Rather, the suppression mechanism dampens the activation of inappropriate meanings. It also dampens the activation of less relevant associations of unambiguous words. Anaphors both enhance their antecedents' activation and suppress the activation of other concepts, with the net effect that after anaphoric reference, antecedents are more activated than other concepts. They are accordingly more accessible. Suppression and enhancement are triggered by information that specifies the anaphor's identity.
More explicit anaphors trigger more suppression and enhancement.
Suppression and enhancement explain why speakers and writers use more explicit anaphors at longer referential distances, at the beginnings of episodes, and for less topical concepts. The mechanisms of suppression and enhancement also explain why comprehenders have more difficulty accessing referents at longer referential distances, at the beginnings of episodes, and for less topical concepts. Cataphoric devices enhance the activation of the concepts they mark. Individual differences in structure building are described in Chapter 5. Comprehensible information, regardless of its medium, is structured, and comprehenders differ in how skillfully they use the cognitive processes and mechanisms that capture this structure.