • Electrophysiological Evidence: • There is more activity in the RH following the presentation of emotive than neutral stimuli (e.g., Tabert et al., 2001), with different specific areas being cited in different studies. • Electrophysiological evidence shows an increase in amplitude of early ERP components – in the P1 and N1 for negative compared to positive stimuli, and in N2 for negative compared to neutral stimuli (Bernat et al., 2001; Ortigue et al., 2004).

  6. But What about Words? • And where does frequency fit in? • 3 experiments: • Behavioural Study (lexical decision) • Eye Movement Study • ERP Study

  7. What Are Emotion Words? Arousal Valence Example Positive High High valentine Neutral Low Middle appliance Negative High Low suffocate

  8. Behavioural Study • Simple LDT. • 3 x 2 design: • Frequency (high, low) • Target word (positive, negative, neutral) • 40 words in each category • HF-pos, HF-neg, HF-neut • LF-pos, LF-neg, LF-neut

  9. Reaction Time Results

  10. Discussion • There could be several reasons for these findings: • Perceptual defence (McGuinness, 1949) • Positive bias • But Perceptual defence is more likely

  11. Eye-Tracking Study • Never done before. • More on-line than LDT • 3 x 2 design: • Frequency (high, low) • Target word (positive, negative, neutral) • 15 sentences of each type: • HF-pos, HF-neg, HF-neut • LF-pos, LF-neg, LF-neut

  12. Eye-Tracking Study kissbombnews Phoebe discussed the _____ at great length with her friends. Michelle dreamt about the _____ every night for weeks. Tom delivered the _____ with great care and attention.

  13. Eye Tracking Results

  14. Eye Tracking Results

  15. Discussion • Eye movement study supports results of behavioural study • Same basic pattern of effects • Inconsistencies may be due to fewer items per condition in reading study (15 vs 40), or that eye movements are more sensitive to early emotional effects

  16. ERPs • Taken during the LDT task • Carried out in • Hartmut’s lab

  17. ERPs

  18. Discussion • Frequency effects normally demonstrated in the N1 (notably, using emotionally neutral words) were masked by a reverse frequency effect for negative words • Results seem to favour a perceptual defence based theory, such as Taylor’s Mobilisation-Minimisation hypothesis: • For HF negative words, initial processing facilitation is offset by the disruptive effects of highly activated (HF) negative valence

  19. Discussion • These data suggest that an early identification of the emotional tone of words leads to differential processing. Specifically, HF negative words seem to attract additional cognitive resources • This is consistent with a time-line in which emotional quality either accompanies or precedes (but does not follow) lexical access (Taylor & Fragopanogos, 2005)

  20. Next Step • Expand from words in sentences to larger contexts • Investigate priming • Investigate subcategories if emotional words

  21. Next Step • The little boy was running down the hill. He was playing with the puppy he got for Christmas. His mother came to pick him up. • Gordon was in the woods behind his house. He fell, cutting himself badly and breaking his leg. It was hours before he returned home. • The accountant was taking a long stroll. He was wearing a blue sweatshirt, jeans and trainers. There was no one else for miles around.

  22. The End

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