Psych Verb Contentfulness ↔ Modal Content Licensing #
@cite{kim-2024} @cite{hacquard-2010} @cite{hacquard-2006}Connects @cite{kim-2024}'s causal source distinction for psych verbs to @cite{hacquard-2006}'s content licensing principle for modal flavor availability.
The Connection #
@cite{kim-2024}: stative Class II psych verbs have internal causal source — the stimulus is a mind-internal representation with propositional content. The experiencer REPRESENTS the stimulus to themselves (intensional subject).
@cite{hacquard-2010}: epistemic modal bases require a contentful event — one with propositional content CON(e). Speech acts and attitude events have content; VP events do not.
The bridge: stative psych verbs' events are contentful (they involve mental representation of propositional content), patterning with attitude verbs rather than plain VP events. This predicts that modals embedded under stative psych verbs should have access to epistemic readings — the psych verb's event provides CON(e), just like an attitude verb's event does.
Predictions #
| Psych class | CausalSource | Content? | Epistemic modal? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stative (concern, interest) | internal | ✓ | ✓ (like attitude verbs) |
| Eventive (frighten, amuse) | external | ✗ | ✗ (like VP events) |
Example #
"The problem concerns John — it might be unsolvable."
- concern has internal causal source → contentful event
- might binds to the psych verb's event → CON(e) = John's representation
- Epistemic R available → "it might be unsolvable" = given John's mental representation of the problem, it might be unsolvable
Whether a psych verb's event has propositional content, derived from the causal source (@cite{kim-2024} UPH).
Internal causal source → the experiencer's mental state involves propositional content (they REPRESENT the stimulus to themselves). This representation IS propositional content, analogous to CON(e) for attitude verbs.
External causal source → the cause is a mind-external percept/event. The verb's event is a plain causal event without propositional content, patterning with VP events.
Equations
Instances For
Internal source → contentful (like attitude verbs).
External source → contentless (like VP events).
Psych verbs with internal causal source pattern with attitude verbs
(contentful events), not VP events (contentless). Both Kim's
subjectIntensional and Hacquard's hasContent detect the same
underlying property: propositional content in the event.
This theorem shows the structural parallel:
- Kim: internal → intensional subject (requires propositional content)
- Hacquard: attitude → hasContent (provides propositional content)
- Bridge: internal source ↔ contentful event
Whether epistemic modals can project from a psych verb's event.
Directly parallels EventBinder.canProjectEpistemic.
Equations
Instances For
Stative psych verbs (internal source) license epistemic modals, just like attitude verbs.
Eventive psych verbs (external source) do NOT license epistemic, just like VP events.
The full parallel between psych verb events and Hacquard's event binder hierarchy.
| Psych type | Event binder analog | Content? | Epistemic? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stative (internal) | attitude | ✓ | ✓ |
| Eventive (external) | vpEvent | ✗ | ✗ |
| — (speech act) | speechAct | ✓ | ✓ |
Available modal flavors for modals embedded under a psych verb, derived from content licensing via the causal source.
Equations
- One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.
Instances For
Stative psych → both flavors (like attitude embedding).
Eventive psych → circumstantial only (like VP embedding).
The available flavors match the corresponding EventBinder patterns.
These predictions could be tested with empirical data on modal readings under psych verbs:
"The problem concerns John — it might be unsolvable" (concern = internal) → epistemic might available (John's representation licenses CON(e))
"The noise frightened John — ??it might be dangerous" (frighten = external) → epistemic might less natural (external cause provides no CON(e))
The eventive case is not ungrammatical (the modal can bind to the matrix speech act event instead), but the psych verb's own event does not provide the epistemic modal base.
Stative verbs: the causal source is internal for both concern and interest. Both should pattern like attitude verbs for content licensing.
Eventive verbs: the causal source is external for frighten, amuse, etc. None should provide content for epistemic licensing.