The Effects of Case On the Processing of Noun Phrases

Abstract

An operation known as the Question Technique, which measures time taken to process various relations in sentences, was used to assess the effects of position and case of nouns on adult comprehension of noun phrases. Questions about initiators of the action or state (Agentives and Instrumental) were answered faster than questions about recipients (Datives and Objectives) regardless of surface structure position. Variations in noun animateness did not consistently affect response latencies, suggesting that it is the noun's functional relationship with the verb (its action role) rather than its animateness that is the important dimension of case for listeners. Further evidence for the saliency of action role was provided by an analysis of the effects on response latencies of other semantic relationships within the sentence (the context). When both nouns in the sentence shared the same action role (e.g., when both were initiators), latencies increased, whereas agreement or disagreement between the nouns in animateness did not differentially affect latencies.