Verbs Are Associated With Agency. Evidence From Word Ratings and Natural Language Use

Pietraszkiewicz, Agnieszka; Formanowicz, Magdalena (2023). Verbs Are Associated With Agency. Evidence From Word Ratings and Natural Language Use. Social Psychology, 54(5), pp. 271-282. Hogrefe & Huber 10.1027/1864-9335/a000522

[img] Text
pietraszkiewicz-formanowicz-2023-verbs-are-associated-with-agency__3_.pdf - Published Version
Restricted to registered users only
Available under License Publisher holds Copyright.

Download (162kB)

Agency and communion comprise the big two of social perception, with agency in general denoting goal orientation and communion orientation toward others. Both dimensions can be coded and detected in language through agentic and communal words, however, only agency through lexical classes, namely verbs. This research examines whether the link between semantic and lexical agency occurs in natural language, as past research was limited to pseudowords or single words. Using existing databases, Study 1 found that people rated verbs as more agentic than nouns. Using large textual datasets, Study 2 found verb use to be positively related to agentic – but not communal word – use. These findings contribute to the identification of agency in language and indicate its importance in social cognition.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

07 Faculty of Human Sciences > Institute of Psychology
07 Faculty of Human Sciences > Institute of Psychology > Social Neuroscience and Social Psychology

UniBE Contributor:

Pietraszkiewicz, Agnieszka, Formanowicz, Magdalena Maria

Subjects:

100 Philosophy > 150 Psychology

ISSN:

1864-9335

Publisher:

Hogrefe & Huber

Funders:

[185] University of Bern: Seal of Excellence Fund

Language:

English

Submitter:

Agnieszka Pietraszkiewicz

Date Deposited:

30 Jan 2024 12:51

Last Modified:

30 Jan 2024 12:51

Publisher DOI:

10.1027/1864-9335/a000522

BORIS DOI:

10.48350/192240

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/192240

Actions (login required)

Edit item Edit item
Provide Feedback