TY - JOUR
T1 - Addressees distinguish shared from private information when interpreting questions during interactive conversation
AU - Brown-Schmidt, Sarah
AU - Gunlogson, Christine
AU - Tanenhaus, Michael K.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was partially supported by NIH Grant HD 27206 to M.K. Tanenhaus. Thank you to Courtney Pooler and Carol Faden for their help with data analysis.
PY - 2008/6
Y1 - 2008/6
N2 - Two experiments examined the role of common ground in the production and on-line interpretation of wh-questions such as What's above the cow with shoes? Experiment 1 examined unscripted conversation, and found that speakers consistently use wh-questions to inquire about information known only to the addressee. Addressees were sensitive to this tendency, and quickly directed attention toward private entities when interpreting these questions. A second experiment replicated the interpretation findings in a more constrained setting. These results add to previous evidence that the common ground influences initial language processes, and suggests that the strength and polarity of common ground effects may depend on contributions of sentence type as well as the interactivity of the situation.
AB - Two experiments examined the role of common ground in the production and on-line interpretation of wh-questions such as What's above the cow with shoes? Experiment 1 examined unscripted conversation, and found that speakers consistently use wh-questions to inquire about information known only to the addressee. Addressees were sensitive to this tendency, and quickly directed attention toward private entities when interpreting these questions. A second experiment replicated the interpretation findings in a more constrained setting. These results add to previous evidence that the common ground influences initial language processes, and suggests that the strength and polarity of common ground effects may depend on contributions of sentence type as well as the interactivity of the situation.
KW - Common ground
KW - Comprehension
KW - Conversation
KW - Eye-tracking
KW - Perspective taking
KW - Question
KW - Referential communication
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=42249106402&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=42249106402&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.cognition.2007.11.005
DO - 10.1016/j.cognition.2007.11.005
M3 - Article
C2 - 18164700
AN - SCOPUS:42249106402
SN - 0010-0277
VL - 107
SP - 1122
EP - 1134
JO - Cognition
JF - Cognition
IS - 3
ER -