Semantic Radical Category Consistency Effect in Chinese Incidental Vocabulary Learning

Abstract

Abstract: The present study investigated how the category consistency of character’s semantic radical influences incidental novel word learning in Chinese reading. Two-pseudocharacter words were constructed as novel words. Each constituent character’s semantic radical was manipulated either consistent or inconsistent with the semantic category of the novel word. We made each pseudoword as a new concept of a familiar semantic category by providing it into 15 informative sentential contexts. There were 5 learning phases, each of which included 3 sentential contexts of each novel word. Seventy-two undergraduates were instructed to take part in the experiment. The results showed that there were reliable character semantic radical consistency effects during the initial three learning phases, suggesting that Chinese readers are able to use character’s semantic radicals to facilitate relatively early stage of novel word processing in Chinese reading.

Key words: incidental vocabulary learning, category consistency of semantic radical, Chinese reading, eye movement

摘要： 采用阅读伴随词汇学习–测试范式，探讨形旁类别一致性如何影响词汇学习，以及该效应如何随新词表征的逐步积累而变化。通过操纵构成新词两个汉字形旁所提示的语义类别与语境所示语义类别是否一致，构造两类假词；通过15个语境将新词描述为某个语义类别下的新成员，并均分于五个学习阶段，被试为72名大学生。结果发现：学习阶段中期存在显著的形旁语义类别一致性效应，表明在汉语阅读伴随词汇学习中，读者会利用形旁语义信息促进新词的语义整合。

关键词: 伴随词汇学习, 形旁类别一致性, 汉语阅读, 眼动

CLC Number:

B842

HE Fei, LIANG Feifei, BAI Xuejun. Semantic Radical Category Consistency Effect in Chinese Incidental Vocabulary Learning[J]. Studies of Psychology and Behavior, 2021, 19(3): 304-311.

贺斐, 梁菲菲, 白学军. 汉语阅读伴随词汇学习的形旁类别一致性效应[J]. 心理与行为研究, 2021, 19(3): 304-311.

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