Top-down modulation of brain responses in spelling error recognition

Interplay of phonological and orthographic electrophysiological processing during reading in Spanish

Spanish is a transparent language with a high degree of consistency of print-speech correspondences, thus facilitating written word recognition. However, most of the orthographic errors in Spanish do not alter the phonological representation of the words, thus leading to potential conflicts with their visual portrayal in memory. This study explored whether spelling errors affect semantic processing by analyzing the behavioral and electrophysiological effects during sentence reading in 35 native Spanish-speaking young adults. The experimental paradigm consisted of 170 six-word sentences; the closing word of each sentence could be a) congruent, b) congruent with a homophone error, c) congruent with a typo error, d) incongruent, and e) incongruent with a homophone error. Participants performed a semantic decision task with simultaneous EEG recording, in which they were explicitly instructed to ignore spelling errors and to attend only to the semantic congruency of the sentence when responding. Behaviorally, accuracy only decreased with typo errors, while mean reaction times were significantly increased by both types of errors. Electrophysiological results showed a classic N400, in which orthographic errors had no effect, reinforcing the notion that this component is mainly determined by semantic incongruency. On the other hand, orthographic expectancy violations were reflected by a late slow positivity rather than a larger N400 amplitude suggesting that spelling information is not fully processed when deeper, more complex linguistic aspects of written language are being analyzed. This P600-like component is interpreted as signaling the re-evaluation of an error, regardless of whether it is semantic or orthographic in nature.

Spelling principles matter: An ERP study investigating the processing of different types of pseudohomophones

Spelling in any writing system is governed by fundamental principles. We examined the processing of two types of pseudohomophones constructed from words whose spellings are based on different principles - on the traditional principle of writing, requiring memorization of their spelling, and on the morphological principle, allowing the determination of their spelling from another word with the same morpheme (root) to examine the dependence of the occurrence of orthography-phonology conflict on spelling principles. Event-related potentials were recorded from 22 volunteers during silent reading. Pseudohomophones based on the morphological principle increased the N400 amplitude, emphasizing semantic and morphological processing importance. The P600 component showed significant effects for differentiating words and pseudohomophones based on the traditional principle, predominantly indicating the involvement of memory and reanalysis processes. Source reconstruction demonstrates that both pseudohomophones activate the left inferior frontal gyrus. However, pseudohomophones based on the traditional principle additionally activate the right and left postcentral gyrus, indicating the involvement of additional areas in the differentiation process. The earlier differences for stimuli based on the morphological principle indicate access to smaller units (morphemes), whereas stimuli based on the traditional principle require whole word processing. Our findings underscore the significant role of spelling principles in orthographic processing.

Electrophysiological signatures of spelling sensitivity development from primary school age to adulthood

Recognizing spelling errors is important for correct writing and reading, and develops over an extended period. The neural bases of the development of orthographic sensitivity remain poorly understood. We investigated event-related potentials (ERPs) associated with spelling error recognition when performing the orthographic decision task with correctly spelled and misspelled words in children aged 8-10 years old, early adolescents aged 11-14 years old, and adults. Spelling processing in adults included an early stage associated with the initial recognition of conflict between orthography and phonology (reflected in the N400 time window) and a later stage (reflected in the P600 time window) related to re-checking the spelling. In children 8-10 years old, there were no differences in ERPs to correct and misspelled words; in addition, their behavioral scores were worse than those of early adolescents, implying that the ability to quickly recognize the correct spelling is just beginning to develop at this age. In early adolescents, spelling recognition was reflected only at the later stage, corresponding to the P600 component. At the behavioral level, they were worse than adults at recognizing misspelled words. Our data suggest that orthographic sensitivity can develop beyond 14 years.