Keywords
Abstract
This study investigates the cognitive architecture of the crime concept in media discourse. Adopting a linguocognitive approach, it analyzes the linguistic and cognitive mechanisms through which media texts construct and communicate representations of crime. The research focuses on lexical choices, conceptual metaphors, evaluative language, and discourse strategies that activate crime-related knowledge and shape public understanding of criminal events. The findings indicate that crime is conceptualized not only as a legal phenomenon but also as a socially and culturally embedded cognitive construct. Media discourse plays a significant role in framing crime by emphasizing particular values, ideologies, and interpretations of criminal behavior. The study demonstrates that linguistic structures function as cognitive tools that influence the perception of crime, justice, victims, and offenders. The results contribute to the fields of cognitive linguistics, forensic linguistics, and media discourse analysis, offering new insights into the interaction between language, cognition, and social reality.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Dilnoza Suvonkulova Kamilovna (Author)