Not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categories
Language is known to play a crucial role in influencing how humans perceive and categorize sensory stimuli, including odors. This study investigated the impact of linguistic labeling on odor categorization among bilingual participants proficient in Chinese (L1) and English (L2). We hypothesized that...
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Cambridge University Press
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Language and Cognition |
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| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1866980825000018/type/journal_article |
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| author | Yaxiong Cao Asifa Majid Norbert Vanek |
| author_facet | Yaxiong Cao Asifa Majid Norbert Vanek |
| author_sort | Yaxiong Cao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Language is known to play a crucial role in influencing how humans perceive and categorize sensory stimuli, including odors. This study investigated the impact of linguistic labeling on odor categorization among bilingual participants proficient in Chinese (L1) and English (L2). We hypothesized that L1-like linguistic labels would more robustly propel the learning of new olfactory categories compared to a condition without language, and more familiar labels would better support odor category learning. The analysis focused on comparing learning trajectories and odor categorization performance of four groups, three in which odors were paired with different sets of verbal labels and a control group that categorized odors without any verbal labeling. Following four days of intensive training, the results showed that the groups with verbal labels numerically outperformed the control group, and that the less familiar the labels sounded the more successful categorization became. However, between-group differences did not reach statistical significance. These findings, while not conclusively supporting our hypotheses, provide insights into the complex relationship between linguistic familiarity and odor category formation. The results are nested within Ad Hoc Cognition, highlighting that variations in linguistic familiarity may not induce robust enough contextual changes to differentially affect how odor categories are formed. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2b2f1c9fc59044d09beab16362af2563 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1866-9808 1866-9859 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Language and Cognition |
| spelling | doaj-art-2b2f1c9fc59044d09beab16362af25632025-02-04T07:06:08ZengCambridge University PressLanguage and Cognition1866-98081866-98592025-01-011710.1017/langcog.2025.1Not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categoriesYaxiong Cao0Asifa Majid1Norbert Vanek2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7805-184XSchool of Cultures, Languages and Linguistics, University of Auckland, Auckland, New ZealandDepartment of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UKSchool of Cultures, Languages and Linguistics, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand Experimental Research on Central European Languages Lab, Charles University, Prague, CzechiaLanguage is known to play a crucial role in influencing how humans perceive and categorize sensory stimuli, including odors. This study investigated the impact of linguistic labeling on odor categorization among bilingual participants proficient in Chinese (L1) and English (L2). We hypothesized that L1-like linguistic labels would more robustly propel the learning of new olfactory categories compared to a condition without language, and more familiar labels would better support odor category learning. The analysis focused on comparing learning trajectories and odor categorization performance of four groups, three in which odors were paired with different sets of verbal labels and a control group that categorized odors without any verbal labeling. Following four days of intensive training, the results showed that the groups with verbal labels numerically outperformed the control group, and that the less familiar the labels sounded the more successful categorization became. However, between-group differences did not reach statistical significance. These findings, while not conclusively supporting our hypotheses, provide insights into the complex relationship between linguistic familiarity and odor category formation. The results are nested within Ad Hoc Cognition, highlighting that variations in linguistic familiarity may not induce robust enough contextual changes to differentially affect how odor categories are formed.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1866980825000018/type/journal_articlead hoc cognitionlabel-feedback hypothesislinguistic relativityodor categorizationperceptual learning |
| spellingShingle | Yaxiong Cao Asifa Majid Norbert Vanek Not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categories Language and Cognition ad hoc cognition label-feedback hypothesis linguistic relativity odor categorization perceptual learning |
| title | Not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categories |
| title_full | Not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categories |
| title_fullStr | Not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categories |
| title_full_unstemmed | Not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categories |
| title_short | Not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categories |
| title_sort | not all verbal labels grease the wheels of odor categories |
| topic | ad hoc cognition label-feedback hypothesis linguistic relativity odor categorization perceptual learning |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1866980825000018/type/journal_article |
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