---
_id: '58109'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: The present study aims to understand how metaphors are used in explanations.
    According to many current theories, metaphors have a conceptual function for the
    understanding of abstract objects. From this theoretical assumption, we derived
    the hypothesis that the lower the expertise of the addressee of an explanation,
    the more metaphors should be used. We tested this hypothesis on a relatively natural
    data set of 24 published videos with close to 100,000 words overall in which experts
    explain abstract, mostly scientific concepts to persons of different expertise,
    varying from minimal (children) to profound (expert). Contrary to our expectations,
    the frequency of metaphors did not decrease with expertise, but actually increased.
    This increase could be statistically substantiated with higher differences in
    expertise. The study contributes to a better understanding of the use of metaphors
    in actual explanatory processes and how metaphor use depends on contextual factors.
    It thus supports the expansion of the conceptual and linguistic perspective on
    metaphors to include the aspect of how metaphors are used by speakers.
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Ingrid
  full_name: Scharlau, Ingrid
  id: '451'
  last_name: Scharlau
  orcid: 0000-0003-2364-9489
- first_name: Miriam
  full_name: Körber, Miriam
  last_name: Körber
- first_name: Meghdut
  full_name: Sengupta, Meghdut
  last_name: Sengupta
- first_name: Henning
  full_name: Wachsmuth, Henning
  last_name: Wachsmuth
citation:
  ama: 'Scharlau I, Körber M, Sengupta M, Wachsmuth H. When to use a metaphor: Metaphors
    in dialogical explanations with addressees of different expertise. <i>Frontiers
    in Language Sciences</i>. 2024;3:1474924.'
  apa: 'Scharlau, I., Körber, M., Sengupta, M., &#38; Wachsmuth, H. (2024). When to
    use a metaphor: Metaphors in dialogical explanations with addressees of different
    expertise. <i>Frontiers in Language Sciences</i>, <i>3</i>, 1474924.'
  bibtex: '@article{Scharlau_Körber_Sengupta_Wachsmuth_2024, title={When to use a
    metaphor: Metaphors in dialogical explanations with addressees of different expertise},
    volume={3}, journal={Frontiers in Language Sciences}, author={Scharlau, Ingrid
    and Körber, Miriam and Sengupta, Meghdut and Wachsmuth, Henning}, year={2024},
    pages={1474924} }'
  chicago: 'Scharlau, Ingrid, Miriam Körber, Meghdut Sengupta, and Henning Wachsmuth.
    “When to Use a Metaphor: Metaphors in Dialogical Explanations with Addressees
    of Different Expertise.” <i>Frontiers in Language Sciences</i> 3 (2024): 1474924.'
  ieee: 'I. Scharlau, M. Körber, M. Sengupta, and H. Wachsmuth, “When to use a metaphor:
    Metaphors in dialogical explanations with addressees of different expertise,”
    <i>Frontiers in Language Sciences</i>, vol. 3, p. 1474924, 2024.'
  mla: 'Scharlau, Ingrid, et al. “When to Use a Metaphor: Metaphors in Dialogical
    Explanations with Addressees of Different Expertise.” <i>Frontiers in Language
    Sciences</i>, vol. 3, 2024, p. 1474924.'
  short: I. Scharlau, M. Körber, M. Sengupta, H. Wachsmuth, Frontiers in Language
    Sciences 3 (2024) 1474924.
date_created: 2025-01-08T11:59:24Z
date_updated: 2025-01-08T11:59:34Z
department:
- _id: '660'
funded_apc: '1'
intvolume: '         3'
keyword:
- metaphor
- conceptual metaphor
- conceptual metaphor theory
- metaphor usage
- explaining
- explanation
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- open_access: '1'
  url: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/language-sciences/articles/10.3389/flang.2024.1474924/full
oa: '1'
page: '1474924'
project:
- _id: '127'
  name: 'TRR 318 - C4: TRR 318 - Subproject C4 - Metaphern als Werkzeug des Erklärens'
publication: Frontiers in Language Sciences
quality_controlled: '1'
status: public
title: 'When to use a metaphor: Metaphors in dialogical explanations with addressees
  of different expertise'
type: journal_article
user_id: '451'
volume: 3
year: '2024'
...
---
_id: '28687'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: Although there is considerable research on and knowledge about students’ conceptual-izations
    of learning or academic practices and skills, the variability of these conceptu-alizations
    has been consistently neglected.In the present study, we address this varia-bility
    in the field of academic readingwith the help of a novel approach. Drawing on
    qualitative metaphor analysis, we report a detailed system of students’ conceptual
    met-aphors of reading. Ourspecific methodologicalapproach to identify the structure
    of these conceptual metaphorsallowsto analyze subjective agency on a lexical as
    well as grammatical level.The conceptual metaphors we identified by this method
    are markedly variable, although they create an overall impression of medium to
    low agency, that is a reader who is only weakly active or potent. Interrater reliability
    of the coding system was very good. We also report and analyze the frequency of
    the conceptual metaphors ina sample of 143 texts written by bachelor students.
author:
- first_name: Ingrid
  full_name: Scharlau, Ingrid
  id: '451'
  last_name: Scharlau
  orcid: 0000-0003-2364-9489
- first_name: Miriam
  full_name: Körber, Miriam
  last_name: Körber
- first_name: Andrea
  full_name: Karsten, Andrea
  id: '53917'
  last_name: Karsten
citation:
  ama: Scharlau I, Körber M, Karsten A. Plunging into a world? A novel approach to
    undergraduates’ metaphors of reading. <i>Frontline Learning Research</i>. 2019;9(4):25-57.
    doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i4.559">10.14786/flr.v7i4.559</a>
  apa: Scharlau, I., Körber, M., &#38; Karsten, A. (2019). Plunging into a world?
    A novel approach to undergraduates’ metaphors of reading. <i>Frontline Learning
    Research</i>, <i>9</i>(4), 25–57. <a href="https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i4.559">https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i4.559</a>
  bibtex: '@article{Scharlau_Körber_Karsten_2019, title={Plunging into a world? A
    novel approach to undergraduates’ metaphors of reading}, volume={9}, DOI={<a href="https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i4.559">10.14786/flr.v7i4.559</a>},
    number={4}, journal={Frontline Learning Research}, author={Scharlau, Ingrid and
    Körber, Miriam and Karsten, Andrea}, year={2019}, pages={25–57} }'
  chicago: 'Scharlau, Ingrid, Miriam Körber, and Andrea Karsten. “Plunging into a
    World? A Novel Approach to Undergraduates’ Metaphors of Reading.” <i>Frontline
    Learning Research</i> 9, no. 4 (2019): 25–57. <a href="https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i4.559">https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i4.559</a>.'
  ieee: 'I. Scharlau, M. Körber, and A. Karsten, “Plunging into a world? A novel approach
    to undergraduates’ metaphors of reading,” <i>Frontline Learning Research</i>,
    vol. 9, no. 4, pp. 25–57, 2019, doi: <a href="https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i4.559">10.14786/flr.v7i4.559</a>.'
  mla: Scharlau, Ingrid, et al. “Plunging into a World? A Novel Approach to Undergraduates’
    Metaphors of Reading.” <i>Frontline Learning Research</i>, vol. 9, no. 4, 2019,
    pp. 25–57, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i4.559">10.14786/flr.v7i4.559</a>.
  short: I. Scharlau, M. Körber, A. Karsten, Frontline Learning Research 9 (2019)
    25–57.
date_created: 2021-12-13T09:50:25Z
date_updated: 2022-06-07T00:06:15Z
department:
- _id: '424'
doi: 10.14786/flr.v7i4.559
intvolume: '         9'
issue: '4'
keyword:
- metaphor
- conceptual metaphor
- metaphor analysis
- academic reading
- transitivity
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- open_access: '1'
  url: https://journals.sfu.ca/flr/index.php/journal/article/view/559/597
oa: '1'
page: 25 - 57
publication: Frontline Learning Research
publication_identifier:
  issn:
  - 2295-3159
publication_status: published
status: public
title: Plunging into a world? A novel approach to undergraduates’ metaphors of reading
type: journal_article
user_id: '42165'
volume: 9
year: '2019'
...