Towards a quantum probability theory of similarity judgments

We review recent progress in understanding similarity judgments in cognition by means of quantum probability theory (QP) models. We begin by outlining some features of similarity judgments that have proven difficult to model by traditional approaches. We then briefly present a model of similarity judgments based on QP, and show how it can solve many of the problems faced by traditional approaches. Finally we look at some areas where the quantum model is currently less satisfactory, and discuss some open questions and areas for further work

Metaphors We Think With: The Role of Metaphor in Reasoning

The way we talk about complex and abstract ideas is suffused with metaphor. In five experiments, we explore how these metaphors influence the way that we reason about complex issues and forage for further information about them. We find that even the subtlest instantiation of a metaphor (via a single word) can have a powerful influence over how people attempt to solve social problems like crime and how they gather information to make “well-informed” decisions. Interestingly, we find that the influence of the metaphorical framing effect is covert: people do not recognize metaphors as influential in their decisions; instead they point to more “substantive” (often numerical) information as the motivation for their problem-solving decision. Metaphors in language appear to instantiate frame-consistent knowledge structures and invite structurally consistent inferences. Far from being mere rhetorical flourishes, metaphors have profound influences on how we conceptualize and act with respect to important societal issues. We find that exposure to even a single metaphor can induce substantial differences in opinion about how to solve social problems: differences that are larger, for example, than pre-existing differences in opinion between Democrats and Republicans

Figurative language and lexicography

This chapter explores the issues in dealing with figurative language in dictionaries. It uses the understanding of “figurative language” that is generally shared by applied and corpus linguists, as opposed to scholars of poetry and literature. In this understanding, “figurative language” covers all uses that are understood in some way as being an extension or transference of meaning from a literal meaning; the term is not restricted to novel or creative uses. This understanding of “figurative” therefore includes conventionalized uses of words, such as warm to describe friendly behavior, or see to describe thinking, as well as more recent but established uses such as green to describe environmental issues. By far the most studied kind of figurative language is metaphor, which is the focus of most of this chapter. Metonymy is increasingly recognized as important and is also mentioned. As is well known, many, if not most, idioms have their origins in metaphor or metonymy (Moon 1998), and these also present something of a challenge to lexicography. They are referred to here but are discussed in detail elsewhere in this handbook