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Updated: Nov 19, 2025
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Examining Online Syntactic Processing of Spoken Complex Sentences in Chinese Using Dual-Modal Interference Tasks
Published on: September 5, 2019
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Independent syntactic representation identified in left front-temporal cortex during Chinese sentence comprehension
Zhenghui Sun1, Yajiao Shi2, Peng Guo3
1School of Linguistics Sciences and Arts, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou, China; School of Liberal Arts, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China.
Brain and Language
|January 27, 2021
Summary
This study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate Chinese sentence structure. Findings show syntactic representation is independent of semantic meaning in Chinese, similar to Indo-European languages.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Linguistics
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Syntactic and semantic representation independence is established in Indo-European languages.
- This independence remains unclear in the Chinese language.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural basis of syntactic representation in Chinese using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).
- To determine if syntactic representation is independent of semantic representation in Chinese.
Main Methods:
- A syntactic priming paradigm was employed with 22 native Chinese speakers.
- Participants passively read sentence pairs (passive/active) designed to elicit priming effects.
- fMRI data were collected during sentence reading.
Main Results:
- Priming-related activation suppression was observed in specific brain regions: left temporal pole, left inferior frontal gyrus, and left precentral gyrus.
- These findings provide neuroimaging evidence supporting the independence of syntactic and semantic representations.
Conclusions:
- The study provides strong neuroimaging evidence that syntactic representation is independent of semantic representation in Chinese.
- This finding aligns with observations in Indo-European languages, suggesting a universal principle in language processing.
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