Wu, Zhaohong
(2015)
Processing relative clauses in context: what kind of priming from the preceding context is most effective?
Master's Thesis, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
This study examines the influence of different kinds of preceding contexts on the processing of relative clauses. Through both a Chinese and an English version of an experiment, with native speakers recruited for each version, this study systematically compared the processing of relative clauses in a canonical, non-canonical, and “null” context in both Chinese and English and was the first to systematically examine three accounts of priming (the thematic pattern priming account proposed by Lin (2014), in addition to both the verb phrase constituent priming account and the syntactic position sequence priming account proposed by Fedorenko, Piantadosi, and Gibson (2012)) in relative clause processing in both Chinese and English. Results showed discrepancies between predictions from each priming account and the actual results. None of the three priming accounts could sufficiently explain the results in Chinese and English. Alternative possible explanations were suggested, including: (1) having a context makes relative clause reading more natural and frequency effects less obvious; (2) the NPs inside the RCs are primed by the original thematic roles or grammatical functions of same NPs in the critical context sentence; (3) an interplay of all three different kinds of priming in the processing of relative clauses in context may occur.
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Details
Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
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Status: |
Unpublished |
Creators/Authors: |
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ETD Committee: |
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Date: |
1 June 2015 |
Date Type: |
Publication |
Defense Date: |
6 November 2014 |
Approval Date: |
1 June 2015 |
Submission Date: |
25 March 2015 |
Access Restriction: |
No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately. |
Number of Pages: |
67 |
Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
Schools and Programs: |
Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Linguistics |
Degree: |
MA - Master of Arts |
Thesis Type: |
Master's Thesis |
Refereed: |
Yes |
Uncontrolled Keywords: |
Chinese relative clauses; priming |
Date Deposited: |
01 Jun 2015 19:22 |
Last Modified: |
15 Nov 2016 14:26 |
URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/24011 |
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