Unraveling the Enigma: Exploring Varied Perspectives on Concrete-Abstract Word Contrasts

Abstract

The paper delves into the complex and multifaceted nature of the concrete-abstract word contrast, examining various theoretical perspectives and empirical evidence. While the context availability theory underscores the importance of contextual knowledge, it encounters challenges in light of contradictory findings, particularly the greater right hemisphere activation for concrete words. Dual coding theory suggests that both concrete and abstract words rely on verbal information, with concrete words benefiting from additional imagistic content. However, the reverse concreteness effect, favoring abstract words, emerges when controlling for context and imageability. The affective embodiment account highlights the role of emotion in facilitating abstract words, but this too faces scrutiny as valence and abstractness prove separable. Notwithstanding inconsistencies, left hemisphere and rACC activation seem critical for encoding both word types. The paper underscores the need for future research to account for methodological variations, including factors like imageability and concreteness, participations encoding strategies and age of acquisition. It also encourages a deeper exploration of the role of emotion under controlled conditions and the identification of additional factors influencing the concrete-abstract word distinction. In sum, the paper calls for a more comprehensive understanding of the intricate interplay of variables contributing to this linguistic contrast.