非熟练的韩国汉语学习者合成词加工中词优效应的特点

词优效应是语言学习中的一个普遍现象。关于英语母语者和汉语母语者的研究都发现了词优效应。本研究关注非熟练的韩国汉语学习者的中文词汇加工中的词优效应,共两个实验:实验1考察汉字的频率对非熟练的韩国汉语学习者中文词汇加工中词优效应的影响;实验2考察汉字和词之间的语义关系(词汇的结构)对非熟练的韩国汉语学习者中文词汇加工中词优效应的影响。实验1的结果发现,字频并未对非熟练的韩国汉语学习者中文词汇加工中的词优效应产生影响,非熟练的韩国汉语学习者在高频字和低频字的识别中都出现了词优效应,且词优效应的大小没有显著差异。这说明非熟练的韩国汉语学习者在高、低频字的识别中都依赖于自上而下的词汇水平的激活。实验2的结果发现,汉字和词之间的语义关系(词汇结构)影响词优效应,相对于并列结构的词汇加工,在偏正结构的词语加工中更容易出现词优效应。这个结果表明词汇的结构通过影响词水平和字水平之间的交互激活,进而影响中文词汇加工中的词优效应。

Word superiority effect for low proficiency Korean-Chinese learners

Studies of both low proficiency Thai-Chinese learners and Indonesian-Chinese learners have found that character in a real word was more easily recognized than that in a non-word regardless of character frequency. In this study, two experiments were designed to investigate how character frequency and the structure of Chinese compound word affected the word superiority effect for low proficiency Korean-Chinese learners. 21 Korean-Chinese learners (12 male) and 36 Korean-Chinese learners (17 male) were enrolled in Experiment 1 and 2, respectively. The participants were defined as low proficiency CFL leaners, because they had passed the fourth level (the intermediate level with a vocabulary of 1200 words) of the Chinese Proficiency Test (HSK) but not the sixth (the highest level with a knowledge of 5000 words). The HSK is a standardized test of Chinese language proficiency for non-native speakers that distinguishes six levels of proficiency. Experiment 1 employed the classic Reicher-Wheeler forced choice decision paradigm. A two-character word (a real word or a non-word) was presented followed by two probe characters, participants were asked to select the probe character that had been in the word. The duration time of the word was determined by a self-adaptive procedure. The duration time range was from 40ms to 60 ms. By comparing character recognition accuracy in real words and non-words, we assessed the word superiority effect. By comparing the size of the word superiority effect for high and low frequency characters, we assessed the dependence of the word superiority effect on character frequency. In Experiment 2, character recognition accuracy of coordinative and subordinative words were compared to investigate the dependence of the word superiority on word structure. The paradigm of Experiment 2 was similar to Experiment 1 except that the duration of the word was restricted to 60 ms based on the average time of Experiment 1 and the task was changed to make a decision that the probe character was the initial or final character of the preceding word. There were significant differences of character recognition accuracy between the real word and non-word conditions. Character recognition accuracy in the real word condition was significantly higher than the non-word condition. The results verified there was a word superiority effect in Chinese word recognition for low proficiency Korean-Chinese learners. Consistent with studies of Thai and Indonesian Chinese learners, the word superiority effect was not affected by character frequency. Experiment 2 found that there were significant differences on character recognition accuracy among coordinative word condition, subordinative word condition and non-word condition. Post-hoc analysis showed that there was a strong word superiority effect in the subordinative word condition while no word superiority effect was found in the coordinative word condition. The word superiority effect in Chinese word recognition indicated that character in a word was easily to be recognized for low proficiency Korean-Chinese learners. In addition, the word superiority effect did not depend on character frequency. Low proficiency Korean-Chinese learners showed a strong word superiority effect for both low frequency and high frequency characters. Word structure affected word superiority effect. Word superiority effect was only found in subordinative word recognition.