This chapter provides a selective review of electrophysiological findings in the context of healthy single-word production. Electrophysiological investigations have contributed to our understanding of word production processes by providing a snapshot of what happens in the brain at the subsecond scale, serving as an important complement to behavioral studies. The reviewed literature illustrates the types of questions language production researchers have tried to answer with electrophysiology from the early days of the field until recently. To paint as broad a picture as possible, we report findings stemming from different analysis methods (i.e., event-related responses and neural oscillations), as well as recording techniques (i.e., intracranial and scalp electroencephalography and magnetoencephalography). In addition, a few findings relating to multi-word production and language production by individuals with brain damage are presented, referring the reader to further literature sources on these topics. The chapter reveals an emerging convergence of findings and ends with some considerations on the challenges and value of investigating the electrophysiology of language production.

Hartsuiker, Robert and Strijkers, Kristof: Language Production (New York, Routledge: 2023)