Morton Ann Gernsbacher
Vilas Research Professor and
Sir Frederic C. Bartlett Professor of Psychology
Ph.D. 1983, University of Texas at Austin
Email: MAGernsb@wisc.edu
My research investigates the general, cognitive processes and mechanisms that underlie language comprehension, using
behavioral methodology and more recently, some functional neural magnetic imaging (FMRI). According to my Structure
Building Framework, the goal of comprehension is to build a coherent, mental representation or "structure". To do this,
comprehenders must first lay a foundation. Next, they develop the structure by mapping on information when that
incoming information is coherent or related to previous information. However, if the incoming information is less coherent
or related, comprehenders shift to initiate a new substructure. These structure building processes are accomplished by two
mechanisms: enhancement, which boosts the activation of some representations, and suppression, which dampens the
activation of other representations.
Representative Publications
Gernsbacher, M.A. (1997). Two decades of structure building. Discourse Processes, 23, 265-304.
Gernsbacher, M.A., Dawson, M., & Goldsmith, H.H. (2005). Three reasons not to believe in an autism epidemic. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14, 55-58.
Gernsbacher, M.A., Dissanayake, C., Goldsmith, H.H., Mundy, P.G., Rogers, S.J., & Sigma, M. (2005). Autism and mother-child attachment. Science, 307, 1201-1203.
Gernsbacher, M.A., & Kaschak, M.P. (2002). Neuroimaging studies of language comprehension and production. Annual Review of Psychology, 54, 91-114.
Robertson, D.A., Gernsbacher, M.A., Guidotti, S.J., Robertson, R.R., Irwin, W., Mock, B.J., Compana, M.E. (2000). Functional neuroanatomy of the cognitive process of mapping during discourse comprehension. Psychological Science, 11, 255-260.
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Phone: (608) 262-6989
Office: 597 Psychology
Language Comprehension Laboratory |
