At the Speed of a Verb: Grammatical Class of Stimuli Affects Response Time in Surveys and Syntactic Classification Tasks

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dc.abstract.enVerbs, as the conventional linguistic category for expressing action and motion, possess meta-semantic associations specifically with action-orientation—associations not typically found in other grammatical classes (e.g., nouns). The central aim of this research was to examine whether the proposed association between verbs and action manifests in shorter response times for verbs compared to other grammatical forms. In Studies 1a and 1b (N1a = 136, N1b = 323), we examined the impact of exposure to verbs versus nouns on overall completion time for a complex questionnaire survey. In Studies 2a and 2b (N2a = 92, N2b = 96), we employed a syntactic classification task to investigate behavioral responses to verbs and nouns, using a pseudoword paradigm in which carefully constructed lexical stimuli were devoid of semantic meaning but clearly conveyed grammatical class through suffixes. Across all four experiments, we consistently observed shorter response times for verbs and pseudoverbs compared to nouns and pseudonouns, suggesting that grammatical class exerts meta-semantic effects on behavior.
dc.affiliationCentrum Badań nad Relacjami Społecznymi
dc.affiliationInstytut Psychologii
dc.contributor.authorWitkowska, Marta
dc.contributor.authorSuitner, Caterina
dc.contributor.authorDołżycka, Joanna
dc.contributor.authorRoessel, Janin
dc.contributor.authorMaass, Anne
dc.contributor.authorFormanowicz, Magdalena
dc.date.access2026-02-18
dc.date.accessioned2026-02-18T06:51:31Z
dc.date.available2026-02-18T06:51:31Z
dc.date.created2025-12-20
dc.date.issued2026-02-12
dc.description.abstract<jats:p> Verbs, as the conventional linguistic category for expressing action and motion, possess meta-semantic associations specifically with action-orientation—associations not typically found in other grammatical classes (e.g., nouns). The central aim of this research was to examine whether the proposed association between verbs and action manifests in shorter response times for verbs compared to other grammatical forms. In Studies 1a and 1b ( <jats:italic toggle="yes">N</jats:italic> <jats:sub>1a</jats:sub>  = 136, <jats:italic toggle="yes">N</jats:italic> <jats:sub> 1 <jats:italic toggle="yes">b</jats:italic> </jats:sub>  = 323), we examined the impact of exposure to verbs versus nouns on overall completion time for a complex questionnaire survey. In Studies 2a and 2b ( <jats:italic toggle="yes">N</jats:italic> <jats:sub>2a</jats:sub>  = 92, <jats:italic toggle="yes">N</jats:italic> <jats:sub>2b</jats:sub>  = 96), we employed a syntactic classification task to investigate behavioral responses to verbs and nouns, using a pseudoword paradigm in which carefully constructed lexical stimuli were devoid of semantic meaning but clearly conveyed grammatical class through suffixes. Across all four experiments, we consistently observed shorter response times for verbs and pseudoverbs compared to nouns and pseudonouns, suggesting that grammatical class exerts meta-semantic effects on behavior. </jats:p>
dc.description.accesstimeat_publication
dc.description.grantnumber2017/27/B/HS6/01049
dc.description.grantnumber2020/37/B/HS6/02587
dc.description.grantnumber2021/43/B/ HS6/02819
dc.description.granttitleModel Gramatyki Społecznej – analiza mechanizmów i zastosowań
dc.description.granttitleThe Role of Linguistic Markers of Agency in Mobilizing Collective Action
dc.description.granttitleBadanie związku między sprawczością lingwistyczną i nastrojem
dc.description.sdgNoSDGsAreRelevantForThisPublication
dc.description.versionfinal_author
dc.identifier.doi10.1177/0261927X251413715
dc.identifier.eissn1552-6526
dc.identifier.issn0261-927X
dc.identifier.urihttps://share.swps.edu.pl/handle/swps/2185
dc.identifier.weblinkhttps://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0261927X251413715
dc.languageen
dc.pbn.affiliationpsychologia
dc.rightsOther
dc.rights.questionYes_rights
dc.share.articleOPEN_REPOSITORY
dc.subject.ennouns
dc.subject.enverbs
dc.subject.ensyntactic classification
dc.subject.enagency
dc.subject.enpseudowords
dc.swps.sciencecloudnosend
dc.titleAt the Speed of a Verb: Grammatical Class of Stimuli Affects Response Time in Surveys and Syntactic Classification Tasks
dc.title.journalJournal of Language and Social Psychology
dc.typeJournalArticle
dspace.entity.typeArticle