Effects of sentence structure and type of control verb on thematic role assignment: Evidence from eye movements

doi:10.3724/SP.J.1041.2021.01071

Abstract

Abstract:

The extended argument dependency model (eADM) suggests that readers adopt a position-based assignment for rigid word-ordering languages with case marking, and thematic reanalysis occurs when the verb’s argument representation contradicts with the argument cues, which induces additional processing costs. To test the model, this study used a 2 (sentence structure: centered, preposed) × 2 (type of control verb: subject control, object control) within-subject design and recorded the eye movements of 24 native Chinese speakers. By manipulating sentence structure, the reliance on word order information in the existence of case marking information in Chinese was investigated. Type of control verb was manipulated to examine the reanalysis of thematic roles when argument representation of the verb was in contradiction with cues of arguments in Chinese. The results were as follows: (1) the preposed structure sentences gained more duration and regression than the centered structure sentences in the first noun, second noun and verb regions; (2) more second-pass reading time and total regressions were found in the object control verb condition than in the subject control verb condition in the verb and post-verb regions; (3) For the centered structure sentences, there were more duration and regression in sentences containing object control verbs than those containing subject control verbs in the second noun and verb regions; However, for the preposed structure sentences, there were longer reading time in sentences containing object control verbs than those containing subject control verbs in the post-verb region. These findings are in line with the claim of the eADM model.

Key words: word order, case marking, control verb, thematic role assignment

LI Fang, LI Xin, ZHANG Manman, BAI Xuejun. (2021). Effects of sentence structure and type of control verb on thematic role assignment: Evidence from eye movements. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 53(10), 1071-1081.

Figures/Tables 7

References 49

[1]	Bates, D., Mächler, M., Bolker, B., & Walker, S. (2015). Fitting linear mixed-effects models using lme4. Journal of Statistical Software, 67(1), 1-48.
[2]	Bates, E., & MacWhinney, B. (1987). Competition, variation, and language learning. In B. MacWhinney (Ed.), Mechanisms of language acquisition (pp. 157-193). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erbaum Associates.
[3]	Bates, E. A., & MacWhinney, B. (1989). Functionalism and the competition model. In B. MacWhinney & E. Bates (Eds.), The cross linguistic study of sentence processing (pp. 3-73). UK: Cambridge University Press.
[4]	Betancort, M., Carreiras, M., & Acuña-Fariña, C. (2006). Processing controlled PROs in Spanish. Cognition, 100(2), 217-282. pmid: 16310761
[5]	Boland, J. E., Tanenhaus, M. K., & Garnsey, S. M. (1990). Evidence for the immediate use of verb control information in sentence processing. Journal of Memory and Language, 29(4), 413-432. doi: 10.1016/0749-596X(90)90064-7 URL
[6]	Bornkessel, I., & Schlesewsky, M. (2006). The extended argument dependency model: A neurocognitive approach to sentence comprehension across languages. Psychological Review, 113(4), 787-821. pmid: 17014303
[7]	Bornkessel-Schlesewsky, I., & Schlesewsky, M. (2008). An alternative perspective on “semantic P600” effects in language comprehension. Brain Research Reviews, 59(1), 55-73. doi: 10.1016/j.brainresrev.2008.05.003 pmid: 18617270
[8]	Bornkessel-Schlesewsky, I., & Schlesewsky, M. (2016). The argument dependency model. In G. Hickok & S. L. Small (Eds.), Neurobiology of Language (pp. 357-369). Academic Press.
[9]	Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Earlbaum Associates.
[10]	Dowty, D. (1991). Thematic proto-roles and argument selection. Language, 67(3), 547-619. doi: 10.1353/lan.1991.0021 URL
[11]	Faul, F., Erdfelder, E., Buchner, A., & Lang, A. -G. (2009). Statistical power analyses using GPower 3.1: Tests for correlation and regression analyses. Behavior Research Methods*, 41(4), 1149-1160. doi: 10.3758/BRM.41.4.1149 URL
[12]	Frazier, L., Clifton, C., & Randall, J. (1983). Filling gaps: Decision principles and structure in sentence comprehension. Cognition, 13(2), 187-222. doi: 10.1016/0010-0277(83)90022-7 URL
[13]	Frisch, S., & Schlesewsky, M. (2001). The N400 reflects problems of thematic hierarchizing. Neuroreport, 12(15), 3391-3394. pmid: 11711892
[14]	Gattei, C. A., Dickey, M. W., Wainselboim, A. J., & París, L. (2015). The thematic hierarchy in sentence comprehension: A study on the interaction between verb class and word order in Spanish. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 68(10), 1981-2007. doi: 10.1080/17470218.2014.1000345 URL
[15]	Gattei, C. A., Tabullo, Á., París, L., & Wainselboim, A. J. (2015). The role of prominence in Spanish sentence comprehension: An ERP study. Brain and Language, 150, 22-35. doi: 10.1016/j.bandl.2015.08.001 URL
[16]	Gattei, C. A., Sevilla, Y., Tabullo, Á. J., Wainselboim, A. J., París, L. A., & Shalom, D. E. (2017). Prominence in Spanish sentence comprehension: An eye-tracking study. Language, Cognition and Neuroscience, 33(5), 587-607.
[17]	Harrington, M. (1987). Processing transfer: Language-specific processing strategies as a source of interlanguage variation. Applied Psycholinguistics, 8(4), 351-377. doi: 10.1017/S0142716400000370 URL
[18]	Li, X. Q., Zhao, H. Y., Zheng, Y. Y., & Yang, Y. F. (2015). Two-stage interaction between word order and noun animacy during online thematic processing of sentences in Mandarin Chinese. Language, Cognition and Neuroscience, 30(5), 555-573.
[19]	MacWhinney, B. (1984). The competition model: The input, the context, and the brain. In P. Robinson (Ed.), Cognition and second language instruction (pp. 69-90). Cambridge University Press.
[20]	MacWhinney, B., Bates, E., & Kliegl, R. (1984). Cue validity and sentence interpretation in English, German, and Italian. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 23(2), 127-150. doi: 10.1016/S0022-5371(84)90093-8 URL
[21]	Manouilidou, C., & de Almeida, R. G. (2013). Processing correlates of verb typologies: Investigating internal structure and argument realization. Linguistics, 51(4), 767-792.
[22]	McDonald, J. L., & Heilenman, L. K. (1991). Determinants of cue strength in adult first and second language speakers of French. Applied Psycholinguistics, 12(3), 313-348. doi: 10.1017/S0142716400009255 URL
[23]	Meltzer-Asscher, A., Mack, J. E., Barbieri, E., & Thompson, C. K. (2015). How the brain processes different dimensions of argument structure complexity: Evidence from fMRI. Brain and Language, 142, 65-75. doi: 10.1016/j.bandl.2014.12.005 pmid: 25658635
[24]	Meng, X. Q., & Jia, X. Y. (2009). Comparison of “dui construction” in Chinese and French. Linguistic Research, 3, 22-26.
[25]	Morett, L. M., & MacWhinney, B. (2013). Syntactic transfer in English-speaking Spanish learners. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 16(1), 132-151. doi: 10.1017/S1366728912000107 URL
[26]	Özge, D., Küntay, A., & Snedeker, J. (2019). Why wait for the verb? Turkish speaking children use case markers for incremental language comprehension. Cognition, 183, 152-180. doi: 10.1016/j.cognition.2018.10.026 URL
[27]	Pléh, C., Fekete, I., & Varga, D. (2017). The possible role of entropy in processing argument dependencies in Hungarian. In F. Kiefer, J. Blevins, & H. Bartos (Eds.), Perspectives on morphological organization (pp. 200-211). Brill.
[28]	Qiao, Y. (1987). Comparative analysis of case marking and lexicase in Chinese. Academic Journal Graduate School Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, 6, 75-78.
[29]	Rayner, K. (1998). Eye movements in reading and information processing: 20 years of research. Psychological Bulletin, 124(3), 372-422. pmid: 9849112
[30]	RStudio, . (2019). RStudio: Integrated development environment for R (Version 1.2.5033) [Computer software]. Boston, MA, Author. Retrieved from http://www.rstudio.org/
[31]	Song, J. Q., & Jang, H. H. (2011). Contrastive analysis of Chinese-English case marking and its translation strategies. Journal of Nantong Vocational and Technical Shipping College, 10(1), 5-8.
[32]	Starosta., S. (1985). Mandarin case marking: A localistic lexicase analysis. Journal of Chinese Linguistics, 13(2), 216-266.
[33]	Strotseva-Feinschmidt, A., Schipke, C. S., Gunter, T. C., Brauer, J., & Friederici, A. D. (2019). Young children’s sentence comprehension: Neural correlates of syntax-semantic competition. Brain and Cognition, 134, 110-121. doi: S0278-2626(18)30030-7 pmid: 30442450
[34]	Su, I. R. (2001). Transfer of sentence processing strategies: A comparison of L2 learners of Chinese and English. Applied Psycholinguistics, 22(1), 83-112. doi: 10.1017/S0142716401001059 URL
[35]	Tanenhaus, M. K., Carlson, G., & Trueswell, J. C. (1989). The role of thematic structures in interpretation and parsing. Language and Cognitive Processes, 4(3-4), SI211-SI234.
[36]	Team, R. (2019). R: A language and environment for statistical computing. Vienna, Austria, R Foundation for Statistical Computing. Retrieved from http://www.R-project.org/
[37]	Thompson, C. K., Bonakdarpour, B., & Fix, S. F. (2010). Neural mechanisms of verb argument structure processing in agrammatic aphasic and healthy age-matched listeners. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 22(9), 1993-2011. doi: 10.1162/jocn.2009.21334 pmid: 19702460
[38]	Thompson, C. K., Bonakdarpour, B., Fix, S. C., Blumenfeld, H. K., Parrish, T. B., Gitelman, D. R., & Mesulam, M. M. (2007). Neural correlates of verb argument structure processing. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 19(11), 1753-1767. pmid: 17958479
[39]	Thompson, C. K., Riley, E. A., den Ouden, D. B., MeltzerAsscher, A., & Lukic, S. (2013). Training verb argument structure production in agrammatic aphasia: Behavioral and neural recovery patterns. Cortex, 49(9), 2358-2376. doi: 10.1016/j.cortex.2013.02.003 pmid: 23514929
[40]	Wang, L., Schlesewsky, M., Bickel, B., & Bornkessel-Schlesewsky, L. (2009). Exploring the nature of the ‘subject’-preference: Evidence from the online comprehension of simple sentences in Mandarin Chinese. Language and Cognitive Processes, 24(7-8), 1180-1226. doi: 10.1080/01690960802159937 URL
[41]	Wang, X. (2013). A treatment of the ba-sentence and the bei-sentence by type-logical grammar. Journal of Yantai University (Philosophy and Social Science Edition), 26(3), 113-117.
[42]	Wang, X., Hang, M. L., & Liang, D. D. (2020). The cognitive neural mechanisms of verb argument structure complexity processing. Advances in Psychological Science, 28(1), 62-74. doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1042.2020.00062 URL
[43]	Weckerly, J., & Kutas, M. (1999). An electrophysiological analysis of animacy effects in the processing of object relative sentences. Psychophysiology, 36(5), 559-570. pmid: 10442024
[44]	Wu, H. (2019). The research of “Dui”-sentence in modern Chinese from the cognitive-function perspective (Unpublished doctorial dissertation). Jilin University, Changchun.
[45]	Xu, X. D., Chen, L. J., & Ni, C. B. (2017). How is pronoun resolution modulated by topic structures and verb-based implicit causality in Mandarian Chinese? An ERP investigation. Foreign Language Teaching and Research, 49(3), 323-334.
[46]	Xu, X. D., Ni, C. B., & Chen, L. J. (2017). The influence of topic structure and verb-based implicit causality on pronoun resolution in Mandarian Chinese: Evidence from sentence production and comprehension. Modern Foreign Languages, 36(4), 331-339.
[47]	Yamashita, H. (1997). The effects of word-order and case marking information on the processing of Japanese. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 26(2), 163-188. doi: 10.1023/A:1025009615473 URL
[48]	Zhai, Y. (2011). The processing of Dui-construction in Chinese. Psychology, 2(6), 560-567. doi: 10.4236/psych.2011.26086 URL
[49]	Zhang, M., Liversedge, S. P., Bai, X., Yan, G., & Zang, C. (2019). The influence of foveal lexical processing load on parafoveal preview and saccadic targeting during Chinese reading. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 45(6), 812-825. doi: 10.1037/xhp0000644 URL

Conditions		Sentences
Centered structure	Subject control verb	老徐对老齐懊悔说应该及早采取防护措施。
Centered structure	Object control verb	老徐对老齐提醒说应该及早采取防护措施。
Preposed structure	Subject control verb	对老齐老徐懊悔说应该及早采取防护措施。
Preposed structure	Object control verb	对老齐老徐提醒说应该及早采取防护措施。

Conditions		Sentences
Centered structure	Subject control verb	老徐对老齐懊悔说应该及早采取防护措施。
Centered structure	Object control verb	老徐对老齐提醒说应该及早采取防护措施。
Preposed structure	Subject control verb	对老齐老徐懊悔说应该及早采取防护措施。
Preposed structure	Object control verb	对老齐老徐提醒说应该及早采取防护措施。

Material properties	Centered structure		Preposed structure
Material properties	Subject control verb	Object control verb	Subject control verb	Object control verb
Verb-verification index	0.98 ± 0.06	0.99 ± 0.05	0.99 ± 0.03	0.99 ± 0.03
Semantic orientation fitness	0.92 ± 0.14	0.94 ± 0.12	0.94 ± 0.10	0.89 ± 0.16
Sentence naturalness	5.11 ± 0.78	5.15 ± 0.69	4.49 ± 0.67	4.49 ± 0.71

Material properties	Centered structure		Preposed structure
Material properties	Subject control verb	Object control verb	Subject control verb	Object control verb
Verb-verification index	0.98 ± 0.06	0.99 ± 0.05	0.99 ± 0.03	0.99 ± 0.03
Semantic orientation fitness	0.92 ± 0.14	0.94 ± 0.12	0.94 ± 0.10	0.89 ± 0.16
Sentence naturalness	5.11 ± 0.78	5.15 ± 0.69	4.49 ± 0.67	4.49 ± 0.71

Experimental conditions	1	2 (Interest area 1)	3	4 (Interest area 2)	5 (Interest area 3)	6 (Interest area 4)	7
Centered structure
Subject control verb		老徐	对	老齐	懊悔	说应该	及早采取防护措施
Object control verb		老徐	对	老齐	提醒	说应该	及早采取防护措施
Preposed structure
Subject control verb	对	老齐		老徐	懊悔	说应该	及早采取防护措施
Object control verb	对	老齐		老徐	提醒	说应该	及早采取防护措施