Semantic transparency modulates the processing of emotion words during Chinese reading: Evidence from eye movements

Abstract

How the emotionality and transparency of target word affect processing has been long-studied in cognitive psychology, yet less is known about their joint effects during natural reading. The current study is the first to use eye-tracking methodology to orthogonally investigate semantic transparency and emotional valence effects for compound words in natural Chinese reading. Eye movements were monitored while participants read sentences with positive or negative and transparent or opaque two-character compound words. The experiment found a processing advantage for transparent words over opaque words when participants re-read earlier portions of the sentences, which indicated more difficult in integrating opaque words with preceding context relative to transparent words. However, our findings provided no robust evidence for comparable valence effects in the eye movements during Chinese reading, and no parafoveal-on-foveal effects were found. In conclusion, the current study indicates transparency might affect semantic integration of the target word with sentence context.