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The cognitive and neural bases of abstract concepts

WANG Xiao-Sha^1,2, BI Yan-Chao^1,2,*

¹National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China；²Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Imaging and Connectomics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China

Abstract

Words denoting abstract concepts constitute nearly half of human lexicon and serve as building blocks of the human culture. Since the advent of non-invasive neuroimaging techniques, great progress has been made in revealing the neurobiological foundation of concrete object and action concepts, yet it remains unclear how abstract concepts are stored and processed in the brain. Here we review recent development in this field, focusing on both theoretical perspectives and neuroimaging findings. We found that abstract concepts can be represented via linguistic and experiential information; the neural correlates of abstract concepts are partly in line with such a theoretical framework. Future studies are warranted to uncover the cognitive and neural mechanisms of language and experience in abstract word representation, which will help to deepen our understanding of general computational principles of the human conceptual system and to promote the development of the brain-like artificial intelligence. 

Key words: abstract concepts; neuroimaging; language; embodied cognition

Received: 2018-05-02　　Accepted: 2018-07-23

Corresponding author: 毕彦超　　E-mail: ybi@bnu.edu.cn

DOI: 10.13294/j.aps.2018.0078

Citing This Article：

WANG Xiao-Sha, BI Yan-Chao. The cognitive and neural bases of abstract concepts. Acta Physiol Sin 2019; 71 (1): 117-126 (in Chinese with English abstract).