Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 7, 2026
08:32
Examining Online Syntactic Processing of Spoken Complex Sentences in Chinese Using Dual-Modal Interference Tasks
Published on: September 5, 2019
5.9K
Is There a Processing Preference for Object Relative Clauses in Chinese? Evidence From ERPs
Talat Bulut1,2, Shih-Kuen Cheng1, Kun-Yu Xu1
1Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, National Central University, Taoyuan City, Taiwan.
Frontiers in Psychology
|July 25, 2018
Summary
Mandarin Chinese object relative clauses (ORCs) are harder to process than subject relative clauses (SRCs), especially for individuals with lower working memory (WM). WM influences the processing of ORCs, but not SRCs, in Chinese sentence comprehension.
Area of Science:
- Psycholinguistics
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Computational Linguistics
Background:
- Subject relative clauses (SRCs) are typically easier than object relative clauses (ORCs) in head-initial languages like English.
- Head-final languages like Mandarin Chinese may exhibit different relative clause processing patterns.
- Working memory (WM) capacity is hypothesized to modulate relative clause comprehension.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the processing of SRCs and ORCs in Mandarin Chinese using event-related potentials (ERPs).
- To examine the influence of working memory (WM) span on the neural correlates of relative clause processing.
- To understand the complex interplay of structural ambiguity and filler-gap dependencies in Chinese relative clause comprehension.
Main Methods:
- Recording event-related potentials (ERPs) from participants with high and low working memory (WM) spans.
- Participants read Mandarin Chinese sentences containing subject relative clauses (SRCs) and object relative clauses (ORCs).
- WM capacity was assessed using forward digit span and operation span tests.
Main Results:
- Object relative clauses (ORCs) elicited an N400-P600 complex on the relativizer, with effects modulated by WM span.
- Subject relative clauses (SRCs) elicited a P600 effect on the head noun, unaffected by WM span.
- WM span significantly impacted the processing of ORCs but not SRCs in Mandarin Chinese.
Conclusions:
- Relative clause processing in Mandarin Chinese presents a complex pattern, differing from head-initial languages.
- Working memory plays a crucial role in the comprehension of object relative clauses (ORCs) in Chinese.
- Structural ambiguities and filler-gap dependencies interact to shape the processing dynamics of Chinese relative clauses.
Keywords:
Chinese sentence comprehensionevent-related potentialsintegration resourceslinear distancerelative clausesstorage resourcesstructural distanceworking memoryMore Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
02:55The Evidence for Evolution
48.3K
Genetic variations accumulating within populations over generations give rise to biological evolution. Evolutionary changes can result in the formation of novel varieties and entire new species. These changes are responsible for the diverse forms of life inhabiting the planet. The evidence for evolution suggests that all living organisms descended from common ancestors.
48.3K
01:18Velocity of an Object
207
Understanding how an object moves along a path requires distinguishing between motion over a time span and motion at a precise moment. A useful example is a vehicle traveling along a straight and level path, where its position at any given time is known. The initial step in analyzing this motion is to measure how far the vehicle travels over a fixed time period. This measurement, called average velocity, is computed by dividing the total change in position by the duration over which the change...
207
01:12Relative Risk
2.2K
Relative risk (RR) is a statistical measure commonly used in epidemiology to compare the likelihood of a particular event occurring between two groups. This metric is important for evaluating the relationship between exposure to a specific risk factor and the probability of a particular outcome. It plays a crucial role in medical research, public health studies, and risk assessment. Relative risk quantifies how much more (or less) likely an event is to occur in an exposed group compared to an...
2.2K
01:29Potential Due to a Polarized Object
803
A neutral atom consists of a positively charged nucleus surrounded by a negatively charged electron cloud. When placed in an external electric field, the external electric force pulls the electrons and nucleus apart, opposite to the intrinsic attraction between the nucleus and the electrons. The opposing forces balance each other with a slight shift between the center of masses of the nucleus and the electron cloud, resulting in a polarized atom. On the other hand, a few molecules, like water,...
803
01:24Potential Due to a Magnetized Object
817
Magnetic dipoles in magnetic materials are aligned when placed under an external magnetic field. For paramagnets and ferromagnets, dipole alignment occurs in the direction of the magnetic field. However, the dipoles align opposite to the field in the case of diamagnets. This state of magnetic polarization due to the external field is called magnetization. Magnetization is defined as the dipole moment per unit volume. It plays a similar role to polarization in electrostatics.
The vector...
The vector...
817
01:10Relative Velocity in One Dimension
10.7K
The understanding of the concept of reference frames is essential to discuss relative motion in one or more dimensions. When we say that an object has a certain velocity, we must state the velocity with respect to a given reference frame. In most examples, this reference frame has been Earth. For instance, if a statement reads that a person is sitting in a train moving at 10 m/s east, then it implies that the person on the train is moving relative to the surface of Earth at this velocity,...
10.7K