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7. Reading Efficiency and Reading Strategies
- Hong Kong University Press, HKU
- Chapter
- Additional Information
7 ReadingEfficiencyandReading Strategies Yi-PingChen Current wor d recognitio n model s conside r tha t singl e word readin g ma y involve th e activatio n o f th e orthographic , phonologica l an d semanti c codes o f writte n word s i n paralle l (Seidenber g & McClelland , 1989) . However, eve n i f al l information source s o f writte n word s ar e activate d and become available, readers may not necessarily use them all at the same time. The y ma y selec t differen t kind s o f informatio n (suc h a s visual , semantic an d phonological ) fo r reading . The use of differen t informatio n sources o f writte n word s i s sometimes calle d reading strategies o r skill (Barron, 1978 , 1981) . The associatio n betwee n readin g skil l and readin g strategies ha s bee n extensivel y studie d (especiall y som e developmenta l studies) i n English (Baron , 1973 ; Barron, 1978 , 1981). The present stud y is primaril y concerne d wit h th e way s i n whic h differen t visual , phonological an d semanti c decoding strategies are related to the efficienc y of reading Chinese two-character Ci, the most frequently use d lexical items in modern Chines e language . O Paradig m an d Rational e The experimental paradigm i s the computerised lexica l decision with twocharacter C i in Chinese. Two-character C i plays an important lexica l rol e 144YI-PINGCHE N in Chinese . Multi-characte r Ci , especially th e two-characte r Ci , ar e th e most frequentl y use d lexica l item s i n bot h spoke n an d writte n Chines e since 1920s . Th e two-characte r C i is , to som e extent , analogou s t o th e English compoun d word , containin g tw o fre e morpheme s (car t horse , armchair, toothbrush , headache) . The y bot h consis t o f independen t characters an d ar e use d a s mor e o r les s a s fixe d expression s i n th e language. Th e lexica l decisio n tas k fo r two-characte r C i require s th e subject t o judge whether o r not th e two character s togethe r for m a C i i n Chinese. Unlik e som e specifi c task s suc h a s namin g an d semanti c categorization tasks , the lexical decisio n tas k doe s not specif y th e natur e of th e informatio n o n whic h th e judgement s ar e made . I t i s i n a wa y similar to reading in real life in that subjects can use any information fro m the print s availabl e t o the m durin g th e readin g processing . However , i t should b e pointe d ou t tha t lexica l decisio n wit h two-characte r C i i s different fro m th e conventiona l lexica l decisio n tas k i n Englis h (i.e. , whether o r no t a written symbo l i s a word) i n a t leas t tw o ways . First , lexical decisio n wit h two-characte r C i involve s tw o character s writte n separately in Chinese. Apart from recognitio n of the individual characters , the task demand s the recognition o f a specific lexica l association betwee n the tw o characters . Second , fo r 'No ' responses , 'non-Ci ' o r 'pseudo-Ci ' consists o f tw o legitimat e Chines e characters , bu t i n a meaningles s combination. I t is the combination, no t the individual element s that mus t be judged . I n th e presen t study , lexica l decisio n wit h two-characte r C i involves not onl y character recognitio n bu t also recognition o f the lexica l association between characters, which thus more closely approximates rea l reading. The presen t stud y i s concerne d wit h th e utilizatio n o f differen t information resource s i n reading two-character Ci...