Research Methods in Psycholinguistics and the Neurobiology of Language

by Annette M. B. de Groot (Editor), Peter Hagoort (Editor)

The first comprehensive guide to research methods and technologies in psycholinguistics and the neurobiology of language

Bringing together contributions from a distinguished group of researchers and practitioners, editors Annette M. B. de Groot and Peter Hagoort explore the methods and technologies used by researchers of language acquisition, language processing, and communication, including: traditional observational and behavioral methods; computational modelling; corpus linguistics; and virtual reality. The book also examines neurobiological methods, including functional and structural neuroimaging and molecular genetics.

Ideal for students engaged in the field, Research Methods in Psycholinguistics and the Neurobiology of Language examines the relative strengths and weaknesses of various methods in relation to competing approaches. It describes the apparatus involved, the nature of the stimuli and data used, and the data collection and analysis techniques for each method. Featuring numerous example studies, along with many full-color illustrations, this indispensable text will help readers gain a clear picture of the practices and tools described.

Brings together contributions from distinguished researchers across an array of related disciplines who explain the underlying assumptions and rationales of their research methods
Describes the apparatus involved, the nature of the stimuli and data used, and the data collection and analysis techniques for each method

Explores the relative strengths and weaknesses of various methods in relation to competing approaches
Features numerous real-world examples, along with many full-color illustrations, to help readers gain a clear picture of the practices and tools described

Review
"This important collection of chapters by leading researchers - ranging over methods from preferential looking to cutting-edge imaging to molecular genetics - will be an essential resource for researchers and students of language processing. The book provides an impressive overview and useful hands-on tips regarding the wide range of techniques used to investigate many aspects of language." - David Poeppel, Max Planck Institute and New York University, USA

"The astouding proliferation of new research methodology during recent decades has deeply affected theoretical progress in psycolinguistics. This volume provides the first comprehensive guide to these methods, behavioural, neurobiological and computational. The editors, Annette de Groot and Peter Hagoort, not only managed to attract superb specialists for each and every chapter, they also convinced them to organise their chapters in similar ways, such providing a transparent, unified perspective. It makes for a most user-friendly guide, indispensable for any researcher in this indisciplinary field." William Levelt, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, USA

About the Author
Annette M. B. de Groot, PhD, is Professor of Psycholinguistics and former Chair of the Department of Psychology at the University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Currently her research focuses on individual bilingualism and multilingualism.

Peter Hagoort, PhD, is Professor in Cognitive Neuroscience at Radboud University; Director of the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; and Director of the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.