Shlomo Kravetz

Cerebral hemispheric asymmetries in processing lexical metaphors

This study investigated semantic priming for literal (stinging-mosquito) and metaphoric (stinging-insult) associates presented to either the left or right visual fields (RVF/LVF) across stimulus-onset-asynchronies (SOA) of 200 and 800 ms. For the short SOA condition, facilitation was found for metaphorically related targets in both visual fields (VFs) while literally related targets were facilitated only in the RVF. For the long SOA condition, metaphorically related targets were facilitated in the LVF whereas literally related targets were facilitated in the RVF. These results support previous findings indicating an enhanced role of the RH in metaphoric comprehension. In addition, the present results are in accordance with current models of hemispheric semantic processing.

Linguistic processes in the two cerebral hemispheres: Implications for modularity VS interactionism

Three experiments are reported on lexical decision to target stimuli presented to the right or left visual field (RVF, LVF) following a variety of priming stimuli, words, incomplete sentences, and scrambled sentences. Lexical decision performance is always superior for stimuli presented to the RVF. Primes always facilitate the discrimination of words from nonword target stimuli presented to either visual field. However, when the prime is a sentence which is completed syntactically and semantically by a target word (normal, congruent sentence), the facilitation for RVF presented targets is significantly greater than for LVF targets. When the prime is either: (1) a single word, (2) a nonstructured (scrambled) sentence, or (3) a noncongruent-related sentence, the difference in facilitation between RVF and LVF presented targets is much smaller. These data are discussed with respect to (1) the nature of priming by sentences versus words, (2) language processing by the two hemispheres, and (3) modularity versus interactionism in language processing.

Hemispheric specialization or reading habits: Evidence from lexical decision research with Hebrew words and sentences.

This paper reports the results of a lexical decision-visual hemifield protocol using Hebrew words and nonwords. The lexical decision task was combined with sentence priming to examine the impact of hemispheric specialization and sentence length. The data are relevant to the Kirsner and Schwartz (1986) hypothesis that reading habits can explain the oft-reported right visual field (RVF) superiority in linguistic tasks. Both the target stimuli and the sentence primes were in Hebrew and 26 male right-handed native Hebrew speakers served as subjects. Hebrew is written and read from right to left. Therefore, according to the favorable foveal viewing explanation (Kirsner & Schwartz, 1986), there should have been no RVF superiority. The results indicated, however, highly significant RVF superiority. Furthermore, priming sentences, written in Hebrew, should direct the attention of the subject to the left visual field in expectation of the appearance of a target word. Nevertheless, the RVF superiority was even more significant when target stimuli were preceded by priming sentences. Both results indicated that reading habits and directed reading attention cannot explain RVF superiority in lexical decision.

Hemisphericity and Top-Down Processing of Language

This study investigated the impact of contextual prompts (priming words and sentences) on the classical finding of superior performance with right visual field stimulation in a lexical decision task. Subjects were presented with prompts of varying lengths (one, three, or six words). The prompts were followed by a target stimulus (word/nonword) to the right or the left visual field. Subjects were required to respond whether the target was a word or a nonword. The major purpose of the study was to determine the extent of right visual field (RVF) superiority, reflecting left hemisphere superiority, in language processing when target stimuli are preceded by semantically meaningful prompts. The results showed that increasing the number of priming words congruent with the target (creating a meaningful context) increased the advantage of the RVF over the left visual field presentation in lexical decision. Thus, even with an available strategy provided by congruent priming stimuli, RVF superiority in lexical decision is retained and even increased.

Hardiness and sense of coherence and their relation to negative affect

This study attempted to determine the degree to which measures of health proneness and measures of negative affect represent two distinct, although related, constructs. In addition, it examined the relation between Antonovskys salutogenic construct of sense of coherence (SOC) and Kobasas health proneness construct of hardiness. Five health proneness and three negative affect measures were filled out by 164 male patients with coronary heart disease. The pattern of correlations between these measures and confirmatory factor analysis indicated that although the measures of health proneness are negatively related to measures of negative affect, these two sets of measures and the constructs to which they are related can be differentiated from each other. However, SOC was found to be less independent of negative affect than was hardiness.

Different ways of being aware of a psychiatric disability: a multifunctional narrative approach to insight into mental disorder.

Many people with a psychiatric disability appear to exhibit varying degrees of lack of awareness of the mental disorder that is implied by their diagnosis. Furthermore, there is considerable controversy regarding the significance of being aware of and acknowledging a psychiatric disorder. Different responses to the issues underlying this controversy can be found in the professional and research literature. This article describes and compares some of these responses. On the basis of this description and comparison, a multifunctional narrative approach to insight into mental disorder is developed, and implications of this approach for psychiatric rehabilitation research and for psychiatric rehabilitation intervention are explored.

Cerebral hemispheric asymmetries in processing lexical metaphorsfn2fn2This research was part of the M.A. thesis of the first author at Bar-Ilan University under the supervision of the second author.

This study investigated semantic priming for literal (stinging-mosquito) and metaphoric (stinging-insult) associates presented to either the left or right visual fields (RVF/LVF) across stimulus-onset-asynchronies (SOA) of 200 and 800 ms. For the short SOA condition, facilitation was found for metaphorically related targets in both visual fields (VFs) while literally related targets were facilitated only in the RVF. For the long SOA condition, metaphorically related targets were facilitated in the LVF whereas literally related targets were facilitated in the RVF. These results support previous findings indicating an enhanced role of the RH in metaphoric comprehension. In addition, the present results are in accordance with current models of hemispheric semantic processing.

The psychometric properties of the Illness Management and Recovery scale: client and clinician versions.

The present study examined the psychometric properties of the clinician and client versions of the Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) scale. Using a 5-point behaviorally anchored response format, these scales were designed to tap the critical illness management and recovery domains targeted by the IMR program. This program is a curriculum-based approach to helping persons with a serious mental illness (SMI) acquire the knowledge and skills they need to manage their illness effectively and to achieve personal recovery goals. Two hundred and ten persons with a diagnosis of a SMI and their 13 clinicians filled-out the client and clinician versions of the IMR questionnaire. The clients also responded to measures of coping efficacy and social support. While indicating limitations of the IMR scales and pointing to how they could be improved, this study provided some support for the construct and concurrent validity of the client and clinician versions of the IMR questionnaire. Moderate reliabilities were uncovered for these parallel versions of the questionnaire. Client responses to the client IMR scale and clinician responses to the clinician IMR scale were shown to be characterized by similar major components of the IMR intervention.

The influence of gender, handedness, and performance level on specialized cognitive functioning.

Individual differences in performance on neuropsychological tests were analyzed across age (prepubertal to adult), gender, and handedness groups and examined for performance level as a moderating variable. No differences were observed for the factor structure of these tests across ages and between genders, suggesting similar cognitive structures among these groups. Significant differences in performance were observed between males and females and, to a lesser extent, between right and left handers. Of interest, were significant Gender x Handedness and Gender x Handedness x Level (of performance) interactions seen especially in the older (postpubertal and adult) subjects. High performing, right handed males and left handed females performed better on visuospatial tasks while left handed males and right handed females performed better on verbosequential tasks.

Levels of sentence constraint and lexical decision in the two hemispheres.

This study used a lexical decision-priming paradigm to investigate the relative sensitivity of the two cerebral hemispheres to linguistic constraint. Level of constraint of syntactically and semantically correct priming sentences was determined by the Cloze procedure and constraint was manipulated by means of these sentences. High-, medium-, and low-constraining as well as neutral incomplete sentences were presented centrally prior to the appearance of a target word or nonword either to the left or to the right visual field of sixteen righthanded subjects. The hypothesis tested was that the left hemisphere benefits more from linguistic constraint than the right hemisphere. Although reaction time data generally supported this hypothesis, the right hemisphere also seemed to benefit from the constraint produced by high-constraint sentences. The relevance of these findings to the manner in which the two hemispheres process different kinds of linguistic material is discussed.