Neuronal oscillations for spoken word production: Levels of operationalisation and abstraction

Welcome to our ABC Seminars! This seminar series is open for everyone. The talk will take place in Otakaari 3, F239a Auditorio. After the talks, coffee and pulla will be served.

The event will be also streamed via Zoom at: https://aalto.zoom.us/j/67444945844

Neuronal oscillations for spoken word production: Levels of operationalisation and abstraction

Abstract: Researchers studying spoken word production have long employed (bare) picture naming tasks to advance our knowledge on the (neuro)psychology of language production. Concurrently, at the brain level, much work in the field has been done to clarify the spatial aspects of picture naming. In this walk, I will explore what we could gain from studying spoken word production beyond bare picture naming, both in neurologically healthy speakers and in speakers with brain damage. Taking inspiration from work in the philosophy literature, I will also critically examine some of the issues we face at the operationalisation and abstraction level and the impact these issues have on interpretation of findings and their clinical applications.

Bio: Dr. Piai is an associate professor and principal investigator at the Centre for Cognition of the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, the Netherlands. Her research programme concentrates on the neurophysiology and the neuropsychology of language production, focusing specifically on the use of electrophysiology in healthy adults and in individuals with language impairment due to neurological damage.