Age of acquisition effects on the decomposition of compound words

Previous research has shown that early-acquired words are produced faster than late-acquired words (see Juhasz, 2005). Juhasz and colleagues (Juhasz, Lai & Woodcock, 2015; Juhasz, 2018) argue that the Age-of-Acquisition (AoA) loci for complex words, specifically compound words, are found at the lexical/semantic level. In the current study, two experiments were conducted to evaluate this claim and investigate the influence of AoA in reading compound words aloud. In Experiment 1, 48 participants completed a word naming task. Using general linear mixed modelling, we found that the age at which the compound word was learned significantly affected the naming latencies beyond the other psycholinguistic properties measured. The second experiment required 48 participants to name the compound word when the two morphemes were presented with a space in-between (combinatorial naming, e.g. air plane). We found that the age at which the compound word was learned, as well as the AoA of the individual morphemes that formed the compound word, significantly influenced combinatorial naming latency. These findings are discussed in relation to theories of the AoA in language processing.

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Age of Acquisition Effects on the decomposition of compound words

10.31234/osf.io/yfmkb ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Mahmoud Medhat Elsherif ◽

Jon Catling

Keyword(s):

Language Processing ◽

Semantic Processing ◽

Learning Experience ◽

Strong Predictor ◽

Processing System ◽

Age Of Acquisition ◽

Lexical Retrieval ◽

Compound Words ◽

Multiple Origins ◽

Complex Words

Age of acquisition (AoA) is a measure of learning experience and a strong predictor of lexical retrieval. According to the integrated view, the AoA effect results from the development of semantic representations and the mappings between these representations. This has not been considered in morphologically complex words. The integrated account predicts that the AoA effect should be larger in tasks requiring greater semantic processing and any AoA effects should be shown in the early processes of word recognition. The present study investigates these predictions in compound words, which differ from monomorphemic words in terms of ease of mapping and semantic processes in lexical retrieval. Forty-eight participants completed a compound lexeme segmentation (CLS) task, in which participants named either the head or modifier depending on the number above the compound word, to establish how semantics are involved in processing the head and the modifier. The results demonstrated that semantics influenced the naming of the modifier to a greater extent than the head, with the AoA effect being larger in the modifier than the head. Our findings provide evidence that aligns with the multiple origins of AoA effects in the language processing system.

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Two words as one: A multi-naming investigation of the age-of-acquisition effect in compound-word processing

Memory & Cognition ◽

10.3758/s13421-019-00986-6 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 48 (4) ◽

pp. 511-525 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Mahmoud Medhat Elsherif ◽

Jon C. Catling ◽

Steven Frisson

Keyword(s):

Language Processing ◽

Word Processing ◽

Naming Latency ◽

Age Of Acquisition ◽

Naming Task ◽

Compound Word ◽

Compound Words ◽

Semantic Level ◽

The Individual ◽

Complex Words

AbstractPrevious research has shown that early-acquired words are produced faster than late-acquired words. Juhasz and colleagues (Juhasz, Lai & Woodcock, Behavior Research Methods, 47 (4), 1004-1019, 2015; Juhasz, The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1-10, 2018) argue that the Age-of-Acquisition (AoA) loci for complex words, specifically compound words, are found at the lexical/semantic level. In the current study, two experiments were conducted to evaluate this claim and investigate the influence of AoA in reading compound words aloud. In Experiment 1, 48 participants completed a word naming task. Using general linear mixed modelling, we found that the age at which the compound word was learned significantly affected the naming latencies beyond the other psycholinguistic properties measured. The second experiment required 48 participants to name the compound word when the two morphemes were presented with a space in-between (combinatorial naming, e.g. air plane). We found that the age at which the compound word was learned, as well as the AoA of the individual morphemes that formed the compound word, significantly influenced combinatorial naming latency. These findings are discussed in relation to theories of the AoA in language processing.

Download Full-text