Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates

Mora Maldonado; Jennifer Culbertson; Wataru Uegaki

Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates

Mora Maldonado, Jennifer Culbertson, Wataru Uegaki

School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution

Abstract / Description of output

Responsive predicates are clause-embedding predicates like English 'know' and 'guess' that can take both declarative and interrogative clausal complements. The meanings of responsive predicates when they take a declarative complement and when they take an interrogative complement are hypothesized to be constrained in systematic ways across languages, suggesting that these constraints represent semantic universals. We report an artificial language learning experiment showing that one of these proposed constraints is indeed reflected in the inferences participants make while learning a novel responsive predicate. Our results add support to a growing body of evidence linking semantic universals to learning.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society
Editors	Jennifer Culbertson, Andrew Perfors, Hugh Rabagliati, Veronica Ramenzoni
Publisher	eScholarship University of California
Pages	237-243
Publication status	E-pub ahead of print - 17 Jun 2022
Event	44th Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society - Toronto, Canada Duration: 27 Jul 2022 → 30 Jul 2022 Conference number: 44 https://cognitivesciencesociety.org/cogsci-2022/

Publication series

Name	Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society
Publisher	Cognitive Science Society
Volume	44
ISSN (Electronic)	1069-7977

Conference

Conference	44th Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society
Abbreviated title	CogSci 2022
Country/Territory	Canada
City	Toronto
Period	27/07/22 → 30/07/22
Internet address	https://cognitivesciencesociety.org/cogsci-2022/

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

semantic universals
clause-embedding predicates
responsive predicates
artificial-language learning
semantics

Access to Document

MaldonadoEtal2022LearnabilityAndConstraintsFinal published version, 4.05 MBLicence: Creative Commons: Attribution (CC-BY)

https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9h13v9dbLicence: Creative Commons: Attribution (CC-BY)

1 Active
2 Finished

Logic in semantic universals
Uegaki, W.
Other
1/01/22 → 31/12/25
Project: Research
A cross-linguistic investigation of meaning-driven combinatorial restrictions in clausal embedding
Uegaki, W.
AHRC
11/01/21 → 10/01/24
Project: Research
Syntax shaped by cognition: transforming theories of syntactic systems through laboratory experiments
Culbertson, J.
EU government bodies
1/02/18 → 31/01/24
Project: Research

1 Book

Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society
Culbertson, J. (ed.), Perfors, A. (ed.), Rabagliati, H. (ed.) & Ramenzoni, V. (ed.), Jul 2022, (E-pub ahead of print) eScholarship University of California. (Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society; vol. 44)
Research output: Book/Report › Book

Open Access

Cite this

Maldonado, M., Culbertson, J., & Uegaki, W. (2022). Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates. In J. Culbertson, A. Perfors, H. Rabagliati, & V. Ramenzoni (Eds.), Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society (pp. 237-243). (Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society; Vol. 44). eScholarship University of California. Advance online publication. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9h13v9db

Maldonado, Mora ; Culbertson, Jennifer ; Uegaki, Wataru. / Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates. Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. editor / Jennifer Culbertson ; Andrew Perfors ; Hugh Rabagliati ; Veronica Ramenzoni. eScholarship University of California, 2022. pp. 237-243 (Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society).

@inproceedings{05f2090f4181447a82db42e918410640,

title = "Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates",

abstract = "Responsive predicates are clause-embedding predicates like English 'know' and 'guess' that can take both declarative and interrogative clausal complements. The meanings of responsive predicates when they take a declarative complement and when they take an interrogative complement are hypothesized to be constrained in systematic ways across languages, suggesting that these constraints represent semantic universals. We report an artificial language learning experiment showing that one of these proposed constraints is indeed reflected in the inferences participants make while learning a novel responsive predicate. Our results add support to a growing body of evidence linking semantic universals to learning.",

keywords = "semantic universals, clause-embedding predicates, responsive predicates, artificial-language learning, semantics",

author = "Mora Maldonado and Jennifer Culbertson and Wataru Uegaki",

note = "This project was supported by funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 757643) to Culbertson and from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Future Leaders Fellowship (reference: MR/V023438/1) and Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) (reference: AH/V002716/1) to Uegaki.; 44th Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, CogSci 2022 ; Conference date: 27-07-2022 Through 30-07-2022",

year = "2022",

month = jun,

day = "17",

language = "English",

series = "Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society",

publisher = "eScholarship University of California",

pages = "237--243",

editor = "Jennifer Culbertson and Andrew Perfors and Hugh Rabagliati and Veronica Ramenzoni",

booktitle = "Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society",

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url = "https://cognitivesciencesociety.org/cogsci-2022/",

}

Maldonado, M, Culbertson, J & Uegaki, W 2022, Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates. in J Culbertson, A Perfors, H Rabagliati & V Ramenzoni (eds), Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, vol. 44, eScholarship University of California, pp. 237-243, 44th Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, Toronto, Canada, 27/07/22. <https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9h13v9db>

Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates. / Maldonado, Mora; Culbertson, Jennifer ; Uegaki, Wataru.
Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. ed. / Jennifer Culbertson; Andrew Perfors; Hugh Rabagliati; Veronica Ramenzoni. eScholarship University of California, 2022. p. 237-243 (Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society; Vol. 44).

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution

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T1 - Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates

AU - Maldonado, Mora

AU - Culbertson, Jennifer

AU - Uegaki, Wataru

N1 - Conference code: 44

PY - 2022/6/17

Y1 - 2022/6/17

N2 - Responsive predicates are clause-embedding predicates like English 'know' and 'guess' that can take both declarative and interrogative clausal complements. The meanings of responsive predicates when they take a declarative complement and when they take an interrogative complement are hypothesized to be constrained in systematic ways across languages, suggesting that these constraints represent semantic universals. We report an artificial language learning experiment showing that one of these proposed constraints is indeed reflected in the inferences participants make while learning a novel responsive predicate. Our results add support to a growing body of evidence linking semantic universals to learning.

AB - Responsive predicates are clause-embedding predicates like English 'know' and 'guess' that can take both declarative and interrogative clausal complements. The meanings of responsive predicates when they take a declarative complement and when they take an interrogative complement are hypothesized to be constrained in systematic ways across languages, suggesting that these constraints represent semantic universals. We report an artificial language learning experiment showing that one of these proposed constraints is indeed reflected in the inferences participants make while learning a novel responsive predicate. Our results add support to a growing body of evidence linking semantic universals to learning.

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KW - artificial-language learning

KW - semantics

M3 - Conference contribution

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EP - 243

BT - Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society

A2 - Culbertson, Jennifer

A2 - Perfors, Andrew

A2 - Rabagliati, Hugh

A2 - Ramenzoni, Veronica

PB - eScholarship University of California

T2 - 44th Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society

Y2 - 27 July 2022 through 30 July 2022

ER -

Maldonado M, Culbertson J , Uegaki W. Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates. In Culbertson J, Perfors A, Rabagliati H, Ramenzoni V, editors, Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. eScholarship University of California. 2022. p. 237-243. (Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society). Epub 2022 Jun 17.

Learnability and constraints on the semantics of clause-embedding predicates

Abstract / Description of output

Publication series

Conference

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

Access to Document

Fingerprint

Projects

Logic in semantic universals

A cross-linguistic investigation of meaning-driven combinatorial restrictions in clausal embedding

Syntax shaped by cognition: transforming theories of syntactic systems through laboratory experiments

Research output

Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society

Cite this