The influence of lexical and conceptual constraints on reading mixed-language sentences: Evidence from eye fixations and naming times

In two experiments, we explored the degree to which sentence context effects operate at a lexical or conceptual level by examining the processing of mixed-language sentences by fluent Spanish-English bilinguals. In Experiment 1, subjects’ eye movements were monitored while they read English sentences in which sentence constraint, word frequency, and language of target word were manipulated. A frequency × constraint interaction was found when target words appeared in Spanish, but not in English. First fixation durations were longer for high-frequency Spanish words when these were embedded in high-constraint sentences than in low-constraint sentences. This result suggests that the conceptual restrictions produced by the sentence context were met, but that the lexical restrictions were not. The same result did not occur for low-frequency Spanish words, presumably because the slower access of low-frequency words provided more processing time for the resolution of this conflict. Similar results were found in Experiment 2 using rapid serial visual presentation when subjects named the target words aloud. It appears that sentence context effects are influenced by both semantic/conceptual and lexical information.     

Effects of Word Processing and Short-term Memory Deficits on Verbal Learning: Evidence from Aphasia

We report two experiments that investigate the abilities of aphasic subjects with lexical and short-term memory impairments to learn supraspan lists of 10 words. We examined effects of stimulus factors (characteristics of words and lists to be learned) and subject factors (verbal and nonverbal STM span, nature of language impairment). Learning ability was influenced by the imageability and frequency of the words to be learned (Experiment 1) and by the linguistic relationship among words in a list (Experiment 2). Additionally, learning ability was affected by the nature of a subject's word processing deficit (whether it involved semantic and/or phonological processes). Phonological ability was positively associated with learning in both experiments, and semantic ability was associated with learning when words in a list were high in both frequency and imageability (Experiment 1) or were contextually related to one another (Experiment 2). Finally, verbal STM span was positively related to learning performance, but the effect was more pronounced for word span than digit span. These relationships among word processing ability, verbal STM span, and learning ability are discussed with reference to learning in aphasia and to models of learning more generally.     

Effects of semantic context in the naming of pictures and words

Two experiments investigated whether lexical retrieval for speaking can be characterized as a competitive process by assessing the effects of semantic context on picture and word naming in German. In Experiment 1 we demonstrated that pictures are named slower in the context of same-category items than in the context of items from various semantic categories, replicating findings by Kroll and Stewart (Journal of Memory and Language, 33 (1994) 149). In Experiment 2 we used words instead of pictures. Participants either named the words in the context of same- or different-category items, or produced the words together with their corresponding determiner. While in the former condition words were named faster in the context of same-category items than of different-category items, the opposite pattern was obtained for the latter condition. These findings confirm the claim that the interfering effect of semantic context reflects competition in the retrieval of lexical entries in speaking.     

三语者语义通达中的跨语言重复启动效应

采用跨语言重复启动的任务范式探讨三语者的语义通达机制。被试为在广州学习汉语的印度尼西亚留学生48名。自变量是学习条件(包括学过与未学过), 因变量是单词判断的反应时和正确率。实验1探讨三语者在视觉与听觉呈现的三语词汇语义通达任务中是否会借助于一语对等词, 结果发现一语词汇在两种任务条件下都能够发挥中介作用, 此结果表明了三语者与双语者语义通达机制的一致性; 实验2探讨三语者在视觉与听觉呈现的三语词汇语义通达任务中是否会借助于二语对等词, 结果发现二语词汇只能在视觉呈现任务条件下发挥中介作用, 此结果表明二语词汇在三语语义通达过程中的中介作用具有限制性。本研究结果表明三语者的语义通达机制与双语者既有一致性, 也有其限制性。     

中文词汇加工过程中的无关言语效应

通过两个词汇识别任务,考察词汇加工过程中的无关言语效应。实验1采用真假词判断任务,考察有意义言语、无意义言语、白噪音和安静的背景声音对不同具体性的词汇识别的影响。结果发现,仅有意义言语干扰了词汇识别,且主要体现在对低具体性词汇判断的反应时显著增加。实验2采用了语义范畴判断任务,同样发现有意义言语条件下被试的反应时显著大于其他声音条件。结果表明,中文词汇加工过程中存在无关言语效应,且当任务强调语义加工时,干扰主要源于无关言语的语义成分,支持了语义干扰假说。     

Semantic Ambiguity Effects in L2 Word Recognition

The present study examined the ambiguity effects in second language (L2) word recognition. Previous studies on first language (L1) lexical processing have observed that ambiguous words are recognized faster and more accurately than unambiguous words on lexical decision tasks. In this research, L1 and L2 speakers of English were asked whether a letter string on a computer screen was an English word or not. An ambiguity advantage was found for both groups and greater ambiguity effects were found for the non-native speaker group when compared to the native speaker group. The findings imply that the larger ambiguity advantage for L2 processing is due to their slower response time in producing adequate feedback activation from the semantic level to the orthographic level.     

情绪名词的具体性效应：来自ERP的证据

词汇的具体性和情绪性是影响词汇加工的不同因素, 高具体性和情绪性都能够促进词汇的加工。本研究同时操纵词汇的具体性和情绪性, 使用词汇判定任务和愉悦度判断任务, 探讨了情绪名词的具体性效应及其具体性效应是否受词汇情绪信息的影响。结果发现：情绪名词的具体性效应受内隐或外显情绪条件的影响, 具体的情绪词比抽象的情绪词反应时间更短、正确率更高, 诱发了更大的N400和减小的LPC, 但LPC的具体性效应只表现在内隐情绪任务中。词汇的具体性和情绪性的相互影响发生在内隐情绪任务中的语义加工阶段, 正性、负性的具体词和抽象词的加工在N400成分上差异不显著, 而中性具体词和抽象词在N400成分上差异显著, 说明词汇的情绪信息为抽象词的加工提供了充分的语境, 因此消除了具体词的加工优势。     

Effects of stimulus and contextual information on the lexical decision process

Two experiments were conducted to investigate context effects on the lexical decision process. In both experiments, observers classified letter strings as words or nonwords following the presentation of context in the form of an incomplete sentence. In Experiment 1, the predictability of congruous word stimuli and their frequency of occurrence in printed English were varied. These two factors had independent and additive effects on decision latencies. Stimulus quality, word frequency, and semantic congruity (i.e., congruous vs. incongruous) between the context and the stimulus were varied in Experiment 2. The effects of semantic congruity and word frequency on decision latencies combined additively, as did the effects of semantic congruity and stimulus quality. Two complementary mechanisms were proposed within the framework of a modified version of Becker’s verification model to account for the differential effects of single-word and sentence context priming on the lexical decision process.     

Are phonological influences on lexical (mis)selection the result of a monitoring bias?

A monitoring bias account is often used to explain speech error patterns that seem to be the result of an interactive language production system, like phonological influences on lexical selection errors. A biased monitor is suggested to detect and covertly correct certain errors more often than others. For instance, this account predicts that errors that are phonologically similar to intended words are harder to detect than those that are phonologically dissimilar. To test this, we tried to elicit phonological errors under the same conditions as those that show other kinds of lexical selection errors. In five experiments, we presented participants with high cloze probability sentence fragments followed by a picture that was semantically related, a homophone of a semantically related word, or phonologically related to the (implicit) last word of the sentence. All experiments elicited semantic completions or homophones of semantic completions, but none elicited phonological completions. This finding is hard to reconcile with a monitoring bias account and is better explained with an interactive production system. Additionally, this finding constrains the amount of bottom-up information flow in interactive models.     

Are phonological influences on lexical (mis)selection the result of a monitoring bias?

A monitoring bias account is often used to explain speech error patterns that seem to be the result of an interactive language production system, like phonological influences on lexical selection errors. A biased monitor is suggested to detect and covertly correct certain errors more often than others. For instance, this account predicts that errors that are phonologically similar to intended words are harder to detect than those that are phonologically dissimilar. To test this, we tried to elicit phonological errors under the same conditions as those that show other kinds of lexical selection errors. In five experiments, we presented participants with high cloze probability sentence fragments followed by a picture that was semantically related, a homophone of a semantically related word, or phonologically related to the (implicit) last word of the sentence. All experiments elicited semantic completions or homophones of semantic completions, but none elicited phonological completions. This finding is hard to reconcile with a monitoring bias account and is better explained with an interactive production system. Additionally, this finding constrains the amount of bottom-up information flow in interactive models.     

On the Nature of Semantic Constraints on Lexical Access

We present two eye-tracking experiments that investigate lexical frequency and semantic context constraints in spoken-word recognition in German. In both experiments, the pivotal words were pairs of nouns overlapping at onset but varying in lexical frequency. In Experiment 1, German listeners showed an expected frequency bias towards high-frequency competitors (e.g., Blume, 'flower') when instructed to click on low-frequency targets (e.g., Bluse, 'blouse'). In Experiment 2, semantically constraining context increased the availability of appropriate low-frequency target words prior to word onset, but did not influence the availability of semantically inappropriate high-frequency competitors at the same time. Immediately after target word onset, however, the activation of high-frequency competitors was reduced in semantically constraining sentences, but still exceeded that of unrelated distractor words significantly. The results suggest that (1) semantic context acts to downgrade activation of inappropriate competitors rather than to exclude them from competition, and (2) semantic context influences spoken-word recognition, over and above anticipation of upcoming referents.     

Time course and task dependence of emotion effects in word processing

The emotional content of stimuli influences cognitive performance. In two experiments, we investigated the time course and mechanisms of emotional influences on visual word processing in various tasks by recording event-related brain potentials (ERPs). The stimuli were verbs of positive, negative, and neutral valence. In Experiment 1, where lexical decisions had to be performed on single verbs, both positive and negative verbs were processed more quickly than neutral verbs and elicited a distinct ERP component, starting around 370 msec. In Experiment 2, the verbs were embedded in a semantic context provided by single nouns. Likewise, structural, lexical, and semantic decisions for positive verbs were accelerated, and an ERP effect with a scalp distribution comparable to that in Experiment 1 now started about 200 msec earlier. These effects may signal an automatic allocation of attentional resources to emotionally arousing words, since they were not modulated by different task demands. In contrast, a later ERP effect of emotion was restricted to lexical and semantic decisions and, thus, appears to indicate more elaborated, task-dependent processing of emotional words.     

The effects of lexical and semantic information on same-different visual comparison of words

Previous research has indicated that phonemic and orthographic factors cannot account for the fact that words (clear/clear) are responded to more rapidly than orthographically legal nonwords (creal/creal) in a same-different visual comparison task. However, the role of semantic and lexical factors is less certain. The effects of semantic similarity on both same and different judgments were evaluated in several experiments. In the first experiment, subjects were not any slower on semantically related (rang/rung) than on unrelated (rang/rank) different judgments even with a 3,000-msec interval between the first and second word. In Experiment 2, subjects based their judgments on whether or not the first letter of each word was visually identical. Same judgments were not any faster for semantically related than unrelated items even though other evidence indicated that subjects were processing the whole word and not just the first letter. Experiment 3 showed that the word/orthographically legal nonword difference could be replicated with the first-letter visual comparison task employed in Experiment 2. These and related results were discussed with reference to the idea that the word/orthographically legal nonword difference is due to the facilitating effects of a lexical entry upon the encoding, but not the comparison of an item.     

Imageability and word recognition in the left and right visual fields: a signal detection analysis

Identifying the information processing constraints that determine whether or not imagery moderates visual field asymmetries is essential for constructing a dynamic model of hemispheric interaction during language processing. In this investigation, we manipulated the global experimental context in which imageable and nonimageable words were presented by contrasting mixed and blocked word lists using a lateralized lexical decision task. Signal detection analyses were employed to assess whether global stimulus context and imageability differentially affect word discriminability (d prime) and response bias (log beta) across visual fields. Both discriminability and response bias varied with imageability and stimulus context, but to a comparable extent across visual fields. This suggests that both hemispheres are sensitive to the global context in which words are presented, and can adjust processing based not only on semantic characteristics of the words themselves, but also on the variability of items in the stimulus environment.     

Number-of-features effects and semantic processing

Participants list many semantic features for some concrete nouns (e.g., lion) and fewer for others (e.g., lime; McRae, de Sa, & Seidenberg, 1997). Pexman, Lupker, and Hino (2002) reported faster lexical decision and naming responses for high number of features (NOF) words than for low-NOF words. In the present research, we investigated the impact of NOF on semantic processing. We observed NOF effects in a self-paced reading task when prior context was not congruent with the target word (Experiment 1) and in a semantic categorization task (concrete vs. abstract; Experiment 2A). When we narrowed our stimuli to include high- and low-NOF words from a single category (birds), we found substantial NOF effects that were modulated by the specificity of the categorization task (Experiments 3A, 3B, and 3C). We argue that these results provide support for distributed representation of word meaning.     

并列和偏正结构双字合成词的注视位置效应

采用EyeLink II眼动仪, 选取并列结构和偏正结构两种类型的目标词, 要求大学生被试阅读包含有目标词的句子, 以探讨两种双字合成词的注视位置效应。结果发现：在阅读并列和偏正结构的目标词时, 单次注视条件下读者往往将首次注视定位于词的中心位置, 多次注视时首次注视往往落在词的开端部分; 当首次注视落在词的开端时再注视该词的概率增加, 而且再注视往往落在词的结尾部分。结果提示：在单次注视条件下存在偏向注视位置; 双字合成词结构不影响偏向和最佳注视位置; 研究结果支持“战略-战术”模型。     

Phonological neighbors speed visual word processing: evidence from multiple tasks

The author investigated the role of phonological neighborhood on visual word recognition. Using a lexical decision task, the author showed in Experiment 1 that words with large phonological neighborhoods were processed more rapidly than those with smaller phonological neighborhoods. This facilitative effect was obtained even when the nonword fillers had the same number of phonological neighbors as the words. This finding indicates that phonological neighbors speed processing within the phonological system. In the next 2 experiments, this claim was further tested using the naming and semantic categorization tasks. In both experiments, the effect of phonological neighborhood was found to be facilitative. The results across all 3 experiments indicate that phonology is central to visual word recognition and that phonological neighborhood provides a reliable measure of phonological processing.     

维吾尔族与汉族的大学生在汉语歧义词消解中的语境促进效应及反应抑制效应

词汇歧义是语言的普遍现象。在汉语中, 歧义词的种类繁多, 是少数民族学生汉语学习困难的重要原因之一。通过两个实验, 考察在不同加工时间条件下维吾尔族和汉族的大学生在汉语歧义词消解中的语境促进效应及抑制效应。结果发现, 两个民族的大学生均出现了语境促进效应, 但在短时加工条件下, 汉族大学生的语境促进效应显著大于维吾尔族大学生, 在长时加工条件下, 两个民族的大学生的语境促进效应并无显著差异。在短时加工条件下, 仅汉族大学生可以有效地抑制无关信息的干扰; 在长时加工条件下, 两个民族的大学生均可以有效地抑制无关信息的干扰。整个研究表明, 在汉语歧义词消解中, 随着加工时间增加, 维吾尔族大学生的语境促进效应和对无关信息的抑制均可以达到与汉族大学生相近的水平。     

非熟练潮-粤双言者的语义通达：来自听觉词加工的证据

采用听觉跨语言启动的语义判断范式, 考察非熟练潮-粤双言者的两种方言之间的语义通达方式。结果发现, 无论是以潮语词为启动词, 还是以粤语词为启动词, 当二者具有翻译关系时, 启动词均促进对目标词的识别, 但L1对L2的启动量比L2对L1的启动量大。当启动词与目标词具有语义联想关系时, 启动词亦能促进对目标词的识别, 但L1→L2与L2→L1的启动量差异不显著。整个研究表明, 非熟练潮-粤双言者的两种方言的词汇独立表征, 语义共享表征; 第二方言的词汇能够直接通达语义表征, 不需要以第一方言的词汇为中介, 但双言的词汇表征与语义表征的联结强度仍然存在着不对称性。     

Capacity limitations in visual word processing

The ability of subjects to process English words in a spatially parallel manner was examined in several redundant-target detection tasks. When redundant targets were identical in a given display, processing limitations were evident in a task that required subjects to make semantic categorizations of words. However, parallel processing of identical redundant target words was exhibited in a lexical decision task that required a structural analysis of letter strings, but not an analysis of word meaning. The difference in performance in the two tasks suggests that the capacity for semantic processing is limited. Analyses designed to examine whether the redundancy gain in Experiment 2 could be attributed to limited capacity processing in conjunction with positional preferences provided evidence against this possibility. In addition, these analyses suggested that the processing times for the redundant targets in Experiment 2 might be positively correlated. In the third and fourth experiments, the redundant-target displays contained two different words. Processing interference, in the form of a redundancy loss, was evident in the lexical decision task, but not in the semantic categorization task, confirming a difference in the mode of processing between the two tasks. The results provide evidence against the unlimited-capacity, parallel processing hypothesis of late selection theories of attention.