Alignment versus diagnosticity: A critical test of two theories of conceptual combination

Sometimes people interpret novel noun-noun combinations by transferring a property from one constituent concept of the combination to the other. Two theories make different predictions about these ‘property’ interpretations. Alignment theory predicts that the properties transferred will be alignable differences of the concepts being combined. Constraint theory predicts that the properties transferred will be diagnostic properties of the concepts they originate in. An experimental study tested these contrasting predictions. Participants saw four (alignable / non-alignable) x (diagnostic / non-diagnostic) 'guesses' at the meaning of a novel combination and rated how good or bad each guess was. Participants reliably preferred ‘diagnostic’ guesses, irrespective of whether they were alignable or non-alignable. This result confirms constraint theory's predictions about property interpretations, and goes against the predictions of alignment theory.