“所言非所指”:反语理解的脑机制及其影响因素

“Saying what you don't mean”: Cerebral mechanism and influencing factors in verbal irony comprehension

本文基于文献综述,梳理和分析反语理解的脑机制及其影响因素,并得出如下结论:1)左脑背外侧前额叶皮层(BA9)、左脑颞上回(BA21)、左脑颞中回(BA21/22)、左脑连接处(BA39/19)、左脑杏仁核(BA36)、左脑顶下小叶(BA39/40)、左脑额下回(BA44/45/47)等区域参与了反语的理解;2)反语理解有关的大脑基础与心理理论和语义整合两个大脑功能网络有着较高的重合性;3)不同形式非字面义语言理解的脑机制表现出一定程度的异质性,如反语和隐喻;4)反语理解脑机制的影响因素主要体现在主体因素的制约和客体因素的影响两个方面,前者主要包括心理理论能力、执行控制功能、认知策略,后者主要包括语境线索、反语类型和反语熟悉度。

This paper, based on relevant literature, recapitulates the cerebral mechanism of irony comprehension and its influencing factors. The author draws the following conclusions: 1) Different brain areas are involved in verbal irony comprehension, mainly including left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (BA9), left superior temporal gyrus (BA21), left middle temporal gyrus (BA21/22), left temporoparietal junction (BA39/19), left amygdala (BA 36), inferior parietal lobule (BA39/40), and left inferior frontal gyrus (BA44/45/47);2) Interestingly, there is a large overlap between brain areas activated during verbal irony comprehension and two brain functional networks, namely, Theory of Mind (ToM) network and semantic integration network;3) The corresponding brain mechanism of different forms of non-literal language comprehension shows a certain degree of heterogeneity, such as irony vs. metaphor;4) The brain mechanism of irony understanding can be modulated by various factors which reflect in the constraints of subjective factors (ToM, executive control, cognitive strategies) and in the influences of objective factors (contextual cues, irony types and irony familiarity).