Measuring individual semantic networks: A simulation study

Fuente: arXiv
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Auteurs principaux: Aeschbach, Samuel, Mata, Rui, Wulff, Dirk U.
Format: Preprint
Publié: 2024
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author Aeschbach, Samuel
Mata, Rui
Wulff, Dirk U.
author_facet Aeschbach, Samuel
Mata, Rui
Wulff, Dirk U.
contents Accurately capturing individual differences in semantic networks is fundamental to advancing our mechanistic understanding of semantic memory. Past empirical attempts to construct individual-level semantic networks from behavioral paradigms may be limited by data constraints. To assess these limitations and propose improved designs for the measurement of individual semantic networks, we conducted a recovery simulation investigating the psychometric properties underlying estimates of individual semantic networks obtained from two different behavioral paradigms: free associations and relatedness judgment tasks. Our results show that successful inference of semantic networks is achievable, but they also highlight critical challenges. Estimates of absolute network characteristics are severely biased, such that comparisons between behavioral paradigms and different design configurations are often not meaningful. However, comparisons within a given paradigm and design configuration can be accurate and generalizable when based on designs with moderate numbers of cues, moderate numbers of responses, and cue sets including diverse words. Ultimately, our results provide insights that help evaluate past findings on the structure of semantic networks and design new studies capable of more reliably revealing individual differences in semantic networks.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2410_18326
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Measuring individual semantic networks: A simulation study
Aeschbach, Samuel
Mata, Rui
Wulff, Dirk U.
Computation and Language
Accurately capturing individual differences in semantic networks is fundamental to advancing our mechanistic understanding of semantic memory. Past empirical attempts to construct individual-level semantic networks from behavioral paradigms may be limited by data constraints. To assess these limitations and propose improved designs for the measurement of individual semantic networks, we conducted a recovery simulation investigating the psychometric properties underlying estimates of individual semantic networks obtained from two different behavioral paradigms: free associations and relatedness judgment tasks. Our results show that successful inference of semantic networks is achievable, but they also highlight critical challenges. Estimates of absolute network characteristics are severely biased, such that comparisons between behavioral paradigms and different design configurations are often not meaningful. However, comparisons within a given paradigm and design configuration can be accurate and generalizable when based on designs with moderate numbers of cues, moderate numbers of responses, and cue sets including diverse words. Ultimately, our results provide insights that help evaluate past findings on the structure of semantic networks and design new studies capable of more reliably revealing individual differences in semantic networks.
title Measuring individual semantic networks: A simulation study
topic Computation and Language
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.18326