The Effects of Working Memory Capacity in Metaphor and Metonymy Comprehension in Mandarin–English Bilinguals’ Minds: An fMRI Study
This study investigated the role of working memory capacity (WMC) in metaphoric and metonymic processing in Mandarin–English bilinguals’ minds. It also explored the neural correlations between metaphor and metonymy computations. We adopted an event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-05-01
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| Series: | Brain Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/12/5/633 |
| _version_ | 1827669985199128576 |
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| author | Chia-Hsin Yin Fan-Pei Gloria Yang |
| author_facet | Chia-Hsin Yin Fan-Pei Gloria Yang |
| author_sort | Chia-Hsin Yin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This study investigated the role of working memory capacity (WMC) in metaphoric and metonymic processing in Mandarin–English bilinguals’ minds. It also explored the neural correlations between metaphor and metonymy computations. We adopted an event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) design, which consisted of 21 English dialogic sets of stimuli and 5 conditions: systematic literal, circumstantial literal, metaphor, systematic metonymy, and circumstantial metonymy, all contextualized in daily conversations. Similar fronto-temporal networks were found for the figurative language processing patterns: the superior temporal gyrus (STG) for metaphorical comprehension, and the inferior parietal junction (IPJ) for metonymic processing. Consistent brain regions have been identified in previous studies in the homologue right hemisphere of better WMC bilinguals. The degree to which bilateral strategies that bilinguals with better WMC or larger vocabulary size resort to is differently modulated by subtypes of metonymies. In particular, when processing circumstantial metonymy, the cuneus (where putamen is contained) is activated as higher-span bilinguals filter out irrelevant information, resorting to inhibitory control use. Cingulate gyrus activation has also been revealed in better WMC bilinguals, reflecting their mental flexibility to adopt the subjective perspective of critical figurative items with self-control. It is hoped that this research provides a better understanding of Mandarin–English bilinguals’ English metaphoric and metonymic processing in Taiwan. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:14:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-913599bd62824349b84475c72d5bc345 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3425 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:14:44Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brain Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-913599bd62824349b84475c72d5bc3452023-11-23T10:18:13ZengMDPI AGBrain Sciences2076-34252022-05-0112563310.3390/brainsci12050633The Effects of Working Memory Capacity in Metaphor and Metonymy Comprehension in Mandarin–English Bilinguals’ Minds: An fMRI StudyChia-Hsin Yin0Fan-Pei Gloria Yang1Department of Teaching and Learning, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USADepartment of Foreign Languages and Literature, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 300044, TaiwanThis study investigated the role of working memory capacity (WMC) in metaphoric and metonymic processing in Mandarin–English bilinguals’ minds. It also explored the neural correlations between metaphor and metonymy computations. We adopted an event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) design, which consisted of 21 English dialogic sets of stimuli and 5 conditions: systematic literal, circumstantial literal, metaphor, systematic metonymy, and circumstantial metonymy, all contextualized in daily conversations. Similar fronto-temporal networks were found for the figurative language processing patterns: the superior temporal gyrus (STG) for metaphorical comprehension, and the inferior parietal junction (IPJ) for metonymic processing. Consistent brain regions have been identified in previous studies in the homologue right hemisphere of better WMC bilinguals. The degree to which bilateral strategies that bilinguals with better WMC or larger vocabulary size resort to is differently modulated by subtypes of metonymies. In particular, when processing circumstantial metonymy, the cuneus (where putamen is contained) is activated as higher-span bilinguals filter out irrelevant information, resorting to inhibitory control use. Cingulate gyrus activation has also been revealed in better WMC bilinguals, reflecting their mental flexibility to adopt the subjective perspective of critical figurative items with self-control. It is hoped that this research provides a better understanding of Mandarin–English bilinguals’ English metaphoric and metonymic processing in Taiwan.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/12/5/633metaphormetonymyworking memoryvocabularyfunctional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) |
| spellingShingle | Chia-Hsin Yin Fan-Pei Gloria Yang The Effects of Working Memory Capacity in Metaphor and Metonymy Comprehension in Mandarin–English Bilinguals’ Minds: An fMRI Study Brain Sciences metaphor metonymy working memory vocabulary functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) |
| title | The Effects of Working Memory Capacity in Metaphor and Metonymy Comprehension in Mandarin–English Bilinguals’ Minds: An fMRI Study |
| title_full | The Effects of Working Memory Capacity in Metaphor and Metonymy Comprehension in Mandarin–English Bilinguals’ Minds: An fMRI Study |
| title_fullStr | The Effects of Working Memory Capacity in Metaphor and Metonymy Comprehension in Mandarin–English Bilinguals’ Minds: An fMRI Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Effects of Working Memory Capacity in Metaphor and Metonymy Comprehension in Mandarin–English Bilinguals’ Minds: An fMRI Study |
| title_short | The Effects of Working Memory Capacity in Metaphor and Metonymy Comprehension in Mandarin–English Bilinguals’ Minds: An fMRI Study |
| title_sort | effects of working memory capacity in metaphor and metonymy comprehension in mandarin english bilinguals minds an fmri study |
| topic | metaphor metonymy working memory vocabulary functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/12/5/633 |
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