句法加工中的预测现象及实验证据

句法加工是读者通过整合输入的言语信息来理解句子的过程。句法加工的存在,使得读者能够提前预测文本的信息,提高阅读效率。由于阅读离不开信息整合,研究者提出两类不同的句法理论:句法预测的模块局域性理论和句法预测的互动分析性观点。这两类理论的争论点在于句法加工是单独模块化的自上而下加工,还是自下而上-自上而下的互动分析加工过程。其区别表现为句法预测的作用——前者认为句法预测对句子加工有抑制作用,后者认为句法预测对句子加工起促进作用。来自眼动、ERP等研究的数据佐证了句法预测的存在。未来研究应围绕其差异进行深入探讨,以揭示句法加工的实质。

Prediction effect during syntactic processing and experimental evidence

Readers typically integrate input linguistic information to comprehend sentences,which is termed "syntactic processing".Syntactic processing enables readers to predict text information in advance so that the reading efficiency can be enhanced.For reading cannot live without information integration,researchers proposed two different kinds of syntactic theories:modularized locality theory and interactive analysis theory.The issue is that modularized locality theory proposed top-down processing while interactive analysis theories contend top-down/down-top processing.The difference is related to the effect of syntactic prediction.Syntactic prediction is considered to inhibit sentence processing in syntactic prediction locality theory,on the contrary,syntactic prediction is regarded as an accelerant in the analysis about syntactic prediction.Based on the literature and discussion,syntactic prediction is often proved by using techniques of eyetracking and ERPs.The paper pointed out that the future studies could discuss the difference of these two theories and provide more elaborate and explanatory evidence to reveal the essence of syntactic processing.