第二语言语义提取中的词汇知识效应

The effects of L2 Vocabulary Knowledge on L2 Semantic Proc

本文针对双语心理词汇表征中“发展性变化”的现象,以第二语言词汇能力为概念框架,围绕第二语言词汇知识发展与第二语言语义提取效率的关系问题,探究中国英语学习者语义提取中的词汇知识效应问题。实验一的结果表明第二语言词汇知识影响了学习者对第二语言语义提取的效率;词汇知识水平高的学习者比水平低的学习者更快和更准确地对语义信息进行了提取。同时,启动效应不一定随着第二语言词汇知识水平的提高而增强。实验二的结果表明学习者心理词汇网络中的联结类型因不同英语词汇知识水平而呈现出不同的规律,各类联结在数量上存在显著的差异。实验说明学习者的心理词汇网络影响了语义提取的效率,第二语言词汇知识、词汇网络和语义提取之间存在着密切的联系。

This paper reports on a study designed to examine the effects of L2vocabulary knowledge on L2semantic processing for Chinese learners of English.Two experiments have been run within a conceptual framework of L2lexical competence,which was specially developed for the current re - search.Experiment1tested the L2vocabulary knowledge hypothesis,which postulated that L2vo - cabulary knowledge would affect efficiency of L2semantic processing for Chinese learners of Eng - lish.A primed lexical decision task was used to assess the learners ' efficiency of L2semantic pro - cessing and the Controlled Active Vocabulary Test was administrated to determine their L2vocabu - lary knowledge.The results showed that the learners of high-level L2vocabulary knowledge were significantly quicker and more accurate than those of low-level L2vocabulary knowledge regarding accessibility of semantic knowledge in the L2mental lexicon.Furthermore,semantic priming effects did not increase with the development of L2vocabulary knowledge.Experiment2tested the links hypothesis,which stated that links in lexical networks of Chinese-speaking learners of English would influence the changes in efficiency of L2semantic processing.For this purpose,a task of restricted word association was adopted.The results showed that the pattern of responses in the lexical net - works of learners with richer vocabulary knowledge was significantly different from that in the lexi - cal networks of learners with poorer vocabulary knowledge.The findings from Experiment2lent support to an explanation of a weaker semantic priming effect achieved by the learners with higher level of vocabulary knowledge,which attributes the weaker effect to better-structured lexical net - works in the light of the compound cue theory.These results are taken as evidence that L2vocabu - lary knowledge affects the efficiency with which Chinese learners of English process semantic in - formation and their patterns of lexical networks influence the changes of efficiency in L2semantic processing.