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The Whorfian mind : electrophysiological evidence that language shapes perception

Athanasopoulos, P., Wiggett, A., Dering, B., Kuipers, J.-R. and Thierry, G. (2009) The Whorfian mind : electrophysiological evidence that language shapes perception. Communicative & Integrative Biology, 2 (4). pp. 332-334. ISSN 1942-0889

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To link to this item DOI: 10.4161/cib.2.4.8400

Abstract/Summary

Color perception has been a traditional test-case of the idea that the language we speak affects our perception of the world.1 It is now established that categorical perception of color is verbally mediated and varies with culture and language.2 However, it is unknown whether the well-demonstrated language effects on color discrimination really reach down to the level of visual perception, or whether they only reflect post-perceptual cognitive processes. Using brain potentials in a color oddball detection task with Greek and English speakers, we demonstrate that language effects may exist at a level that is literally perceptual, suggesting that speakers of different languages have differently structured minds.

Item Type:Article
Refereed:Yes
Divisions:No Reading authors. Back catalogue items
Interdisciplinary Research Centres (IDRCs) > Centre for Integrative Neuroscience and Neurodynamics (CINN)
Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Department of Psychology
Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Department of Clinical Language Sciences
Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Language and Cognition
ID Code:33612
Publisher:Landes Bioscience Journals

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