Predictions were recently proposed to be the core mechanism organizing brain functioning at all levels and in all domains. However, in contrast, within language comprehension, evidence for predictions has not been ubiquitous across participants, tasks, and materials. Earlier research by Jakub showed that this discrepancy can be reconciled by positing the existence of at least two different neurocognitive mechanisms of prediction: active prediction that is restricted to highly informative contexts and to speakers who can rapidly exploit that informativity, and passive prediction, which is part-and-parcel of language comprehension. The current project will better understand the different mechanisms involved at the cognitive and at the neural level.

Congratulations Drs. Federmeier and Szewczyk!