Open AccessProcessing ambiguities in attachment and pronominal reference
Author(s) -
Martin Grant,
Shayne Sloggett,
Brian Dillon
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
glossa
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2397-1835
DOI - 10.5334/gjgl.852
Subject(s) - ambiguity , sentence , sentence processing , reading (process) , resolution (logic) , ambiguity resolution , computer science , psychology , linguistics , selection (genetic algorithm) , pronoun , natural language processing , artificial intelligence , telecommunications , philosophy , gnss applications , global positioning system , programming language
The nature of ambiguity resolution has important implications for models of sentence processing in general. Studies of structural ambiguities, such as modifier attachment ambiguities, have generally supported a model in which a single analysis of ambiguous material is adopted without a cost to processing. Concurrently, a separate literature has observed a processing penalty for ambiguities in pronominal reference, suggesting that potential referents compete for selection during the processing of ambiguous pronouns. We argue that the apparent distinction between the ambiguity resolution mechanisms in attachment and pronominal reference ambiguities warrants further study. We present evidence from two experiments measuring eye movements during reading, showing that the separation held in the literature between these two ambiguity types is, at least, not uniformly supported.