Pre- and post-head processing for single- and double-scrambled sentences of a head-final language as measured by the eye tracking method.

Using the eye-tracking method, the present study depicted pre- and post-head processing for simple scrambled sentences of head-final languages. Three versions of simple Japanese active sentences with ditransitive verbs were used: namely, (1) SO1O2V canonical, (2) SO2O1V single-scrambled, and (3) O1O2SV double-scrambled order. First pass reading times indicated that the third noun phrase just before the verb in both single- and double-scrambled sentences required longer reading times compared to canonical sentences. Re-reading times (the sum of all fixations minus the first pass reading) showed that all noun phrases including the crucial phrase before the verb in double-scrambled sentences required longer re-reading times than those required for single-scrambled sentences; single-scrambled sentences had no difference from canonical ones. Therefore, a single filler-gap dependency can be resolved in pre-head anticipatory processing whereas two filler-gap dependencies require much greater cognitive loading than a single case. These two dependencies can be resolved in post-head processing using verb agreement information.

Implicit and explicit second language training recruit common neural mechanisms for syntactic processing.

In contrast to native language acquisition, adult second-language (L2) acquisition occurs under highly variable learning conditions. Although most adults acquire their L2 at least partially through explicit instruction, as in a classroom setting, many others acquire their L2 primarily through implicit exposure, as is typical of an immersion environment. Whether these differences in acquisition environment play a role in determining the neural mechanisms that are ultimately recruited to process L2 grammar has not been well characterized. This study investigated this issue by comparing the ERP response to novel L2 syntactic rules acquired under conditions of implicit exposure and explicit instruction, using a novel laboratory language-learning paradigm. Native speakers tested on these stimuli showed a biphasic response to syntactic violations, consisting of an earlier negativity followed by a later P600 effect. After merely an hour of training, both implicitly and explicitly trained learners who were capable of detecting grammatical violations also elicited P600 effects. In contrast, learners who were unable to discriminate between grammatically correct and incorrect sentences did not show significant P600 effects. The magnitude of the P600 effect was found to correlate with learners' behavioral proficiency. Behavioral measures revealed that successful learners from both the implicit and explicit groups gained explicit, verbalizable knowledge about the L2 grammar rules. Taken together, these results indicate that late, controlled mechanisms indexed by the P600 play a crucial role in processing a late-learned L2 grammar, regardless of training condition. These findings underscore the remarkable plasticity of later, attention-dependent processes and their importance in lifelong learning.

Revisiting effects of contextual strength on the subordinate bias effect: evidence from eye movements.

In this study, we examined two issues regarding the role of context in ambiguity resolution: whether access to the contextually appropriate meaning is exhaustive or selective, and whether the contextually inappropriate meaning is inhibited. Participants read texts in which a biased ambiguous word was encountered twice while their eye movements were measured. The context preceding the first encounter varied in the extent to which the subordinate meaning was supported; the context preceding the second encounter always supported the dominant meaning. The findings suggest that lexical access is exhaustive but can be influenced by context, and that the subsequent accessibility of the contextually inappropriate meaning is unaffected by previous selection processes. The results were interpreted in terms of the assumptions of the reordered-access model and activation mechanisms that operate during reading.

SPaM: a combined self-paced reading and masked-priming paradigm.

In this article, we validate an experimental paradigm, SPaM, that we first described elsewhere (Luke & Christianson, Memory & Cognition 40:628-641, 2012). SPaM is a synthesis of self-paced reading and masked priming. The primary purpose of SPaM is to permit the study of sentence context effects on early word recognition. In the experiment reported here, we show that SPaM successfully reproduces results from both the self-paced reading and masked-priming literatures. We also outline the advantages and potential uses of this paradigm. For users of E-Prime, the experimental program can be downloaded from our lab website, http://epl.beckman.illinois.edu/.

Understanding mechanisms in transitive inferences: an eye-tracking study in Korean reading.

The current experiment examined the mechanism of relational information processing by assessing transitive inferences in different syntactic structures. More specifically, the current experiment focused on whether the demands of conscious inference processing interact with the difficulty of syntactic processing. This research used the eye-tracking method to investigate online processing mechanisms in complex sentences with transitive inference. Overall sentence reading times, accuracy rates of comprehension questions, and the two eye-movement measures of gaze duration and re-reading times were examined in 32 participants. The results showed that inference processing demands affected overall reading times and accuracy rates, while syntactic processing demands did not have an effect on overall reading times or accuracy rates. The results of the eye-tracking measures showed that syntactic processing demands affected gaze duration, while the inference processing demand affected re-reading times. Apparently, the difficulty of inference processing was not affected by the surface form of a sentence. The results of this study suggested that basic processes of sentence interpretation share resources with other cognitive processes such as inference.

Second language listening difficulties perceived by low-level learners.

The purpose was the develop a questionnaire to identify the specific listening difficulties of second language (L2) learners. Based on previous research, a questionnaire containing 31 items was developed and administered to 1,056 college freshmen. The whole sample was split randomly into two subsamples, each containing 528 cases. Exploratory factor analysis was performed to analyse the first subsample, and six factors were extracted, explaining a total of 57.1% of variance. To test the factor model, confirmatory factor analysis was conducted with the second subsample. Various fit indices were examined. The best fitting model for the data was a 23-item, six-factor model representing text, input channel and surroundings, relevance, listener, speaker, and task. Apart from the listener factor, all components are external ones and deemed to be uncontrollable by listeners. L2 learners must take an active role in listening practice to overcome L2 listening difficulties.

Evaluation of an automated procedure for detecting frequency-following responses in American and Chinese neonates.

To date, observations of the scalp-recorded frequency-following response (FFR) to voice pitch have depended on subjective interpretation of the experimenter. The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate an automated procedure for detecting the presence of a response. Twenty American (9 boys, 1-3 days) and 20 Chinese (10 boys, 1-3 days) neonates were recruited. A Chinese monosyllable that mimicked the English vowel /i/ with a rising pitch (117-166 Hz) was used as the stimulus. Three objective indices (Frequency Error, Tracking Accuracy, and Pitch Strength) were computed from the recorded brain waves and the test results were compared with human judgments to calculate the sensitivity and specificity values. Results demonstrated that the automated procedure produced sensitivity values between 53-90% and specificity values between 80-100%, and could be used to assess the presence of an FFR for neonates who were born in a tonal or non-tonal language environment.

Psychological essentialist reasoning and perspective taking during reading: a donkey is not a zebra, but a plate can be a clock.

In an eyetracking study, we examined whether readers use psychological essentialist reasoning and perspective taking online. Stories were presented in which an animal or an artifact was transformed into another animal (e.g., a donkey into a zebra) or artifact (e.g., a plate into a clock). According to psychological essentialism, the essence of the animal did not change in these stories, while the transformed artifact would be thought to have changed categories. We found evidence that readers use this kind of reasoning online: When reference was made to the transformed animal, the nontransformed term ("donkey") was preferred, but the opposite held for the transformed artifact ("clock" was read faster than "plate"). The immediacy of the effect suggests that this kind of reasoning is employed automatically. Perspective taking was examined within the same stories by the introduction of a novel story character. This character, who was naïve about the transformation, commented on the transformed animal or artifact. If the reader were to take this character's perspective immediately and exclusively for reference solving, then only the transformed term ("zebra" or "clock") would be felicitous. However, the results suggested that while this character's perspective could be taken into account, it seems difficult to completely discard one's own perspective at the same time.

The role of imagery-related properties in picture naming: a newly standardized set of 360 pictures for Japanese.

Picture naming was investigated primarily to determine its dependence on certain imagery-related variables, with a secondary aim of developing a new set of Japanese norms for 360 pictures. Pictures refined from the original Nishimoto, Miyawaki, Ueda, Une, and Takahashi (Behavior Research Methods 37:398-416, 2005) set were used. Naming behaviors were measured using four imagery-related measures (imageability, vividness, image agreement, and image variability) and four conventional measures (naming time, name agreement, familiarity, and age of acquisition), as well as a number of other measures (17 total). A simultaneous multiple regression analysis performed on naming times showed that the most reliable predictor was H, a measure of name diversity; two image-related measures (image agreement and vividness) and age of acquisition also contributed substantially to the prediction of naming times. The accuracy of picture naming (measured as name agreement) was predicted by vividness, age of acquisition, familiarity, and image agreement. This suggests that certain processes involving mental imagery play a role in picture naming. The full set of norms and pictures may be downloaded from http://www.psychonomic.org/archive/ or along with the article from http://www.springerlink.com .

The real-time status of strong and weak islands.

In two eye-tracking reading experiments, we used a variant of the filled gap technique to investigate how strong and weak islands are processed on a moment-to-moment basis during comprehension. Experiment 1 provided a conceptual replication of previous studies showing that real time processing is sensitive to strong islands. In the absence of an island, readers experienced processing difficulty when a pronoun appeared in a position of a predicted gap, but this difficulty was absent when the pronoun appeared inside a strong island. Experiment 2 showed an analogous effect for weak islands: a processing cost was seen for a pronoun in the position of a predicted gap in a that-complement clause, but this cost was absent in a matched whether clause, which constitutes a weak island configuration. Overall, our results are compatible with the claim that active dependency formation is suspended, or reduced, in both weak and strong island structures.