Wang Han Lin, Lu Ya Qiao, Lu Zhong Yi
aSchool of Education, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang bSchool of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China cDepartment of Linguistics and Modern Languages, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong.
Neuroreport. 2016 Mar 2;27(4):247-56. doi: 10.1097/WNR.0000000000000528.
Many abstract bipolar concepts are usually represented by metaphors on vertical dimensions (e.g. positive-up, negative-down). However, several studies have found an asymmetry in the way in which individuals process bipolar dimensions, with +polarities being stronger than -polarities. The current research focused on moral metaphors on a vertical dimension (e.g. moral-up and immoral-down) and examined the asymmetric representation of moral and immoral concepts. The first experiment showed a distinct metaphorical association between morality and vertical space, consistent with earlier research. The second experiment showed that moral and immoral words are processed differently depending on whether they are used as metaphorically congruent or incongruent vertical cues. 'Moral-up' association modulated the amplitudes of the N1, P2, and late positive-going potential during the processing of moral words, whereas the 'immoral-down' association only modulated the amplitudes of the late positive-going potential induced during the processing of immoral words. These results suggest that asymmetry in the processing of vertically represented morality metaphors is reflected in the time course of the representation of these bipolar concepts, with the 'moral-up' association having an earlier effect than the 'immoral-down' association.
许多抽象的两极概念通常由垂直维度上的隐喻来表示（例如，积极向上、消极向下）。然而，几项研究发现，个体在处理两极维度时存在不对称性，其中正极性比负极性更强。当前的研究聚焦于垂直维度上的道德隐喻（例如，道德向上和不道德向下），并考察了道德和不道德概念的不对称表征。第一个实验表明道德与垂直空间之间存在明显的隐喻关联，这与早期研究一致。第二个实验表明，道德和不道德词汇的处理方式因其作为隐喻上一致或不一致的垂直线索而有所不同。“道德向上”的关联在处理道德词汇时调节了N1、P2和晚期正电位的振幅，而“不道德向下”的关联仅调节了处理不道德词汇时诱发的晚期正电位的振幅。这些结果表明，垂直表征的道德隐喻处理中的不对称性反映在这些两极概念表征的时间进程中，“道德向上”的关联比“不道德向下”的关联具有更早的影响。
