Neuropsychology of Communication

228 Pages·2008·3.234 MB·English

by  Balconi, Michela

Neuropsychology of Communication
Michela Balconi (Ed.)
Neuropsychology
of Communication
1 3
Editor
Michela Balconi
Department of Psychology
Catholic University of Milan
Milan, Italy
This is a revised, enlarged and completely updated version of the Italian Edition published under the title
Neuropsicologia della comunicazione
edited by M. Balconi
© Springer-Verlag Italia 2008
All rights reserved
ISBN 978-88-470-1583-8 e-ISBN 978-88-470-1584-5
DOI 10.1007/978-88-470-1584-5
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Preface
Not nothing
without you
but not the same
Erich Fried (1979)
Communication has become, in recent years, an autonomous field of theoretical
reflection and a proficient research perspective, independent of the study of language
and instead focused on the ensemble of competencies needed to produce and com-
prehend language. This independence is evidenced by the growing interest in the
communicative process, addressed by disciplines such as the social sciences, with
specific regard to social cognition, and cognitive psychology, which examines the
role of cognitive representation in communication regulation as well as the metacog-
nitive functions related to the self-other distinction in the regulation of conversation-
al demands. The role and meaning of communication are determined by the conflu-
ence of multiple contributions, which share the condition of an agent who is interact-
ing with other agents such that the representational systems and relational contexts
among agents are mutually modified.
The link between communication and the field of neuropsychology is of particu-
lar interest. However, in its recent development, the latter has only marginally con-
sidered issues relevant to communicative processes, focusing instead on linguistic
ones. Much remains to be learned regarding the pragmatic skills of communication,
which thus far have been only partially explored from a neuropsychological perspec-
tive. Adequate theoretical and methodological tools with which to explore the com-
plexity of communicative processes are still lacking. These processes include con-
cepts such as the inferential model, mutual knowledge between speakers, and inten-
tions decoding, and require the use of sophisticated instruments able to represent
interpersonal contexts, the realm where communication operates. The need to distin-
guish between “closed” (within speakers’minds) and “open” and “acted” highlights
the importance of novel research domains, such as the newly developed field of neu-
ropragmatics.
A neuropsychologically based understanding of communication is likely to
remain a challenge rather than an ultimately reached goal. Many aspects of commu-
nication have yet to be adequately explored, for example, non-verbal components,
which include the vocal features and gestural elements of the communicative act.
v
vi Preface
Other aspects, such as the study of mimic and facial expressions, are more advanced,
especially with respect to emotion communication. Another and even more difficult
goal is the integration of different indices of analysis, i.e., behavioral, psychophysi-
ological, and neuropsychological measures, in order to explain the contribution of
old and new theoretical models and to confirm or, in some cases, reject previously
consolidated perspectives.
This book considers these and other important topics in communication. Section I,
TheNeuropsychology of Language and Communication, provides an anatomic-func-
tional perspective. Its four chapters review the contributions made to the study of
language, linguistic functions, and communication by the neuropsychological
approach. The first chapter considers the neuropsychology of language and commu-
nication; specifically, developments in the field over the last decade and the sub-spe-
cialties of neurolinguistics and neuropragmatics. Particular attention is paid to
knowledge gained through the latter and through social neuroscience.
Methodological and technical advances are explored in Chapter 2, which reviews the
main and more recent techniques of analysis: neuroimaging (fMRI, PET), magnetic
supports (TMS, MEG), and electrophysiological measures (ERPs). The significance
of these new technologies in the study of communication is the topic of Chapter 3,
which describes the applications of transcranial magnetic stimulation in the study of
linguistic and communicative competences. This non-invasive tool allows investiga-
tion of the neuronal basis of language in normal subjects. Chapter 4 explores the
processes underlying language comprehension, both in the visual modality of read-
ing and in the auditory modality of listening, by focusing on the main stages of lin-
guistic information processing, from the sensory to the symbolic level.
The book’s second section, Neuropragmatics. Psychophysiological,
Neuropsychological and Cognitive Correlates, covers the new discipline of neuro-
pragmatics, with specific attention paid to the relationship between theoretical mod-
els, such as pragmatic representation of the speech act, and neural correlates under-
lying the associated processes. Chapter 5 investigates these topics further in terms of
the significance of the relationship between the brain structures, functions, and men-
tal processes involved in language use. Metaphors, idioms, general non-composition-
al strings, and irony are considered through the application of different neuropsycho-
logical methodologies. In Chapter 6, “idiomatic” and “iconic” meanings are ana-
lyzed; the main experimental paradigms used are briefly reported and insights gained
from studies on patients with focal brain damage are discussed. The chapter closes
with a brief mention of idiomatic comprehension in Alzheimer’s disease and what has
been learned in investigations of a psychiatric population (schizophrenics). Chapter 7
considers the semantic and iconic correlates of idioms, examining the role of antici-
patory mechanisms in the comprehension of idiomatic expressions. These multiword
strings are characterized by the fact that their meaning is conventionalized and their
constituents are bound together in a predefined order. In Chapter 8, which concludes
section, new insights into the neurophysiological mechanisms responsible for lin-
guistic processing are presented, including selected examples of the “neurobiologi-
cal” approach to syntactic rule acquisition, semantic representation, and speech per-
ception/production.
Preface vii
The important role of intentions in communication and the contribution of differ-
ent communicative systems (such as nonverbal components) are analyzed in the third
section of the book, From Intentions to Nonverbal Communication. The relationship
between intentionality and communicative intentions is discussed in Chapter 9,
which highlights the role of consciousness and working memory in communication
and considers action strategy, inferential abilities, and mentalization competencies.
The contribution of social neuroscience is recognized, especially in exploring the
relation between meta-cognition and communication skills. Chapter 10 introduces
the topic of nonverbal communication. Neuropsychological studies have underlined
the significant presence of distinct brain correlates assigned to analyze the facial
expression of emotion and have distinguished the contributions of the two hemi-
spheres in comprehending the emotional face, as a function of emotion type (positive
vs. negative) and specific tasks (comprehending vs. producing facial expressions). In
the last chapter (Chapter 11), the nonverbal communication of emotions is assessed,
with specific regard to the brain correlates of attitude and personality. The role that
temperament plays in influencing cortical responses to mimic components is ana-
lyzed, taking into account subjective sensitivity to environmental emotional cues by
using the BIS/BAS model (behavioral inhibition vs. activation system).
This book is intended as an important resource for researchers and professionals
in the field of communication. Moreover, I hope that the book’s readers are able to
improve and expand their communicative skills, by exploring the direct relationship
between brain and communication.
Special thanks are extended to my husband, with whom I have a highly valued
communicative relationship.
The volume was partially funded by the Catholic University of Milan (D3.1.
2008).
Milan, June 2010 Michela Balconi
Contents
Section I The Neuropsychology of Language and Communication . . . . . . . 1
1 Biological Basis of Linguistic and Communicative Systems:
From Neurolinguistics to Neuropragmatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Michela Balconi
1.1 Introduction: Neuropsychology for Language
and Communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2 Properties and Functions of Linguistic and Communicative
Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.3 Anatomic-structural Models of Language Functioning . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.3.1 Classical Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.3.2 Recent Acquisitions: Sub-cortical Systems and Interface Areas . . . . . 10
1.4 The Contribution of Neurolinguistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.4.1 Language Production and Comprehension Processes:
Cognitive Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.4.2 Functional Modularity of Language and Independence
of Conceptual, Syntactic, and Semantic Representation Systems . . . . 13
1.5 Neuropsychology of Superior Communicative Functions:
Neuropragmatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
1.5.1 Paralinguistic Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.5.2 Indirect Speech Acts and Pragmatic Functions of Figurative
Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
1.6 Discourse Neuropragmatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.6.1 Discourse Competences: the Kintsch and van Dijk Model . . . . . . . . . 20
1.7 Conversational Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
ix
x Contents
2 Methods and Research Perspectives on the Neuropsychology
of Communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Michela Balconi
2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
2.2 Assumptions of Cognitive Neuropsychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
2.2.1 Function-structure Relationship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
2.2.2 Structural, Functional and Representational Modularity . . . . . . . . . . . 30
2.3 Methods of Analysis in Cognitive Neuropsychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.3.1 Experimental and Clinical Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.4 Neuropsychological Measures for Language and Communication . . . 32
2.4.1 Neuropsychological Assessment and Psychometric Batteries . . . . . . . 32
2.4.2 Observational Indexes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
2.4.3 Psychophysiological Indexes: Neurovegetative Measures . . . . . . . . . . 36
2.4.4 Cortical Electrical Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
2.4.5 Neuroimaging: Structural and Functional Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
3 Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in the Study of Language
and Communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Carlo Miniussi, Maria Cotelli, Rosa Manenti
3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
3.2 TMS and Language Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
3.2.1 Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
3.2.2 Comprehension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
3.3 Motor Area and Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
3.4 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
4 Electromagnetic Indices of Language Processings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Alice Mado Proverbio, Alberto Zani
4.1 Models of Language Comprehension and Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
4.2 Electrophysiology of Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
4.3 Orthographic Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
4.4 Phonologic/Phonetic Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
4.5 Grapheme-to-phoneme Conversion in Reading Deficits (Dyslexia) . . 72
4.6 Lexical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
4.7 Pragmatic Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
4.8 First- and Second-level Syntactic Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
4.9 The Representation of Language(s) in the Multilingual Brain:
Interpreters and Bilinguals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Contents xi
Section II Neuropragmatics.Psychophysiological,Neuropsychological
and Cognitive Correlates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
5 From Pragmatics to Neuropragmatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Michela Balconi, Simona Amenta
5.1 Communication and Pragmatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
5.1.1 “Pragmatic Meaning” and the Semantics/Pragmatics Interface . . . . . 94
5.2 Pragmatic Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
5.2.1 The Origins of Pragmatic Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
5.2.2 Pragmatic Competence as Communicative “Strategy” and “Option” . . 95
5.2.3 Pragmatics, Comprehension and Inference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
5.2.4 Pragmatics and Context: Salience and the Direct Access View . . . . . 97
5.3 Neuropragmatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
5.3.1 The Neuropragmatic Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
5.3.2 Neuropragmatic Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
5.4 Irony Elaboration: Definition, Models and Empirical Evidence . . . . . 99
5.4.1 Models of Irony Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
5.4.2 Irony Comprehension: Empirical Contributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
6 Idiomatic Language Comprehension:Neuropsychological Evidence . . . . . 111
Costanza Papagno
6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
6.2 Experimental Paradigms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
6.3 Idiom Comprehension in Patients with Focal Brain Lesions . . . . . . . 113
6.3.1 Idiom Comprehension in Right-brain-damaged Patients . . . . . . . . . . . 113
6.3.2 Idiom Comprehension in Aphasic Patients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
6.3.3 Idiom Comprehension and the Prefrontal Lobe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
6.3.4 Idiom Comprehension and the Corpus Callosum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
6.4 Idiom Comprehension in Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease . . . . . . . 123
6.5 Idiom Comprehension in Schizophrenic Patients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
6.6 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
7 Anticipatory Mechanisms in Idiom Comprehension:
Psycholinguistic and Electrophysiological Evidence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Paolo Canal, Francesco Vespignani, Nicola Molinaro, Cristina Cacciari
7.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
7.2 What an Idiomatic Expression Is (and Is Not) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
7.3 Semantic Forward-looking Mechanisms in Idiom Comprehension . . 133