Supporting materials for Langlois & Arnold (2020)
Langlois, V., & Arnold, J. E. (2020). Print exposure explains individual differences in using syntactic but not semantic cues for pronoun comprehension. Cognition.
ABSTRACT
Comprehenders have been shown to use both syntactic and semantic cues to understand pronouns like he and she. In Ana threw the ball to Liz. She…, there is a syntactic bias to assign “she” to the previous subject (Ana), and a semantic bias to assign it to the goal referent (Liz). How do people learn these biases? We test how sensitivity to these cues is modulated by linguistic experience, measured with an Author Recognition Task (Stanovich & West, 1989). In two experiments, we found both the subject and goal biases overall, but higher print exposure only predicted use of the subject bias, not the goal bias. Our results suggest that the subject bias, and not the goal bias, may be learned from exposure.
Data used in this experiment here:
Characters in our experiment:
Drawings by Jovy Chan and copyrighted to J. Chan, H. Hwang and J. Arnold 2018.
Linguistic Stimuli used in Experiment 2. Experiment 1 stimuli were identical but they ended after the pronoun in the last sentence.
(1A) Source-Goal:
Ana and Liz were texting in class. Ana sent a text to Liz and then she took a screenshot.
Ana and Liz were playing basketball. Ana threw the ball to Liz and then she fell down.
Ana and Liz were getting ready to go shopping. Ana brought the coupons to Liz and then she wrote a shopping list.
Ana and Liz were taking an English lit class together. Ana loaned the book to Liz and then she finished her assignment.
Ana and Liz were cleaning up the apartment. Ana offered the broom to Liz and then she tidied up the kitchen.
Ana and Liz were looking through their old jewelry. Ana loaned a necklace to Liz and then she organized her jewelry box.
Matt and Will were playing arcade games. Matt gave the quarters to Will and then he chose a game.
Matt and Will were looking up how to get to the movie theater. Matt gave the phone to Will and then he wrote down the directions.
Matt and Will were at a flower shop. Matt handed the flowers to Will and then he walked up to the counter.
Matt and Will were eating at their favorite restaurant. Matt handed the ketchup to Will and then he spilled water on the table.
Matt and Will were watching a movie. Matt passed the popcorn to Will and then he drank some soda.
Matt and Will were dividing up the rent for the apartment. Matt mailed the check to Will and then he looked at his bank account.
Liz and Ana were passing notes in class. Liz sent a note to Ana and then she got in trouble.
Liz and Ana were playing with the frisbee outside. Liz threw the frisbee to Ana and then she slipped on some mud.
Liz and Ana were writing a chemistry report together. Liz gave the notebook to Ana and then she wrote the results section.
Liz was getting ready for a party with Ana. Liz loaned a dress to Ana and then she brushed her hair. (The structure of this item was not as intended, and therefore it was excluded from analysis)
Liz and Ana were attending a concert. Liz offered the tickets to Ana and then she waited in line.
Liz and Ana were throwing away the trash. Liz brought the garbage to Ana and then she left the apartment.
Will and Matt were participating in a gift exchange. Will gave the gift to Matt and then he smiled.
Will and Matt were eating at a fast food restaurant. Will gave the fries to Matt and then he ate his burger.
Will and Matt were taking an exam in class. Will loaned a pencil to Matt and then he began his exam.
Will and Matt were fishing in the lake. Will handed the fishing pole to Matt and then he prepared the bait.
Will and Matt were watching TV. Will handed the remote to Matt and then he ate some chips.
Will and Matt were arriving home at different times. Will loaned an extra key to Matt and then he took the bus home
(1B) Goal-Source:
Ana and Liz were texting in class. Ana received a text from Liz and then she took a screenshot.
Ana and Liz were playing basketball. Ana got the ball from Liz and then she fell down.
Ana and Liz were getting ready to go shopping. Ana collected the coupons from Liz and then she wrote a shopping list.
Ana and Liz were taking an English lit class together. Ana borrowed the book from Liz and then she finished her assignment.
Ana and Liz were cleaning up the apartment. Ana retrieved the broom from Liz and then she tidied up the kitchen.
Ana and Liz were looking through their old jewelry. Ana borrowed a necklace from Liz and then she organized her jewelry box.
Matt and Will were playing arcade games. Matt accepted the quarters from Will and then he chose a game.
Matt and Will were looking up how to get to the movie theater. Matt received the phone from Will and then he wrote down the directions.
Matt and Will were at a flower shop. Matt took the flowers from Will. and then he walked up to the counter.
Matt and Will were eating at their favorite restaurant. Matt got the ketchup from Will and then he spilled water on the table.
Matt and Will were watching a movie. Matt took the popcorn from Will and then he drank some soda.
Matt and Will were dividing up the rent for the apartment. Matt received the check from Will and then he looked at his bank account.
Liz and Ana were passing notes in class. Liz received a note from Ana and then she got in trouble.
Liz and Ana were playing with the frisbee outside. Liz got the frisbee from Ana and then she slipped on some mud.
Liz and Ana were writing a chemistry report together. Liz got the notebook from Ana and then she wrote the results section.
Liz was getting ready for a party with Ana. Liz borrowed a dress from Ana and then she brushed her hair. (The structure of this item was not as intended, and therefore it was excluded from analysis)
Liz and Ana were attending a concert. Liz received the tickets from Ana and then she waited in line.
Liz and Ana were throwing away the trash. Liz collected the garbage from Ana and then she left the apartment.
Will and Matt were participating in a gift exchange. Will accepted the gift from Matt and then he smiled.
Will and Matt were eating at a fast food restaurant. Will took the fries from Matt and then he ate his burger.
Will and Matt were taking an exam in class. Will borrowed a pencil from Matt and then he began his exam.
Will and Matt were fishing in the lake. Will received the fishing pole from Matt and then he prepared the bait.
Will and Matt were watching TV. Will got the remote from Matt and then he ate some chips.
Will and Matt were arriving home at different times. Will borrowed an extra key from Matt and then he took the bus home.
Fillers:
Ana and Liz were at the sports complex. Ana got ready for yoga with Liz. She needed a yoga mat.
Ana and Liz were at the new bistro on the corner. Ana ordered coffee with Liz. She wanted a Cappuccino.
Ana and Liz were decorating for a party. Ana hung up the banner with Liz. She wanted the tape.
Will and Matt were shopping at the mall. Will went to the bookstore with Matt. He wanted the new book on sailing.
Will and Matt were washing the car. Will filled the bucket with Matt. He needed the soap.
Will and Matt were having a snack. Will took out the snacks with Matt. He wanted some potato chips.
Liz and Ana were redoing the apartment. Liz painted the wall with Ana. She wanted the green paint.
Liz and Ana were preparing lunch. Liz made the sandwiches with Ana. She needed the sliced bread.
Liz and Ana were gardening outside. Liz planted the flowers with Ana. She needed the seeds.
Matt and Will were having a barbeque. Matt grilled the meat with Will. He needed the plate.
Matt and Will were having breakfast. Matt ate the pancakes with Will. He wanted milk and eggs.
Matt and Will were doing chores. Matt washed the dishes with Will. He needed the dish cloth.
Matt was doing laundry with Will. Matt poured detergent into the washer and then he put in the clothes.
Ana and Liz were working out at the gym. Ana got on the treadmill and then she started running.
Will was decorating the apartment with Matt. Will hammered in a nail and then he hung up a painting.
Liz and Ana were making cookies. Liz got the chocolate chips from the pantry and then she took out the mixing bowl.
Ana was studying at the library with Matt. Ana opened up the textbook and then she read the assigned chapter.
Liz and Will were playing tennis. Liz picked up a tennis ball and then she grabbed a racket.
Matt was at the zoo with Liz. Matt saw a monkey and then he looked for the elephants.
Will and Ana were making dinner. Will heated up the pan and then he cut up the chicken.
Liz was hiking a nearby trail with Will. Liz pointed out the trail marker to Will and then he looked at the map.
Liz and Matt were watching a basketball game. Liz explained the score to Matt and then he looked up the rules.
Ana was baking a cake with Will. Ana showed the recipe to Will and then he reached for the flour.
Ana and Matt were raking the leaves. Ana held the trash bag for Matt and then he dumped the leaves in.
Matt was visiting an art museum with Liz. Matt showed a painting to Liz and then she read the caption on the wall.
Matt and Ana were ice skating on the frozen lake. Matt pointed out the cracks to Ana and then she marked them with spray paint.
Will was putting together a puzzle with Liz. Will pointed out all the edge pieces to Liz and then she looked at the reference image.
Will and Ana were at the animal shelter. Will walked a dog with Ana and then she pet the cats.
Will was collecting shells on the beach with Matt. Will found a hermit crab and then Matt picked up some seaweed.
Will and Matt were shopping at the grocery store. Will bought some bread and then Matt checked it off the list.
Matt was washing the dishes with Will. Matt washed a dirty plate and then Will used the drying cloth.
Matt and Will were playing board games. Matt rolled the dice and then Will picked up a card.
Liz was going to the post office with Ana. Liz bought some stamps and then Ana mailed a package.
Liz and Ana were taking pictures outside. Liz set up the tripod and then Ana posed for the picture.
Ana was relaxing by the pool with Liz. Ana laid the towel on the chair and then Liz dove into the pool.
Ana and Liz were making brownies. Ana sprayed the baking pan and then Liz turned on the oven.