This thesis investigates children’s mental representation of syntactic structure and how their acquisition and production of syntax is affected by lexical and semantic factors, focusing on three- and four-year-old children. It focuses on a construction that has been a frequent subject of language acquisition research: the passive. It is often claimed that English-speaking children acquire the passive relatively late in language development (e.g. Horgan, 1978): previous studies have typically found unreliable comprehension and infrequent production of passives by children younger than five (e.g. Fraser et al., 1963). However, there is some evidence from studies providing an appropriate pragmatic context for passives (e.g. Crain et al., 1987) and studies which increase children’s exposure to passives (e.g. Whitehurst et al., 1974) to suggest that children can produce this structure at a younger age. Converging evidence comes from studies of syntactic priming, or the tendency to repeat syntactic structure (e.g. Bencini & Valian, 2008). Syntactic priming effects are potentially informative about the nature of syntactic representation, as they are assumed to reflect the repeated use of the same syntactic representation across successive utterances. With respect to language acquisition, syntactic priming effects can be informative about the extent to which children have acquired an abstract representation of a structure. Specifically, if children have a syntactic representation of the passive, then it should be possible to prime their production of passives, such that they should be more likely to produce passives after hearing passives than after hearing actives. Furthermore, by examining the conditions under which such priming occurs, it is possible to draw inferences about the nature of their passive representation. This thesis presents seven experiments, six using a syntactic priming paradigm, to examine children’s knowledge of passives. Experiment 1 establishes a syntactic priming effect for actives and passives in three- and four-year-old children, and shows that priming occurs for both structures within an experimental session, using a withinparticipants design. Experiments 2, 3 and 4 examine whether young children’s acquisition of the passive is semantically constrained. Experiments 2 and 3 show that children can be primed to produce passive responses by actional and non-actional passive primes. Experiment 4, a picture-sentence matching task, replicates the results of other studies, however, showing that children find subject-experiencer non-actional verb passives more difficult to understand than actional verb passives; this mis-match between the results from the different tasks suggests that some effects of verb-type may be task-related. Experiments 5 and 6 examine whether the observed priming effect could be a lexically-driven effect that is dependent on the repetition of function words (the preposition by or the passive auxiliary). They show that this explanation can be ruled out: children are more likely to produce passives following both passive primes that do not express the agent using a by-phrase and passive primes involving a different auxiliary verb. Experiment 7 examines the later development of passive structures by testing passive production in six- and nine-year-old children. It finds evidence that at six, they still have difficulties with the construction, however by nine, children have an adult-like representation of the passive. I conclude that by four, children have begun to develop a syntactic representation for the passive which is already common to a range of different possible forms(short, full, get and be), and which is not restricted to particular semantic classes of verb. However, these results also suggest that children do not fully master the passive construction before six: young children make morphological errors and errors mapping thematic roles to syntactic positions, even following passive primes. Hence children may acquire the purely syntactic aspects of the passive, leading to a syntactic priming effect, before they acquire other aspects of this structure, hence the children’s occasional errors producing passives.

Ce travail de thèse utilise le cadre de la Coopération Homme-Machine afin d’étudier l’articulation entre le traitement symbolique (interprétatif) du contexte et le traitement subsymbolique de l’intervention d’assistances à la conduite directement sur le volant. Quatre études expérimentales menées sur simulateur de conduite sont présentées.Les deux premières études s’intéressent à la capacité des conducteurs à conserver la totale maîtrise du véhicule lorsque l’assistance intervient ponctuellement sur le volant, en cas de risque imminent de sortie de voie (amorçage haptique). Les résultats montrent que seuls les temps de réaction des conducteurs sont entièrement déterminés au niveau sensori-moteur, les processus symboliques intervenant très tôt pour inhiber ou moduler la réponse motrice. Les deux dernières études s’intéressent à la Coopération Homme-Machine lorsque l’intervention de l’automate sur le volant est continue (contrôle partagé). Le degré de partage entre les deux agents et l’adaptation à l’assistance sur le moyen terme ont été étudiés. Les résultats permettent de conclure qu’il est possible d’intégrer efficacement l’intervention des automatesdans les boucles de contrôle sensori-motrices à condition que cette intégration respecte certaines précautions. Il s’agira notamment de calibrer finement le degré d’intervention ou la temporalité d’intervention dans ces boucles / The work in this thesis employs the Human-Machine Cooperation framework to study the relationship between symbolic (interpretive) processing of the context and subsymbolic processing of the intervention of driving assistance devices that act directly on the steering wheel. Four experimental studies on a driving simulator are presented.The first two focus on the ability of drivers to remain in full control of the vehicle when the assistance occasionally intervenes on the steering wheel, in case of imminent risk of lane departure (haptic priming). The results show that the driver’s reaction times are fully determined at the sensorimotor level. However, symbolic processes are involved as well at a very early stage to inhibit or modulate the motor response. Two other studies focus on Human-Machine Cooperation when the intervention of the device is continuous (shared control). The optimal level of shared control and the medium-term adaptation of the driver to the automation are studied. The results show that it is possible to effectively integrate the intervention of automation into the drivers sensorimotor control loops. However, successful integration requires respecting certain constraints, such as the fine calibration of the level of automation and the timing of the intervention

Les modèles sensorimoteurs de la cognition envisagent les connaissances comme des patterns neuronaux distribués sur l’ensemble du cerveau incluant les aires sensorielles. Différents travaux ont confirmé que l’accès à des connaissances associées à une couleur (e.g., banane) recrute un réseau neuronal similaire à celui impliqué dans la perception des couleurs. En conséquence, il est possible que l’utilisation de structures communes implique une interaction entre l’accès aux connaissances et la perception de la couleur. Pour mettre à l’épreuve cette hypothèse, la procédure utilisée consistait à présenter rapidement une amorce impliquant une simulation de la couleur (e.g., dessin d’une banane en noir et blanc) suivie d’une cible de couleur congruente (jaune) ou non (vert) sur laquelle les participants devaient réaliser un traitement perceptif (i.e., tâche de discrimination chromatique). Nous nous attendions à observer un amorçage perceptif de la couleur. Nous avons réalisé sept expériences au cours desquelles nous avons fait varier différents facteurs comme le type d’amorces (images, mots), le SOA ou encore le type de tâches perceptives. Les résultats obtenus montrent que la simulation de la couleur peut influencer la perception à un niveau perceptif, du moment que la tâche sur les cibles nécessite uniquement un traitement perceptif et que le lien de congruence amorce/cible est manipulé au niveau précis des teintes. Sinon, l’amorçage obtenu semble être de nature lexicale. Nous discutons de l’implication de ces résultats pour (i) l’interaction connaissance/perception, (ii) la nature des processus impliqués dans la perception des couleurs et (iii) dans la représentation mnésique des couleurs. / Sensorimotor models of cognition consider knowledge as neural patterns distributed over the entire brain, including the sensory areas. Various studies have confirmed that access to knowledge associated with a color (e.g., banana) recruits a neural network similar to that involved in color perception. Consequently, it is possible that the use of common structures involves an interaction between access to knowledge and perception of color. To test this hypothesis, the procedure used was to quickly present a prime involving a simulation of the color (e.g., A black-and-white line drawing of a banana) followed by a congruent target color (yellow) or not (green) on which participants were asked to perform a perceptual processing (i.e., color discrimination task). We expected to observe a perceptual priming of color. We conducted seven experiments in which we varied different factors such as the type of primes (pictures, words), the SOA or the type of perceptual tasks. The results show that simulation can influence color perception at a perceptual level, as long as the task on the target requires only perceptual processing and the congruency link between prime and target is handled at the level of specific hues. Otherwise, the priming obtained seems to be of a lexical nature. We discuss the implications of these results for (i) the knowledge/perception interactions, (ii) the nature of the processes involved in color perception and (iii) in the mnemonic representation of colors.

Master of Science / Department of Psychological Sciences / Patrick A. Knight / Despite the functional importance of performance appraisals in organizational settings, rating inaccuracies persist and have been a widely researched topic for decades. Contemporary efforts to explore the problem have turned to components of accuracy to foster a more detailed understanding of the influence of situational factors and individual biases. In particular, a great deal of research has examined the role of rating purpose (e.g., administrative, developmental) on subsequent accuracy, consistently revealing greater leniency for administrative ratings than for developmental ratings. On the basis of spreading activation theory, rating purpose was conceptualized as a priming event, and in combination with rating strategy priming, was expected to prompt predictable enhancements to specific components of accuracy. Participants for this experimental study were 160 undergraduate students. Participants were randomly assigned a rating purpose with “real-world” implications, and exposed to a strategy priming task designed to promote specific rating cognitions. Students viewed video-recorded competitive marching band performances, and rated them. Participants’ ratings were compared to those made by experienced raters to compute accuracy estimates. Results were largely non-significant, but in the directions expected. Limitations and future research opportunities are discussed.

Master of Science / Department of Psychological Sciences / Lester C. Loschky / Past research has argued that scene gist, a holistic semantic representation of a scene acquired within a single fixation, is extracted using purely feed-forward mechanisms. Many scene gist recognition studies have presented scenes from multiple categories in randomized sequences. We tested whether rapid scene categorization could be facilitated by priming from sequential expectations. We created more ecologically valid, first-person viewpoint, image sequences, along spatiotemporally connected routes (e.g., an office to a parking lot). Participants identified target scenes at the end of rapid serial visual presentations. Critically, we manipulated whether targets were in coherent or randomized sequences. Target categorization was more accurate in coherent sequences than in randomized sequences. Furthermore, categorization was more accurate for a target following one or more images within the same category than following a switch between categories. Likewise, accuracy was higher for targets more visually similar to their immediately preceding primes. This suggested that prime-to-target visual similarity may explain the coherent sequence advantage. We tested this hypothesis in Experiment 2, which was identical except that target images were removed from the sequences, and participants were asked to predict the scene category of the missing target. Missing images in coherent sequences were more accurately predicted than missing images in randomized sequences, and more predictable images were identified more accurately in Experiment 1. Importantly, partial correlations revealed that image predictability and prime-to-target visual similarity independently contributed to rapid scene gist categorization accuracy suggesting sequential expectations prime and thus facilitate scene recognition processes.

What are the effects of non-balanced bilingualism on cognitive performance? And how do proficient, non-native speakers acquire and use lexical, syntactic and semantic information during sentence processing? Whilst there is growing research on these topics, there is no firm consensus on how to answer these questions. In the literature on cognitive effects of bilingualism, this lack of consensus has even resulted in radically opposing views and a heated debate. In this thesis, I seek to provide a balanced treatment of the literature and to address the above-mentioned questions by employing behavioral and neurophysiological paradigms. First, using a structural priming paradigm, I examine how proficient, non-native speakers of different native language backgrounds (Romance and Germanic) acquire lexically-specific syntactic restrictions of non-alternating verbs in English. Results from these experiments suggest that, although non-native speakers partially acquire lexically-specific syntactic restrictions, their knowledge is not native-like. Moreover, transfer from the first language does not seem to play a role in the acquisition of the relevant restrictions. Second, using Event-Related Potentials (ERPs) I examine whether proficient non-native Spanish-English speakers draw on different forms of semantic information such as relatedness and animacy incrementally during sentence comprehension. Results of these experiments suggest that, while relatedness facilitates processing (indexed by N400s) in both native and non-native speakers, effects of animacy are smaller in non-native speakers, relative to native speakers. Third, I employ a series of auditory attentional tasks and measures of lexical access and verbal fluency to assess cognitive functions in non-balanced bilinguals with different levels of language proficiency. Results show a bilingual advantage in inhibitory control and a non-significant trend towards bilingual better performance in attentional switching, and the groups exhibit similar performance on verbal fluency. Results of all the studies are discussed in the context of the existing literature on cognitive performance in bilinguals and accounts of language processing in native and non-native speakers and suggestions for future research are provided.

Self-compassion is increasingly recognised as beneficial in psychotherapy, but can also be experienced as threatening. Attachment priming has been shown to enhance affiliative behaviours even in those with insecure trait attachment styles, and to decrease arousal and threat sensitivity. The current study investigated (a) associations between self-criticism, self-compassion, fear of self-compassion and trait attachment insecurity, and (b) whether attachment-related security priming could promote state self-compassion and reduce physiological arousal when self-compassion induction was attempted by self-critical individuals. 49 participants with high levels of self-reported self-criticism completed either a 'secure' or a 'neutral' prime before undertaking a loving-kindness meditation. Participants' heart rate and skin conductance levels were collected at baseline and during the priming and meditation; participants also self-rated their levels of state self-criticism, state self-compassion and state attachment security at each of these points. Correlational analyses (Spearman's rho) found positive associations between trait self-criticism and trait attachment insecurity and between trait fear of self-compassion and trait attachment insecurity, although not between low trait self-compassion and trait attachment insecurity. Group and time differences were analysed using a combination of parametric (ANOVA, t-test) and non-parametric tests (Mann-Whitney U-test, Kruskal Wallis, Wilcoxon Signed Rank) as some data were not normally distributed). Attachment priming was shown to significantly enhance state self-compassion and also to significantly increase state attachment security and decrease state attachment avoidance, although not state self-criticism or state attachment anxiety, and to give some reductions in physiological arousal. This benefit, however, did not persist in subsequent exposure to loving-kindness meditation, although individuals not receiving attachment priming also showed some reduction of threat and activation of soothing systems from loving-kindness meditation. These findings suggest that attachment priming and loving-kindness meditation may increase self-compassion for some self-critical people, but there are not necessarily cumulative benefits from combining these practices.

Repeated daily treatments of perinatal rats with the dopamine D2-receptor (D2-R) agonist quinpirole for a week or more produces the phenomenon of ‘priming’—gradual but long-term sensitization of D2-R. In fact a daily dose of quinpirole as low as 50 µg/kg/day is adequate for sensitizing D2-R. Primed rats as neonates and in adolescence, when acutely treated with quinpirole display enhanced eating/gnawing/nursing on dams, also horizontal locomotor activity. Between 3 and 5 weeks of age, acute quinpirole treatment of primed rats produces profound vertical jumping with paw treading—a behavior that is not observed in control rats. At later ages acute quinpirole treatment is associated with enhanced yawning, a D2-R-associated behavior. This long-term D2-R supersensitivity is believed to be life-long, despite the relatively brief period of D2-R priming near the time of birth. D2-R supersensitivity is not associated with an increase in the number or affinity of D2-R, as assessed in the striatum of rats; nor is it induced with the D3-R agonist 7-OH-DPAT. However, quinpirole-induced D2-R supersensitivity is associated with cognitive deficits, also a deficit in pre-pulse inhibition and in neurotrophic factors, and low levels of the transcript regulator of G-protein signaling (RGS) RGS9 in brain; and acute reversal of these alterations by the antipsychotic agent olanzapine. In sum, rats ontogenetically D2-R supersensitized have face validity, construct validity and predictive ability for schizophrenia.

Priming exercise, or the ‘warm-up’, is an accepted practice prior to exercise participation, physical training or sporting competition. Traditionally, low intensity exercise has been used prior to both short- and long-duration events in an effort to prepare the athlete, but not fatigue them. Recently, however, a more scientific approach to priming exercise has been considered important, with some research suggesting that a high intensity intermittent priming strategy may be optimal. However, given the paucity of performance focussed ‘warm-up’ studies, and that existing data regarding high-intensity priming strategies is inconclusive, the aim of this thesis was to determine the effects of three high-intensity intermittent priming strategies on physiological responses and subsequent 3km laboratory time-trial (TT) performance. Ten well-conditioned endurance-trained male cyclists (mean ± SD: age, 28.3 ± 8.4 yr, body mass, 81.8 ± 11.6 kg, stature, 1.8 ± 0.1 m, O2peak, 4.6 ± 0.5 L•min−1) were recruited for this study. After an initial incremental exercise test to exhaustion, participants completed four 3km time trials (TT) on four separate occasions, each preceded by a different priming strategy. These included a ‘self-selected’ (control) condition, and three high-intensity intermittent priming strategies of varying intensity (100% and 150% of the power at O2peak, and all-out) and fixed duration (15 minutes), each in predetermined random order. Five minutes passive rest separated each priming exercise condition from the experimental 3km-TT. Oxygen uptake ( O2) and heart rate (HR) were measured continuously, while blood lactate concentration ([BLa]) and core temperature (TC) were recorded at rest, post-priming exercise, and immediately prior to and following the 3km-TT. In an attempt to provide a mechanistic explanation for changes in performance, O2 kinetic variables were determined from the O2 data. Performance was quantified as a mean power (Wmean) and total time taken to complete the 3km-TT. Mean power output and time taken for each 500m segment of the 3km-TT were also calculated. Results demonstrated that the athletes self-chosen priming condition (378.6 ± 44.0 W) resulted in Wmean that was slightly greater than both the lowest (376.3 ± 44.9 W; 0.7%; p = 0.57) and moderate (373.9 ± 47.8 W; 1.5%, p = 0.30) intensity intermittent priming condition, but significantly greater than the ‘all-out’ intermittent sprint priming condition (357.4 ± 44.5 W; 5.8%, p = 0.0033). Similar differences were observed for time. While differences existed in the O2 deficit (however, mainly non-significant), these differences did not provide clear explanations for the differences in performance, with the moderate priming condition displaying a significantly reduced O2 deficit (59.4 ± 15.6 L, p < 0.05), despite the non-significant change in Wmean, compared to the self-chosen priming condition (73.3 ± 18.6 L). Additionally no significant differences were observed in either the time constant or the mean response time of O2. Significant findings with regard to HR, [BLa] and TC were observed, but consistent with O2 kinetic variables, they were not related to, nor explain performance changes. In conclusion, regardless of intensity, different high-intensity intermittent priming exercise did not improve 3km-TT performance more than the control condition (self-chosen). A priming strategy that is overly intense was detrimental to subsequent cycling performance. The observed finding that a self-chosen priming strategy resulted in a comparable performance suggests that athletes are able to self-select (consciously or sub-consciously) a ‘warm-up’ that is of appropriate intensity/duration. Further work utilising the priming strategies from the current study with events of shorter duration is required to further clarify how priming strategies of this nature may affect track cycling performance.

<p>Dosimetric characteristics of a CVD single crystal diamond detector have been evaluated. Detector stability, linearity, optimal bias, temperature dependence, directional dependence, priming and pre-irradiation behaviour, depth dose curves and dose profiles were investigated.</p><p>The optimal bias was determined to be 50 V. The detector stability measurement showed a too large variation for absolute dosimetry in a day to day measurement, but acceptable variation during one and the same day. The linearity constant, , in the relation between signal and dose rate, (Fowler 1966), was determined to 0.978 and 0.953 for two detectors. The sub-linearity was also observed in the depth dose curves and could be eliminated with a correction method. The diamond detector showed smaller temperature dependence than the EFD silicon diode. The directional dependency was, <1 %, up to at least ± 15˚ and therefore no angular correction is needed. A priming dose of 0.6 Gy was determined, which is considerably smaller than for existing detectors on the market. After pre-irradiation with electrons (8 and 18 MeV) a large and permanent desensitization of up to 31 % / 500 Gy was detected. This is in contradiction to what previous published articles claim. 15 MV photons also reduced the sensitivity of the detector, but no evidence that 5 MV photons do has been found. A 50 Gy dose of 180 MeV protons did not reduce the sensitivity either. The detector dose rate linearity was improved by electron pre-irradiation. The dose profile penumbras of the diamond detector were, for the most part, smaller than the RK ionization chamber, indicating a better spatial resolution.</p>