An ERP study of structural anomalies in native and semantic free artificial grammar: evidence for shared processing mechanisms

ÁNGEL TABULLO; YAMILA SEVILLA; ENRIQUE SEGURA; ALBERTO YORIO; SILVANO ZANUTTO; ALEJANDRO WAINSELBOIM

BRAIN RESEARCH

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2013 p. 149 - 160

0006-8993

Artificial grammars have been widely applied to the study ofsequential learning in language, but few studies have directly comparedthe neural correlates of artificial and native grammar processing. Inthis study, we examined Event Related Potentials (ERPs) elicited bystructural anomalies in semantic-free artificial grammar sequences andsentences from the subjects´ native language (Spanish). Although ERPsdiffered during early stages, we observed similar posterior negativities(N400) and P600 effects in a late stage. We interpret these results asevidence of at least partially shared neural mechanisms for processing oflanguage and artificial grammars. We suggest that in both the natural andartificial grammars, the N400 and P600 components we observed can beexplained as the result of unfulfilled predictions about incomingstimuli.