Static and dynamic metaphoricity in U.S.-China trade discourse:A transdisciplinary perspective

Metaphor scholars have widely explored metaphor use in political discourse. Nevertheless, the current research does not account for the ‘gradable metaphoricity’ in political discourse analysis. This dissertation fills this gap by addressing this specific issue in two frameworks: (1) viewing political metaphor from a static and gradient perspective (Source-Target mapping; Conventional vs. Novel vs. Dead), and (2) viewing political metaphor from a gradable and dynamic perspective (a matter of salience and awareness of metaphoricity). A systematic literature review in chapter 2 points out that the static and dynamic perspectives differ significantly in underlying assumptions and organizing principles, although both are indistinctly referred to by metaphor scholars as constituting a ‘gradable’ view. The former takes metaphor as a static conceptual unit or lexical unit, but the latter tends to accord a central role of activation of metaphoricity to metaphorical expressions. To launch a theoretical advancement about the dynamic view in political discourse, chapter 3 offers a usage-based model of gradable and dynamic metaphors—the YinYang Dynamics of Metaphoricity (YYDM). In addition, this thesis investigates political metaphors from an interdisciplinary angle, incorporating theory from the field of International Relations. An empirical evaluation of political (discourse) studies in chapter 4 shows the large absence of transdisciplinary perspectives. Addressing the abovementioned gaps, this dissertation reports on two empirical analyses of trade metaphors in a big corpus that represents the official trade positions of the United States and China during the presidencies of Bill Clinton and Jiang Zemin (1993-1997) as well as Donald Trump and Xi Jinping (2017-2021). Based on a codebook of a cross-linguistic metaphor identification procedure in chapter 5, the first empirical part contributes to the static and gradient perspective and includes two corpus-based studies of metaphorical framing about trade (chapters 6-7). The diachronic and cross-linguistic use of source domains from a socio-cognitive approach in chapter 6 reveals that source domains are semantic fields that vary with trade discourse contexts (interests, power, and power relations). Chapter 7 shows that the use of trade metaphors (source domains of Conventional and Novel metaphors) to construct and legitimize political ideologies correlates with differences between political genres. The second part contributes to the gradable and dynamic view by applying the transdisciplinary model of YinYang Dynamics of Metaphoricity in chapters 8-10. In chapter 8, an evaluation of the new model in the Clinton-Jiang trade discourse shows that the dynamic cognitive process (transformation of metaphoricity) and rhetorical process (argumentation and persuasion) mutually develop with the evolution of the socio-political process (trade perspectives and trade events). Chapter 9 investigates the transformation of metaphoricity in the Trump-Xi trade discourse and finds that cognitive processes (patterns of metaphoricity activation) and affective processes (emotions or sentiments) mutually develop with the evolution of socio-political processes (trade perspectives and trade events). Based on the findings in chapters 8-9, chapter 10 further shows several phenomena in the Clinton-Jiang and Trump-Xi trade discourses: the movement of metaphors on the metaphoricity spectrum, the bodily motivation of gradable and dynamic metaphoricity, and the interconnected political discourse systems. Drawing on all the theoretical and empirical insights revealed in the dissertation, the final section of the thesis outlines a future direction, i.e., moving towards a transdisciplinary and dynamic approach to metaphor in political discourse analysis

Experience-dependent reshaping of body processing: from perception to clinical implications

Starting from the moment we come into the world, we are compelled to pay large attention to the body and its representation, which can be considered as a set of cognitive structures that have the function of tracing and coding our state (de Vignemont, 2010). However, we cannot consider body aside from its image, which can determine the way we emotionally perceive ourselves and other people as well as the way we experience the world. With a brief look to the body, we can identify a persons’ identity, thus catching distinctive elements such as her age or gender; further, by means of body posture and movements we can understand the affective state of others and appropriately shape our social interaction and communication. Several socially significant cues can be detected and provided through the body, but this thesis principally aims to increase the knowledge about how we perceive gender from bodily features and shape. Specifically, I report on a series of behavioral studies designed to investigate the influence of the visual experience on the detection of gender dimension, considering the contribution of brain networks which may also have a role in the development of mental disorders related to body misperception (i.e. Eating Disorders; ED). In the first chapter, I provide evidence for the interdependence of morphologic and dynamic cues in shaping gender judgment. By manipulating various characteristics of virtual-human body stimuli, the experiment I carried out demonstrates the association between stillness and femininity rating, addressing the evolutionary meaning of sexual selection and the influence of cultural norms (D’Argenio et al., 2020). In the second chapter, I present a study that seeks to define the relative role of parvo- and magnocellular visual streams in the identification of both morphologic and dynamic cues of the body. For these experiments, I used the differential tuning of the two streams to low- (LSF) and high-spatial frequencies (HSF) and I tested how the processing of body gender and postures is affected by filtering images to keep only the LSF or HSF (D’Argenio et al., submitted). The third chapter is dedicated to a series of experiments aimed at understanding how gender perception can be biased by the previous exposure to specific body models. I utilized a visual adaptation paradigm to investigate the mechanisms that drives the observers’ perception to a masculinity or femininity judgement (D’Argenio et al., 2021) and manipulates the spatial frequency content of the bodies in order to account for the contribution of parvo- and magnocellular system in in this process. In conclusion, in the last two chapters, I briefly report the preliminary results emerging from two visual adaptation studies. The first one, which is described in the fourth chapter, explored the role of cortical connections in body gender adaptation by means of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), with the aim to investigate neural correlates of dysfunctional body perception. The second represents the intent to explain, at least partially, body misperception disorders by applying adaptation paradigms to ED clinical population. Results were discussed in the fifth chapter.Starting from the moment we come into the world, we are compelled to pay large attention to the body and its representation, which can be considered as a set of cognitive structures that have the function of tracing and coding our state (de Vignemont, 2010). However, we cannot consider body aside from its image, which can determine the way we emotionally perceive ourselves and other people as well as the way we experience the world. With a brief look to the body, we can identify a persons’ identity, thus catching distinctive elements such as her age or gender; further, by means of body posture and movements we can understand the affective state of others and appropriately shape our social interaction and communication. Several socially significant cues can be detected and provided through the body, but this thesis principally aims to increase the knowledge about how we perceive gender from bodily features and shape. Specifically, I report on a series of behavioral studies designed to investigate the influence of the visual experience on the detection of gender dimension, considering the contribution of brain networks which may also have a role in the development of mental disorders related to body misperception (i.e. Eating Disorders; ED). In the first chapter, I provide evidence for the interdependence of morphologic and dynamic cues in shaping gender judgment. By manipulating various characteristics of virtual-human body stimuli, the experiment I carried out demonstrates the association between stillness and femininity rating, addressing the evolutionary meaning of sexual selection and the influence of cultural norms (D’Argenio et al., 2020). In the second chapter, I present a study that seeks to define the relative role of parvo- and magnocellular visual streams in the identification of both morphologic and dynamic cues of the body. For these experiments, I used the differential tuning of the two streams to low- (LSF) and high-spatial frequencies (HSF) and I tested how the processing of body gender and postures is affected by filtering images to keep only the LSF or HSF (D’Argenio et al., submitted). The third chapter is dedicated to a series of experiments aimed at understanding how gender perception can be biased by the previous exposure to specific body models. I utilized a visual adaptation paradigm to investigate the mechanisms that drives the observers’ perception to a masculinity or femininity judgement (D’Argenio et al., 2021) and manipulates the spatial frequency content of the bodies in order to account for the contribution of parvo- and magnocellular system in in this process. In conclusion, in the last two chapters, I briefly report the preliminary results emerging from two visual adaptation studies. The first one, which is described in the fourth chapter, explored the role of cortical connections in body gender adaptation by means of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), with the aim to investigate neural correlates of dysfunctional body perception. The second represents the intent to explain, at least partially, body misperception disorders by applying adaptation paradigms to ED clinical population. Results were discussed in the fifth chapter

The Complex Construction of Multilingual Identity: A Comparative Study in Three European Contexts of L3+ Learning

The commonly-cited phrase that bi- and multilingualism are no longer exceptions but rather the rule in most parts of the world is often-cited. This plurilingual reality has profound effects on the daily lives of many, and thus also represents a common experience of a considerable proportion of today’s students in compulsory education. Despite this wide recognition, there remains still a paucity of studies that examine the impact that the acquisition of multiple languages has upon a learner’s sense of self, and moreover, studies that consider methods though which we might evaluate and model these constructions of complex self-concept. A greater understanding of such processes of identification has potential social and educational implications. This PhD study has explored the phenomenon of adolescent multilingual language learner identity development via a mixed-methods, comparative context approach at three school sites based in Finland, France & England. Individual and group identity (re)constructions are considered across the system boundaries and the emergent isolated and cross-context variables of impact are identified and analysed. Defining the context-linked specificities of multilingual identity construction, as well as seeking to identify themes applicable inter-context, responds to Henry’s (2012), among others, call for a greater understanding of the nature of these variable interactions within the complex negation of self in language learning. In so doing, this thesis also demonstrates how the conceptualisation of learner self within a complexity framework can be operationalised in practical terms.UK Arts and Humanities Research Counci

Beyond face value: involuntary emotional anticipation in typical development and Asperger's syndrome

Understanding and anticipating the behavior and associated mental/emotional states of mind of others is crucial for successful social interactions. Typically developed (TD) humans rely on the processing and integration of social cues that accompany other’s actions to make, either implicitly or explicitly, inferences about others’ mental states. Interestingly, the attribution of affective or mental states to the agent can in turn (top down) induce distortions in the visual perception of those actions (Hudson, Liu, & Jellema, 2009; Hudson & Jellema, 2011; Jellema, Pecchinenda, Palumbo, & Tan, 2011). The aim of this thesis was to investigate bottom-up and top-down influences on distortions in the perception of dynamic facial expressions and to explore the role those biases may play in action/emotion understanding

Mudança narrativa em psicoterapia

Doutoramento em PsicologiaThis thesis focuses on the processes of narrative change in psychotherapy. Previous reviews of the processes of narrative change in psychotherapy concluded that a general theory that details narrative concepts appropriate to understand psychotherapy processes, explains the dynamic processes between narratives, and how they relate to positive outcomes is needed. This thesis addresses this issue by suggesting a multi-layered model that accounts for transformations in different layers of narrative organization. Accordingly, a model was specified that considers three layers of narrative organization: a micro-layer of narrative innovations that disrupt the clients’ usual way of construct meaning from life situations (innovative moments), a meso-layer of narrative scripts that integrate these narrative innovations in narrative scripts that consolidate its transformative potential (protonarratives), and, finally, a macro-layer of clients’ life story (self-narrative). Globally, the empirical studies provided support for the conceptual plausibility of this model and to the specific hypothesis that were formulated on its basis. Our observations complement previous research that had underlined the integrative processes either by emphasizing thematic coherence or integration, by emphasizing the role of dynamicity and differentiation of narrative contents and processes. Additionally, they also contribute to expand previous accounts of narrative innovation through insights on the processes that characterize narrative innovation development across psychotherapy. These studies also emphasize the role of quantitative procedures in the study of narrative processes of change as they allow us to accommodate the complexity and dynamic properties of narrative processes.Esta tese centra-se nos processos de mudança narrativa em psicoterapia. As anteriores revisões da literatura sobre os processos de mudança narrativa em psicoterapia concluíram que é necessária uma teoria geral que detalhe os conceitos apropriados para compreender os processos de mudança narrativa em psicoterapia, explique os processos dinâmicos que se estabelecem entre narrativas, e como eles se relacionam com resultados terapêuticos positivos. Esta tese aborda esta questão sugerindo um modelo de organização da narrativa que especifica três níveis: um nível micro de inovações narrativas que alteram a maneira habitual de os clientes construírem significado (momentos de inovação), um nível meso que integra essas inovações narrativas em scripts narrativos que consolidam o seu potencial transformador (proto-narrativas) e, por fim, uma camada de macro-história de vida dos clientes (narrativa identitária). Globalmente, as observações resultantes dos estudos empíricos apoiam a plausibilidade conceptual deste modelo e as hipóteses específicas que estão na sua base. Estas observações complementam a investigação anterior, que sublinha os processos de integração e coerência temática, ao enfatizar o papel da dinâmica de diferenciação de conteúdos e processos narrativos ao longo da psicoterapia. Além disso, elas também contribuem para expandir as abordagens anteriores à inovação narrativa na psicoterapia ao revelar os processos que caracterizam o desenvolvimento de diferentes níveis de inovação narrativa ao longo do processo de mudança. Estes estudos também enfatizam o papel das metodologias quantitativas no estudo dos processos narrativos de mudança em psicoterapia e a forma como eles nos permitem acomodar a complexidade e as propriedades dinâmicas destes processos narrativos

S+S. Spatial Design + Service Design.

The book explores the implications for the design discipline, particularly in participatory design research and practices, in identifying dialogues on the relationship between Spatial Design and Service Design through a theoretical analysis of specific areas of the design research. This is the first step towards an approach defined as S+S - Service Design + Spatial Design: the book is a foundational act in this direction. The topic has been studied from a design research perspective to expand and contribute to a new gateway into Service Design, that of Spatial Design. Beyond its political and social dimension, how does design act in its phenomenological dimension through tangible and intangible artefacts capable of intercepting, orienting, modifying, and determining the behaviour and relationships of individuals and communities? How does design – that (co)designs artefacts and visions that operate as services influencing these behaviours – interact with spaces? This research explores the relationship between spaces and services in their action in the social and political dimensions

Relational Basis of the Organism's Self-organization A Philosophical Discussion

In this thesis, I discuss the organism’s self-organization from the perspective of relational ontology. I critically examine scientific and philosophical sources that appeal to the concept of self-organization. By doing this, I aim to carry out a thorough investigation into the underlying reasons of emergent order within the ontogeny of the organism. Moreover, I focus on the relation between universal dynamics of organization and the organization of living systems. I provide a historical review of the development of modern ideas related to self-organization. These ideas have been developed in relation to various research areas including thermodynamics, molecular biology, developmental biology, systems theory, and so on. In order to develop a systematic understanding of the concept, I propose a conceptual distinction between transitional self-organization and regulative self-organization. The former refers to the spontaneous emergence of order, whereas the latter refers to the self-maintaining characteristic of the living systems. I show the relation between these two types of organization within biological processes. I offer a critical analysis of various theories within the organizational approach. Several ideas and notions in these theories originate from the early studies in cybernetics. More recently, autopoiesis and the theory of biological autonomy asserted certain claims that were critical toward the ideas related to self-organization. I advocate a general theory of self-organization against these criticisms. I also examine the hierarchical nature of the organism’s organization, as this is essential to understand regulative self-organization. I consider the reciprocal relation between bottom-up and top-down dynamics of organization as the basis of the organism’s individuation. To prove this idea, I appeal to biological research on molecular self-assembly, pattern formation (including reaction-diffusion systems), and the self-organized characteristic of the immune system. Finally, I promote the idea of diachronic emergence by drawing support from biological self-organization. I discuss the ideas related to constraints, potentiality, and dynamic form in an attempt to reveal the emergent nature of the organism. To demonstrate the dynamicity of form, I examine research into biological oscillators. I draw the following conclusions: synchronic condition of the organism is irreducibly processual and relational, and this is the basis of the organism’s potentiality for various organizational states

Gestion unifiée et dynamique de la sécurité : un cadriciel dirigé par les situations

Les systèmes de gestion de la sécurité (SGS) font le lien entre les exigences de sécurité et le domaine d'application technique. D'un côté, le SGS doit permettre à l'administrateur sécurité de traduire les exigences de sécurité en configurations de sécurité (appelé ici le processus de déploiement). De l'autre, il doit lui fournir des mécanismes de supervision (tels que des SIEM, IDS, fichiers de logs, etc.) afin de vérifier que l'état courant du système est toujours conforme aux exigences de sécurité (appelé ici processus de supervision). Aujourd'hui, garantir que les exigences de sécurité sont respectées nécessite une intervention humaine. En effet, les processus de déploiement et de supervision ne sont pas reliés entre eux. Ainsi, les SGS ne peuvent garantir que les exigences de sécurité sont toujours respectées lorsque le comportement du système change. Dans le cadre du projet européen PREDYKOT, nous avons tenté de boucler la boucle de gestion en intégrant les informations sur le changement de comportement du système et en les injectant dans le processus de déploiement. Cela permet de faire appliquer des mesures de sécurité dynamiques en fonction des changements de comportement du système. Toutefois, il existe diverses approches pour exprimer et mettre en œuvre des politiques de sécurité. Chaque solution de gestion est dédiée à des problématiques de gestion des autorisations ou à celles des configurations de sécurité. Chaque solution fournit son propre langage de politique, son propre modèle architectural et son propre protocole de gestion. Or, il est nécessaire de gérer à la fois les autorisations et les configurations de sécurité de manière unifiée. Notre contribution porte principalement sur trois points : Le retour d'information de supervision : Le processus de supervision capture le comportement dynamique du système au travers d'évènements. Chaque évènement transporte peu de sens. Nous proposons de considérer non pas les évènements individuellement mais de les agréger pour former des situations afin d'amener plus de sémantique sur l'état du système. Nous utilisons ce concept pour relier les exigences de sécurité, les changements dans le système et les politiques de sécurité à appliquer. Un nouvel agent, appelé gestionnaire de situations, est responsable de la gestion du cycle de vie des situations (début et fin de situation, etc.) Nous avons implanté cet agent grâce à la technologie de traitement des évènements complexes. Expression de la politique : Nous proposons d'utiliser le concept de situation comme élément central pour exprimer des politiques de sécurité dynamiques. Les décisions de sécurité peuvent être alors automatiquement dirigées par les situations sans avoir besoin de changer la règle courante. Nous appliquons l'approche de contrôle d'accès à base d'attributs pour spécifier nos politiques. Cette approche orientée par les situations facilite l'écriture des règles de sécurité mais aussi leur compréhension. De plus, ces politiques étant moins techniques, elles sont plus proches des besoins métiers. L'architecture de gestion : Nous présentons une architecture de gestion orientée événement qui supporte la mise en œuvre de politiques de sécurité dirigées par les situations. Considérer les messages de gestion en terme d'évènements, nous permet d'être indépendant de tout protocole de gestion. En conséquence, notre architecture couvre de manière unifiée les approches de gestion des autorisations comme des configurations (obligations) selon les modèles de contrôle de politiques en externalisation comme en approvisionnement. De plus, les agents de gestion sont adaptables et peuvent être dynamiquement améliorés avec de nouvelles fonctionnalités de gestion si besoin. Notre cadriciel a été complètement implanté et est conforme au standard XACMLv3 d'OASIS. Enfin, nous avons évalué la généricité de notre approche à travers quatre scénarii.A Security Management System (SMS) connects security requirements to the technical application domain. On the one hand, an SMS must allow the security administrator/officer to translate the security requirements into security configurations that is known as the enforcement process. On the other hand, it must supply the administrator/officer with monitoring features (SIEM, IDS, log files, etc.) to verify that the environments' changes do not affect the compliance to the predefined security requirements known as the monitoring process. Nowadays, guarantying security objectives requires a human intervention. Therefore, the SMS enforcement process is disconnected from the monitoring process. Thus, an SMS cannot dynamically guarantee that security requirements are still satisfied when environment behavior changings are observed. As part of the European project PREDYKOT, we have worked on closing the management loop by establishing a feedback on the dynamic behavior, captured from the environment, to impact the enforcement process. As a result, expressing and applying a dynamic security policy will be possible. However, many policy expression and enforcement approaches exist currently. Each security management solution is dedicated to some specific issues related to authorization or to system/network management. Each solution provides a specific policy language, an architectural model and a management protocol. Nevertheless, closing the management loop implies managing both authorizations and system/network configurations in a unified framework. Our contribution tackles the following three main issues: Feedback: The monitoring process captures the highly dynamics of the behavior through events. However, each event is not semantically associated with other events. We propose to get more semantics about behavior's changings thus introducing the concept of "situation" to be dealt with in security management applications. This concept aggregates events and links relevant security requirements, relevant behavior changes, and relevant policy rules. A new management agent, called the situation manager, has been added. The latter is responsible for the management process of the situations lifecycle (situation beginning and ending, etc.). We implement this software module using the complex event processing technology. Policy Expression: We propose to specify dynamic security policies oriented by situations. By doing so, the expression of the security policy rules becomes simpler to understand, easier to write and closer to the business and security needs. Hence, each relevant situation orients automatically the policy evaluation process towards a new dynamic decision that doesn't require updating the policy rules. We apply the attribute-based expression approach because of its ability to represent everything through attribute terms, which is a flexible way to express our dynamic policy rules. Enforcement Architecture: we propose a unified and adaptive architecture that supports situations-oriented policies enforcement. We choose to build an event-driven architecture. Exchanging management messages in terms of events allows our architecture to be independent from the management protocols. Thus, it covers in a unified way authorizations as well as configurations management approaches considering both provisioning and outsourcing policy control models. In addition, management agents are adaptable and can be upgraded dynamically with new management functionalities. Our framework has been implemented and is compliant with the OASIS XACMLv3 standard. Finally, we evaluated our contributed according to four different scenarios to prove its generic nature

Construal in expression : An intersubjective approach to Cognitive Grammar

This doctoral dissertation is a metatheoretical survey into the central semantic concepts of Cognitive Grammar (CG), a semantics-driven theoretical grammar developed by Ronald W. Langacker. CG approaches language as a semiotic system inherently structured by certain cognition-general capacities, and it defends a usage-based conception of language, therefore denying the strict dichotomy between language and other realms of conceptualization and human experience. For CG, linguistic meaning is thus defined relative to our general cognitive and bodily disposition, as well as to the contents of experience the former structure. The cognitive and experiential aspects of meaning are described relative to so-called dimensions of construal. In this study, I will provide a systematic critical account of the theoretical explanation Cognitive Grammar provides for the dimensions of construal. The point of departure will be in social ontology of linguistic meaning developed and defended by Esa Itkonen, who has accordingly criticized Cognitive Grammar for inconsistent psychologism. According to Itkonen, linguistic meaning is an object of common knowledge and cannot be reduced into an individual s conceptualization; the dimensions of construal capture experiential meaning that is part of language as a social semiotic resource. This entails that linguistic semantics assume as its object of description non-objective, perspectival meanings that are commonly known. It will be argued that the usage-based nature of CG provides a way to release this tension between objective and non-objective aspects of meaning by explaining how perspectivity of semantics results from the acquisition and adjustment of meanings in actual discourse. This, however, necessitates an ontological revision of Cognitive Grammar and rehabilitation of the sociality of a linguistic meaning, which is the topic of this study. In addition to the work by Itkonen, prominent socially oriented cognitive linguists, such as Jordan Zlatev, have emphasized the necessary intersubjective basis of experiential meaning. Within the Fennistic studies, on the other hand, the intersubjective approach to CG and Cognitive Linguistics in general has taken the form of combining cognitive linguistic methodologies with Conversation Analysis. This study combines elements from both of these approaches in order to provide a comprehensive assessment of the notion of construal in CG. In so being, the main task of this study is to critically evaluate the cognition-based explanation for the dimensions of construal, provide a socially grounded alternative, and apply the alternative into analysis of construal in (written discourse). The thesis demonstrates that the dimensions of construal are not dependent on the aspects of cognitive theory on the basis of which they are argued for. Instead, the notion of construal is shown to be inherently intersubjective and context-sensitive. Construal captures aspects of semantic organization that are correlates of intersubjective alignment between conceptualizing subjects in a given discursive context.Kielellinen merkitys sisältää väistämättä jonkinlaisen näkökulman siihen, mihin kielellinen merkki, kuten sana tai syntaktinen kokonaisuus, viittaa. Esimerkiksi ilmauksia avohoitotapaus ja mielenterveyskuntoutuja voidaan käyttää sujuvasti samasta ihmisestä tai ihmisryhmästä, mutta silti niiden merkitys on eri. Ensimmäinen vaihtoehdoista ilmaisee suoraan eräänlaisen hoitopäätöksen synnyttämän kategorian (avohoito-) yhdistettynä kokonaisilmauksen alentavuutta alleviivaavaan pääsanaan (-tapaus). Toinen ilmauksista taas esittää kuvatun ihmisen aktiivisena toimijana, joka itse työskentelee terveytensä parantamiseksi. Merkityksen näkökulmaisuus voidaan mieltää ilmaistun asian tai asiaintilan ja kieleen kirjautuneen käsitteistäjän väliseksi suhteeksi: asiaa tai asiantilaa ikään kuin tarkastellaan jostakin sijainnista käsin kielellisesti. Toisaalta näkökulmaisuus on kaikille kielenkäyttäjille yhteistä tietoa. Kielitieteessä teoreettisena haasteena on pitkään ollut se, miten tämä näkökulmaisuuden ja jaettuuden yhdistelmä voidaan selittää ja kuvata johdonmukaisesti merkityksen tutkimuksessa. Tässä väitöstutkimuksessa otetaan kriittiseen tarkasteluun kognitiivisena kielioppina tunnettu teoreettinen kielioppi ja arvioidaan sen kykyä selittää ja kuvata merkityksen näkökulmaisuus käsitteen konstruointi ( construal ) kautta. Konstruointi käsittää joukon ulottuvuuksia, joiden arvoja muuttamalla sama asia voidaan ilmaista lukuisin eri tavoin: esimerkki-ilmauksissa yllä vaihtelee vaikkapa se, mikä viitatusta ihmisryhmästä profiloidaan eli tuodaan ilmauksen ilmitasolle. Tarkkaan ottaen tutkimus käsittelee näiden eri ulottuvuuksien teoreettista perustelua ja toisaalta sitä, kuinka koherentteja ne ovat kuvauskäsitteinä. Väitöstutkimus osoittaa, että konstruoinnin ulottuvuuksien avulla voidaan kuvata tehokkaasti ilmausten ymmärrettävyyden kannalta välttämättömiä merkityspiirteitä. Toisaalta konstruoinnin ulottuvuuksien teoreettinen perustelu on ongelmallinen. Kognitiivinen kielioppi pyrkii selittämään konstruoinnin ulottuvuudet yksilön kielellisen prosessoinnin ominaisuuksina, mikä on ristiriidassa kielellisen merkityksen jaettuuden kanssa. Väitöstutkimus osoittaa tämän selitystavan loogiset heikkoudet ja esittää konstruoinnille vaihtoehtoisen perustelun. Tässä perustelussa konstruointi esitetään ensisijaisesti sosiaalisena, ilmauksen ymmärrettävyyteen ja kohdennettuuteen liittyvänä ilmiönä