Orthographic and Meaning Processes in Reading Chinese Compounds: Comparisons Between L1 and L2 Reading.

Area of Science:

• Psycholinguistics
• Cognitive Science
• Second Language Acquisition

Background:

• Conflicting findings exist on orthographic and meaning processing during reading of morphologically complex words.
• Chinese characters provide unique morpheme cues, facilitating research on reading processes.
• The Character-Word Dual Function model guides the investigation of lexical quality's role.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how lexical quality influences orthographic and semantic priming in Chinese compound word reading.
• To compare native Chinese speakers (L1) and L2 learners based on their lexical representation quality.
• To differentiate orthographic and semantic effects by manipulating semantic transparency and prime exposure duration.

Main Methods:

• Four priming experiments were conducted using Chinese compound words.
• Participants included native Chinese speakers and L2 learners.
• Semantic transparency and prime exposure duration were manipulated to isolate orthographic and semantic priming.

Main Results:

• Orthographic priming effects emerged at shorter exposure durations for both L1 and L2 readers.
• Semantic priming effects were observed only at longer exposure durations and exclusively for L1 readers.
• These findings indicate an orthography-first emergence of morphological effects in Chinese reading.

Conclusions:

• The study confirms the general principle of orthography-first emergence in morphological effects during Chinese word reading.
• Reader experience, reflected in lexical quality, significantly influences the emergence of semantic priming.
• Increased experience with a language enhances access to morphological meaning relations.