Evidence for scripts in semantic dementia Implications for theories of semantic memory

This paper presents evidence that the breakdown of semantic memory in seman tic dementia reveals the influence of two properties of script theory (Scha nk, 1982; Schank & Abelson, 1977). First, the physical and personal context of specific scripts supports meaning for words, objects, and locations tha t are involved in the script. Second, meaning is updated or transformed by a dynamic memory system that learns continuously from personal experience. In severe cases, semantic dementia exposes the basic level of this learning system from which all knowledge normally develops. It will be argued that the evidence supports a theory of semantic memory that represents meaning i n a continuum of levels of meaning from the most specific and context-bound to the most generalisable and context-free. This contrasts with current th eories of semantic memory that represent meaning as a collection of abstrac ted properties entirely removed from the context of events and activities.