Extending structural priming to test constructional relations: Some comments and suggestions

Abstract

Abstract Structural priming is a promising tool for testing similarity relations between constructions, but its applicability to larger-scale models of constructional networks is still limited. This article outlines the following two limitations of previous priming studies: first, they largely focus on priming between alternating constructions; and second, they often test the relations between instances of the same construction rather than between instances of different constructions. Three strategies are suggested for how future priming research could overcome these limitations. Concrete ideas for experimental setups are presented, and their benefits and limitations are addressed.