ABSTRACT
In this chapter, I will present a connectionist model that characterizes a range of processes involved in text comprehension beginning with lexical access and ending with the memory output for simple schema-based vignettes. The aim is to unify findings from disparate areas within the study of text comprehension. These include sentence processing, word recognition, and memory distortion. The various modules of the model to date are shown in Figure 23.1, but, because of space restrictions, only three of the major components are detailed here. These are: (a) a knowledge net, in which individual propositions are assembled into schemata, (b) a lexical net, in which microfeatures are assembled into lexical entries, and (c) the interface between (a) and (b), which maps microfeatures in the lexicon onto propositions in the knowledge net. The description of the model is contained in three sections which corresponds to the three components. In each section, part of the model is outlined, current data which the model must address are described, and a simulation with its predictions are presented. Context effects on single words are divided into two classes: lexical effects and propositional effects. The empirical basis of this distinction is discussed in the second major section where the lexical component of the model is described. The propositional priming effects are modeled in the third major section.
