Multiple representational and dynamic conceptual analysis in the wild

Abstract

Cognitive semantics has different research methods, such as introspection, corpora analysis, interaction analysis, and experiments. The analysis of “data in the wild” (corpora and interaction) is generally informed by theories, but rarely by the current landscape of experiments’ findings on language and cognition. The goal of this paper is twofold: first, we want to highlight the possibility and importance of shortening the gap between theory, empirical evidence, and analysis of data in the wild in the study of cognition. Second, we suggest that resorting to the state of the art of empirical research about language and cognition allows for more flexible analyses, which may surpass the limits of current theories. In order to do that, we (i) provide a current overview of neuro and psycholinguistic findings about the grounding of concrete and abstract concepts, (ii) discuss how these findings can support linguistic data analysis, and (iii) emphasize trends toward multiple representation theories and dynamic systems.

Keywords

• Semantics
• Cognition
• Concepts
• Dynamic