Embedding questions as a way to study them

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Table of contents

Introduction 
A very short history of questions in formal semantics
And now?
Goal for this dissertation
I Psycholinguistic investigations 
1 A psycholinguistic study of the exhaustive readings of embedded questions
1.1 Introduction
1.1.1 The meaning of questions
1.1.2 Embedding questions as a way to study them
1.1.3 Different readings for embedded questions
1.1.4 Architecture of recent theories of questions and embedded questions
1.1.5 Predictions of recent theories for know
1.1.6 Goals of our study
1.2 Experiment 1: Existence of WE/IE readings under know
1.2.1 Goal
1.2.2 Methods and Materials
Procedure
Instructions
Stimuli
Participants
1.2.3 Results
Data treatment and Statistical methods
Analysis of responses
Analysis of response times (no clear result)
1.2.4 Discussion
1.3 Experiment 2 : non-SE readings for know and predict
1.3.1 Goals
1.3.2 Methods and Materials
Instructions
1.3.3 Stimuli
Sentences
Pictures
Targets
Controls
Item generation
Participants
1.3.4 Results
Data treatment and Statistical methods
Analysis of responses
Analysis of response times
1.3.5 Discussion
1.4 Experiment 3: WE reading or domain restriction?
1.4.1 Goal
1.4.2 Methods and Materials
Materials
Participants
1.4.3 Results
Data treatment and Statistical methods
Analysis of responses
Comparison with Experiment
1.4.4 Discussion
1.5 Experiment 4: IE vs. SE readings of know
1.5.1 Goal
1.5.2 Methods and Materials
Course of the experiment
Materials
Participants
1.5.3 Results
Data treatment and statistical methods
Analysis of responses
Response times
1.5.4 Discussion
1.6 General discussion
1.6.1 Summary of the results
1.6.2 Consequences for the theories
2 Children’s exhaustive readings of questions 
2.1 Introduction
2.1.1 Strengthened interpretations in child language
2.1.2 The different interpretations of embedded questions
Theoretical background
A concrete implementation
Summary
2.2 Experiment
2.2.1 Method
Participants
Procedure
Materials
2.2.2 Results
Control conditions
Test conditions
Follow-up justifications
2.3 Discussion
2.4 Conclusion
3 Experiments on the acceptability and possible readings of questions embedded under emotive-factives 
3.1 Emotive-factive predicates and Questions
3.1.1 Two puzzles regarding questions and emotive-factives
Puzzle 1: Whether-questions
Puzzle 2: Exhaustive readings
3.1.2 Monotonicity as a key to Puzzles 1 and 2?
3.1.3 Summary
3.2 Experiment 1: Selectional properties of different attitude predicates
3.2.1 Goals
Selectional properties
Degrees of unacceptability
Quantificational variability
3.2.2 Methods
Task and Instructions
Design and Stimuli
Participants
Statistical methods
3.2.3 Results
Predicate categories
Specific questions
3.2.4 Discussion
3.2.5 Conclusions for Experiment 1
3.3 Experiment 2: On the monotonicity of responsive predicates
3.3.1 Goal
3.3.2 Methods
Task and Instructions
Design and Stimuli
Participants
Statistical methods
3.3.3 Results
Control items
Attitude predicates
3.3.4 Discussion
3.4 Experiment 3: Strongly exhaustive readings
3.4.1 Motivations and additional background
Know
Forget
Surprise
Summary
3.4.2 Methods
Task
Instructions and training phase
Design and Stimuli
Participants
Analytical and statistical methods
3.4.3 Results
Know
Forget
Surprise
3.4.4 Discussion
SE readings for all predicates
SE readings with surprise, alternative interpretations?
3.4.5 Conclusion/summary for Experiment 3
3.5 Conclusion
3.5.1 Summary of the results
3.5.2 Conclusions
Appendices
A Lists for Experiment 1
B Lists for Experiment 2
II Theoretical contribution 
4 Plurality effects and exhaustive readings of embedded questions
4.1 Plurality effects with definite descriptions and questions
4.2 Embedded questions as definite plurals in the literature
4.2.1 Plurals and definite descriptions
4.2.2 Some previous theories of plurality in questions
4.2.3 Answer operators
4.3 A possible implementation
4.3.1 Hypotheses
4.3.2 Application
Quantificational Variability
Cumulative readings
Homogeneity
Alternative theories
4.4 Incorporating stronger exhaustivity
4.4.1 Different exhaustive readings of embedded questions
4.4.2 Klinedinst and Rothschild (2011)
Presentation
Comments
4.5 An exhaustification theory for plural questions
4.5.1 Hypotheses
Generating alternatives answers
Exhaustivity operator
Extra assumptions on specific lexical items
4.5.2 First application
WE reading
SE reading
IE reading
4.5.3 False answer-sensitive readings beyond know
4.6 Application to new cases
4.6.1 QVE sentences
4.6.2 Cumulative readings
4.6.3 Mention-some questions
4.6.4 Forget
4.6.5 Multiple wh-questions
4.6.6 Primary implicatures
4.6.7 A few unwelcome predictions
Quantificational subjects
Negative sentences
Surprise
4.7 Conclusion
5 Homogeneity and Quantificational variability with Embedded Questions
5.1 Homogeneity effects
5.1.1 Plural definite descriptions and homogeneity effects
5.1.2 Homogeneity with embedded questions?
5.1.3 Summary
5.2 Quantificational variability effects and questions as pluralities
5.2.1 What is Quantificational variability?
5.2.2 Lahiri (2002)
5.2.3 Beck and Sharvit (2002)
5.3 A unified theory of plural embedded questions
5.3.1 Ingredients of the theory
5.3.2 Application to simple cases
Simple affirmative sentence with know
Simple negative sentence with know
Sentence with an adverb of quantity with know
5.3.3 New predictions and puzzles
Rogative verbs
Surprise
Other types of questions
5.4 More on lexical restrictors
5.4.1 On the necessity of lexical restrictors
5.4.2 Complex factive verbs
5.4.3 Communication verbs
5.4.4 Other non-veridical predicates
5.4.5 Believe and embedded questions
5.5 Conclusion
Bibliography