REPOSITORY
THE NICOLAUS COPERNICUS UNIVERSITY
IN TORUŃ
is an institutional repository of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. The task of the Repository is to promote scientific achievements and research conducted at NCU and to support teaching.
Recent Submissions
THE OLFACTOR THERAPY METHOD IN THE FIELD OF PEDAGOGICAL SCIENCES: IN NEURODIDACTICS, SPECIAL PEDAGOGY AND SPEECH THERAPY
(UMCS Lublin, 2024) Hamerlińska, Agnieszka
The Olfactor Therapy Method is a proprietary, innovative method that can be used in the pedagogical field: in special education and speech therapy as well as in other social sciences, such as psychology. The method primarily uses the sense of smell to enhance cognitive functions (memory, verbal fluency, speech), improve physical, emotional and social functioning of a person. Fundamental to the method is a novel olfactory stimulation device, the Olfactor, which is an essential invention for making diagnoses and therapeutic techniques. The Olfactor Therapy Method includes its three main components: educational, diagnostic and therapeutic.
The method is aimed at people at any stage of life and with various disabilities (e.g. for children with intellectual disabilities; children with delayed speech development; children with special educational needs; for people with memory disorders – with Alzheimer’s disease).
Specjalistyczna wiedza o węchu i gotowość do wdrażania metody przez uczestniczki szkolenia z Metody Terapii Olfactor
(Uniwersytet Łódzki, 2024-08-24) Hamerlińska, Agnieszka
W artykule opisano funkcję węchu w życiu codziennym człowieka oraz przedstawiono zarys charakterystyki Metody Terapii Olfactor. Celem tekstu jest ukazanie wyników badań przeprowadzonych w grupie terapeutek (głównie logopedek) nad zmianami w ich wiedzy z zakresu węchu (funkcji, diagnozy i terapii) na skutek wzięcia udziału w szkoleniu z wyżej wymienionej metody. Jednym z elementów Metody Terapii Olfactor jest część edukacyjna, której celem jest promowanie wiedzy na temat węchu wśród specjalistów. Wykazano, że na skutek udziału w szkoleniu z Metody Terapii Olfactor u uczestniczek nastąpił wzrost specjalistycznej wiedzy o węchu oraz odnotowano gotowość do wdrażania metody w praktykę zawodową. Na podstawie przeprowadzonej analizy wyników badań stwierdzono, że istnieje realna potrzeba organizowania warsztatów dla terapeutów (m.in. logopedów, pedagogów specjalnych), których przedmiotem jest olfaktologia.
The article describes the function of the sense of smell in everyday life and outlines the characteristics of the Olfactor Therapy Method. The aim of the text is to present the results of research conducted in a group of therapists (mainly speech therapists) on changes in their knowledge of the area of smell (function, diagnosis and therapy) as a result of their participation in training in the above‑mentioned method. One of the components of the Olfactor Therapy Method is its educational part, the aim of which is to promote knowledge on smell among specialists. The article shows that as a result of participating in the Olfactor Therapy Method training, the participants experienced an increase in the level of specialist knowledge about the sense of smell and were ready to implement it in their professional practice. Based on the analysis of the research results, it was concluded that there is a real need to organize workshops on olfactology for therapists (including speech therapists, special education educators.
Polysemy and metaphorical extension in an artificial language learning experiment
(Cambridge University Press, 2026-06-05) Pleyer, Michael; Zhang, Elizabeth Qing; Placiński, Marek
This study investigates the emergence of metaphorical meanings in abstract visual symbols within an ‘alien language’ artificial language learning game. Findings reveal that participants extend concrete meanings to abstract meanings based on metaphorical mappings proposed by Conceptual Metaphor Theory, but not consistently across all cases. When multiple salient mappings are possible, participants’ choices exhibit greater variability. Certain mappings, such as SAD IS DOWN and ANGER IS FIRE, are particularly salient and chosen frequently, whereas others, like POWERFUL IS UP, show less consistency. Additionally, some unexpected mappings were observed. While some could be explained via post hoc analysis, others remain unexplained. Experimental manipulations to enhance the salience of metaphorical mappings did not significantly alter participant responses. Overall, results suggest that participants spontaneously engage in semantic and metaphorical meaning extensions, supporting the idea that these cognitive mechanisms underpin polysemy and the conventionalisation of new word senses. Participants make choices for semantic extensions in a motivated manner, with some extensions being based on conceptual metaphorical mappings, and others on other types of salient associative mappings. This study contributes to theories of language evolution that highlight the central role of metaphor in shaping meaning extensions and the cultural emergence of linguistic structure.
The career of metaphor in pantomime: a motion-capture study of the conventionalization of metaphor
(Oxford University Press, 2026-07-07) Placiński, Marek; Pleyer, Michael
Human communication is highly adaptable in the sense that, for instance, new words or combinations of words emerge when there is a communicative pressure. However, another way in which humans can communicate about novel experiences is through meaning extensions of words that are already in their lexicon. One of the key driving factors of such polysemic extension is metaphorical conceptual mappings, which first become usualized, and then conventionalized within a community. In this article, we set out to investigate whether this kind of conceptual mapping can be achieved in an experimental semiotic study and whether the usualization trajectories of concrete and metaphorical meanings differ from each other. We do so by engaging participants in a referential game in which dyads of participants have to communicate about concrete and metaphorical meanings. We find that, over the course of the experiment, participants adapt elements of their kinematics from concrete to metaphorical meanings. We also find that the usualization trajectory is different between the two groups of meanings: both meanings initially undergo reduction in terms of movement path. However, concrete meanings continue to change and become more efficient across all rounds, while metaphorical meanings stabilize earlier and do not change significantly after their initial kinematic changes. In contrast to concrete meanings, we find no significant change in terms of speed and volume for metaphorical meanings. The study provides evidence that both concrete and metaphorical meanings can be expressed through pantomime, but their trajectory of change is different.
Conventionalization of graphic representations of abstract concepts and metaphors in an experimental-semiotic communication game
(The Evolution of Language Conferences, 2026) Namednikava, Darya; Placiński, Marek; Pleyer, Michael
Abstract concepts are a hallmark of human cognition and culture. However, there is much debate over how they are structured and cognitively represented, and how they emerge and become conventionalized within a community. One influential approach is that abstract concepts are based on conceptual metaphors. This study investigates the emergence and conventionalization of abstract concepts and metaphors in an experimental-semiotic referential communication game in which participants have to rely on drawing to communicate abstract concepts and metaphors. The study sheds light on the different strategies participants use to evoke abstract concepts and shows that participants decrease the number of strategies they use over subsequent rounds of interaction, converging on more successful strategies and thereby initiating a joint process of conventionalization.