Based on the article you read, give an example of one wrong way to describe a particular ERP component (like the N400, P600, sustained negativity, or whatever), and an example of one right way to describe that same component.
Many people tend to associate various ERP components with particular aspects of linguistics. For example, people sometimes say the MMN is related to phonetics/phonology, the Left Anterior Negativity is related to morphology, the N400 is related to semantic errors, the P600 is related to syntax errors, etc.
This is wrong wrong wrong.
Read either one of the papers below. Each of these are papers that outline a better way of understanding ERP components, as reflecting specific cognitive operations (not even necessarily ones related to linguistics) rather than reflecting vague linguistic concepts like "syntax" or whatever. Each focuses on a different linguistic topic (the first one is about morphosyntax and semantics in sentence processing, and the second is about pragmatics), but both make similar points about how we should and should not think about ERP components.
After you finish, continue to the reflection questions below.
Based on the article you read, give an example of one wrong way to describe a particular ERP component (like the N400, P600, sustained negativity, or whatever), and an example of one right way to describe that same component.
When you finish this activity, you are done with the module (assuming all your work on this and the previous tasks has been satisfactory). However, you may still continue on to the advanced-level task for this module if you wish to complete this module at the advanced level (if you're aiming for a higher grade or if you are just particularly interested in this topic). Otherwise, you can return to the module homepage to review this module, or return to the class homepage to select a different module or assignment to do now.
by Stephen Politzer-Ahles. Last modified on 2021-05-05. CC-BY-4.0.