Imagery, Meaningfulness, and Emotionality Values of Words When Meaning is Controlled

Abstract

Previous studies yielded positive correlations between imagery and meaningfulness and negative correlations between imagery and emotionality and between emotionality and meaningfulness. A positive correlation among imagery, emotionality, and meaningfulness values of words was hypothesized when concrete and abstract words have similar meanings. 93 subjects rated 12 pairs of words, such as friend and friendship, that differ in only morpheme. Within these pairs words differed markedly on concreteness but little in core meaning. Subjects rated the words on imagery, emotionality, and meaningfulness. Correlations among all variables were positive and significant: imagery and meaningfulness (.71), imagery and emotionality (.83), and emotionality and meaningfulness (.49).