1,721,050 research outputs found
Of Black Sheep and White Crows: Is Bilinguals��� Memory for Figurative Meaning Language-Specific
Full text linkWhereas several studies have examined figurative language comprehension in single language users, there is a relative lack of empirical work on this topic in multiple language users. Seeking to extend the scope of research on the bilingual mental lexicon beyond its previous single word emphasis, the present research examined incidental recall of familiar two-word idiomatic expressions in 22 Russian-English proficient bilinguals as a function of whether the idiomatic meaning of each expression was present in both languages, only in one language, or in neither language. It was hypothesized that phrases with a shared figurative meaning in both languages would be retrieved more easily than those for which a figurative meaning existed only in one language or in neither language. This expectation was confirmed. The findings are interpreted as consistent with a bilingual adaptation of the dual coding model of memory
Handedness and Script Directionality in Relation to Graphic Production, Perception, and Aesthetic Preference of Visual Stimuli
Full text linkThis study examined the influence of handedness and reading/writing direction on the
facing and sequencing of drawn objects and/or scenes and on orientation preference in
viewing figures and photographing objects. Right- and left-handed adults who were
either native readers of English or of Arabic drew 15 objects/scenes with their dominant
hand and two objects also with their non-dominant hand. The objects differed in
animacy, graspability, and implied motion. All participants also completed an
ambiguous figure detection task in which one of the embedded figures faced leftward
and the other faced rightward. In addition, right- and left-handed English readers
photographed six objects in what they considered the most aesthetically pleasing
orientation. A significant effect of script directionality was observed in scene depiction,
with left-to-right readers depicting objects in a scene along a left-to-right axis and rightto-
left readers showing the converse pattern. Ambiguous figure detection showed an
overall advantage for the left-facing figure. Whereas the preferred orientation for
photographing objects with implied motion was to orient them facing rightward; graspable objects were oriented differently depending on handedness. Asymmetries in
orientation of drawn objects also varied by handedness. Our research challenges a
laterality-based account traditionally invoked to explain directional trends in drawing
and aesthetic preference and offers support for alternative accounts that emphasize
biomechanical, motor imagery, and cultural factors
The role of orthographic cues to lexical stress in word recognition: a comparison of monolinguals and bilinguals
Full text linkThe present research tested the claim that users are guided by orthographic correlates of lexical stress even in languages without diacritic markers of stress. Given that disyllabic English nouns typically have a trochaic stress pattern (strong-weak) whereas verbs tend to have an iambic pattern (weak-strong), as in REject and reJECT, respectively, the study examined whether word endings reliably signal stress and syntactic category information in English. The study also examined if sensitivity to orthographic cues to stress and syntactic category differs as a function of language experience (monolingual vs. bilingual). Twenty two monolinguals and 18 bilinguals were given a list of disyllabic English pseudowords containing 16 noun-like endings, 16 verb-like endings, and 16 neutral control endings. Corroborating a previous finding with monolinguals (Kemp, Nilsson, & Arciuli, 2009), the results showed that pseudowords containing noun-like endings were reliably perceived to be nouns whereas those with verb-like endings were reliably classified as verbs. This overall pattern also characterized bilinguals��� performance, although monolinguals were found to be significantly more sensitive than bilinguals to noun-like endings. In addition, monolinguals displayed higher overall confidence than bilinguals in their word class judgments. With respect to stress assignment, monolinguals were more likely to assign stress to the first syllable for words with noun-like or control endings, and to assign stress to the second syllable for words with verb-like endings. They also showed significantly greater first syllable stress assignment than bilinguals for pseudowords with noun-like endings. Bilinguals��� stress assignment pattern did not vary by word ending type. Taken together, the findings indicate that whereas orthographic cues are used by monolinguals and bilinguals alike to signal word class, these cues are not relied on to the same extent by the two groups for determining lexical stress. Bilinguals��� knowledge of stress patterns in another language may have contributed to their lack of sensitivity to orthographic cues of word class in making stress assignment decisions for English pseudowords. Implications of these findings and directions for further inquiry are suggested
Exploring figurative language processing in bilinguals: the metaphor interference effect
Full text linkWhile studies suggest that figurative, or non-literal, meanings are automatically activated in single language users, little is known about how language proficiency may influence the automaticity of non-literal meaning activation. The present research sought to address this issue by comparing figurative language activation in Spanish-English bilinguals. An interference paradigm (Glucksberg, Gildea & Bookin, 1982) was used in which participants were to judge the literal truth or falsity of statements of the form Some Xs are Ys. Judgments on this task are typically slower to statements that, though literally false, are metaphorically true (e.g., Some lawyers are sharks), suggesting that metaphorical meanings are non-optionally activated (at least in single language users). The present research involved four experiments: Experiment 1 conducted with English-speaking monolinguals, replicated the metaphor interference effect; in Experiment 2 the effect was replicated in English-dominant and in balanced bilinguals tested only in English. Experiment 3 conducted with bilinguals tested in both languages, showed that the metaphor interference effect was not obtained in either language in English-dominant bilinguals and was obtained in Spanish only in the balanced group. The findings from Experiments 1 and 2 support the view that nonliteral (metaphoric) meanings are automatically accessed in monolinguals and bilinguals alike. Experiment 3 involved a fewer number of metaphor trials per language, raising the possibility that this procedural difference may have led to a weakening of the metaphor interference effect. This possibility was directly tested in Experiment 4, conducted with English-speaking monolinguals presented with the same number of metaphor trials as the bilinguals in Experiment 3. The results showed a clear metaphor interference, even with the reduced number of trials. As such, the findings of Experiment 3, where a metaphor interference effect was obtained only for Spanish items, are somewhat equivocal: at face value, they suggest that the effect is modulated by language proficiency. Alternatively, the metaphor interference effect may turn out to be present in both languages, but may simply have been obscured by variability owing to the small sample size per language order. Which of these two interpretations turns out to be valid will depend on additional testing. Implications of the present findings for theories of the organization of the bilingual representational system are addressed
Directional Bias in Representational Drawings of Graspable Objects by Right and Left Handers: The Contribution of Affordances vs. Biomechanical Principles
Full text linkThis study investigated the orientation of representational drawings of everyday, graspable objects by right- and left-handed adults. Two competing hypotheses were examined. One was an affordance-based hypothesis which predicted that the graspable position of objects would be positioned in the side of space in which they are normally interacted upon. This effect was expected to be enhanced for objects involving self-directed movements (e.g., cup, toothbrush) than object-directed movements (e.g., hammer, tennis racket). The other was a biomechanical hypothesis, which predicted left placement of graspable portion of the objects be drawn by right handers and right placement by left handers, reflecting a greater ease of executions of outward directed movements. Sixty English-speaking right handers and 37 left handers each drew a total of 20 graspable objects. An overall left placement of graspable portions of objects was found, regardless of object movement type. With one exception (jug), the left bias was greater in right handers in 17 of the 20 objects. The results indicate that a biomechanical account provides a better explanation of drawing direction biases than an affordance account
Not Through a Glass Darkly: Refocusing the Psycholinguistic Study of Bilingualism Through a 'Bivocal' Lens
No full textSocial Evaluations of 7- and 8-Month-Old Infants
Full text linkA landmark experiment by Kiley Hamlin, Karen Wynn, and Paul Bloom demonstrated that infants as young as 6 months old possess previously unrecognized abilities to form social evaluations. In the experiment, infants were shown a shape that was made to appear as if it was climbing a hill. In one event, another shape helped the climber up the hill, while in a separate event, a different shape prevented the climber from reaching the top. When offered a choice between the helping and hindering shapes, both 6- and 10-month-olds chose the helping shape over the hindering shape, showing that they had evaluated the actions and preferred the helper as a result. In an additional test, the climber was made to appear as if it was "choosing" the helping shape or the hindering shape. Infant looking times were measured in order to assess which "choice" was more surprising. Interestingly, the 6-month-olds looked equally for both events, while the 10-month-olds looked longer when the hinderer was approached. This demonstrated that the 10-month-olds were attributing preferences to the climber, and expected that the climber would prefer the helper just as they had. This ability was apparently beyond that of the 6-month-olds, but no assessment or explanation has been offered for why this would be. The current study attempted to remedy this problem by replicating this experiment with 7- and 8-month-olds.
The 7-month-olds in this experiment performed as expected, preferring the helper over the hinderer. The 8-month-olds, however, showed no clear preference. This was unexpected and not easily explainable. Neither age showed a difference in looking time whether the climber approached the helper or the hinderer. These looking time data suggest that 7- and 8-month-olds are closer to 6-month-olds in their ability to attribute evaluations to other agents, indicating that these abilities do not develop until later infancy, around 9 or 10 months. However, lack of significant results on the looking time test need not indicate a lack of social knowledge, and may instead stem more directly from developing theory of mind abilities. Options for future studies pitting social knowledge against theory of mind are explored
Testing the weighted salience model of conceptual combination
Full text linkIn two experiments the Weighted Salience Model (WSM) of conceptual combination was examined. Several of the hypotheses set forth in the WSM were evaluated, including the importance of salience of constituent features, differential interpretation strategies based on similarity, an initial reliance on the modifier as opposed to the head, and a context effect of salience reorganization. Results confirmed that the hierarchy of output dominance within constituent features was important in determining features in final combinations. Additionally, similar pairs were defined with property interpretations more frequently than were dissimilar pairs, and dissimilar pairs were defined with relation interpretations more frequently than were similar pairs. Context effects were demonstrated through the finding that target features were found more often in primed than unprimed pairs. The hypothesis of modifier superiority was not confirmed. These findings indicate that the WSM adds to the current understanding of conceptual combination through a reliance on output dominance and the importance of context. Despite these strengths, changes to the WSM may be necessary if future studies fail to support the importance of the modifier over the head noun
The roles of working memory, language proficiency, and training in simultaneous interpretation performance: evidence from Chinese-English bilinguals
Full text linkSimultaneous interpretation is a cognitively demanding task involving concurrent listening and speaking in two languages. Successful performance in this task likely relies on a good working memory, which reflects a person���s ability to process and store information simultaneously. The present study used the theoretical construct of working memory to investigate the task of simultaneous interpretation. Twenty student interpreters at two different levels of training in interpreting and sixteen bilinguals with no training in interpreting, all of whom spoke Chinese as a first language and English as a second language, participated in this study. They were compared on their performance for two measures of working memory ��� reading span and digit span ��� and on a simultaneous interpretation task. In addition, a translation judgment task and proficiency self-evaluation measures were administered to explore if language proficiency mediates working memory in participants��� L1 (native language) and L2 (second language). This study also examined the relation between working memory and performance in simultaneous interpretation.
Results showed that the student interpreters performed better than bilinguals on simultaneous interpretation. Advanced-level student interpreters also outperformed bilinguals on all language versions of the memory span tasks, though first-year student interpreters did not show higher working memory than the bilinguals. Further, performance in simultaneous interpretation was related to working memory in both L1 and L2. Based on the study���s findings, two years of training in interpreting seemed to have a positive effect on improving working memory, whereas one year of training in interpreting did not help to increase working memory. On the other hand, higher language proficiency did not result in high working memory but contributed to better performance in simultaneous interpretation. Working memory, it is concluded, is important but language proficiency in L1 and L2 assumes a more critical role in simultaneous interpretation performance
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