Universität zu Köln

Repp, Magdalena ORCID: 0000-0001-9538-012X (2024). D-pronouns in narrative texts: Examining referential behavior and neural processing. PhD thesis, Universität zu Köln.

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Abstract

This dissertation investigates the referential behavior and neural processing of German demonstrative pronouns (d-pronouns; der, die) in naturalistic discourse contexts, specifically focusing on narrative texts. By utilizing both corpus analyses and event-related potential (ERP) experiments, the research provides new insights into the role of d-pronouns in reference resolution. The corpus analysis of two novel excerpts (Tschick by Wolfgang Herrndorf and Auferstehung der Toten by Wolf Haas) shows that d-pronouns primarily serve an information-foregrounding function, contrary to previous studies that associate them with the topic shift function and reference to locally less prominent referents. The ERP studies reveal that d-pronouns trigger distinct neural responses, with enhanced N400 and Late Positivity effects, indicating increased cognitive demands during referential processing. Thus, the ERP experiments replicate findings from highly controlled studies, but also refine the understanding of the N400 and the Late Positivity effect. Rather than reflecting unpredicted referents, the results suggest that the N400 is triggered by the unexpected referential form of the d-pronoun relative to the personal pronoun. Additionally, the results indicate that the Late Positivity and the corresponding updating of the mental model is driven by the attentional highlighting of an already prominent referent, rather than a reorganization of the discourse structure. Additionally, positivities related to socio-emotional effects underscore the significance of self-relevance and emotional engagement in narrative processing. Through the integration of naturalistic stimuli, this dissertation enhances the ecological validity of referential and neural investigations, offering a comprehensive model of pronoun use in real-world language contexts.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD thesis)
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Repp, Magdalena mrepp1@uni-koeln.de orcid.org/0000-0001-9538-012X UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-737185
Series Name at the University of Cologne:	Papers on Prominence
Date:	2024
Language:	English
Faculty:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities
Divisions:	Collaborative Research Centers > CRC 1252: Prominence in Language > TP C07
Subjects:	Language, Linguistics Germanic
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language Reference UNSPECIFIED Demonstrative pronouns UNSPECIFIED Naturalistic stimuli UNSPECIFIED ERPs UNSPECIFIED Psycholinguistics UNSPECIFIED Neurolinguistics UNSPECIFIED Discourse prominence UNSPECIFIED
Date of oral exam:	8 July 2024
Referee:	Name Academic Title Schumacher, Petra Prof. Dr. Hinterwimmer, Stefan Prof. Dr. von Heusinger, Klaus Prof. Dr.
Funders:	Project-ID 281511265 – SFB 1252 Prominence in Language, project C07
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/73718