中国英语学习者社会规范加工的外语效应机制

Effects of Foreign Languages on Processing Social Norms by Chinese EFL Learners

双语者在母语和外语模式下的决策判断模式是否一致是双语认知研究的重要课题。本文基于一项社会规范加工任务,以被试自定步速阅读判断句尾关键词的接受度和反应时为指标,对比了中国英语学习者在母语和外语模式下对三类社会行为(高度符合社会规范、中性、高度违反)的加工变化。结果发现:第一,外语模式下,所有被试对高度违反社会规范行为的接受度提高,中性行为接受度不变,表现出明显的外语效应;第二,被试对高度符合社会规范行为的接受度变化存在差异,高水平组保持不变而低水平组显著降低,且外语水平与该类行为接受度的外语效应量负相关;第三,语言模式与不同类型社会行为的加工时间交互作用显著,母语模式下三类信息加工时间差异显著,但外语模式下中性和高度违反社会规范行为的判断时间差异消失。上述结果表明,正性和负性信息加工的外语效应机制既有共性又有差异,二者都存在情感自动加工弱化,但外语水平与负性情感弱化相关的外语效应不存在线性关系。

Whether bilinguals’ decision-making is consistent in their native versus foreign language is an important question in bilingual cognition. Using a social norm processing task, this study compares the processing changes of three types of social behaviors(highly conforming to social norms, neutral, highly violating social norms) in bilinguals’ two languages by measuring Chinese EFL learners’ acceptability rating and reaction time(RT) in the self-paced reading of sentence final key words. Results showed that:(1) While the ratings of neutral behaviors remained unchanged,both groups rated highly violating social behaviors less unacceptable when they were presented in English than in Chinese, representing a typical Foreign Language Effect(FLE);(2) The acceptability ratings of behaviors highly conforming to social norms showed different change patterns. The high-level subjects remained unchanged whereas the low-level subjects rated these behaviors as less acceptable when they were presented in English than in Chinese. These changes correlated negatively with subjects’ English language proficiency;(3) RT results showed an interaction between language and social norm categories. Whereas RTs were different across each type of behaviors in the native language, such difference between neutral and highly violating behaviors diminished in the foreign language condition. Overall, these results suggest both similarity and difference in FLE mechanism for positive and negative information processing. Both show reduced activation, but there is no linear relationship between foreign language proficiency and FLE-related negative emotion attenuation.