ERP and behavioral evidence of individual differences in metaphor comprehension

Abstract

In two experiments, we examined individual differences in metaphor processing. In Experiment 1, the subjects judged the literal truth of literal, metaphorical, and scrambled sentences. Overall, metaphors were more difficult to judge as false, in comparison with scrambled controls, suggesting that the metaphorical meaning was being processed automatically. However, there were individual differences in that high-IQ subjects showed more interference. These effects were reflected in ERP amplitude differences at the onset of N400 and after the response. In Experiment 2, the subjects completed IQ tests and a series of working memory tests and then rated and interpreted the same set of metaphors. The results showed that IQ was correlated with working memory capacity and that low-IQ subjects had similar ratings but poorer quality interpretations than did high-IQ subjects. The results were most consistent with a constraint satisfaction approach to metaphor comprehension.