Cognition and native-language grammar: The organizational role of adjective–noun word order in information representation

Percy, Elise J.; Sherman, Steven J.; Garcia-Marques, Leonel; Mata, André; Garcia-Marques, Teresa

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.12/2635

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Authors

Percy, Elise J.

Sherman, Steven J.

Garcia-Marques, Leonel

Mata, André

Garcia-Marques, Teresa

Abstract(s)

In the present research, we investigated the influence of native-language adjective–noun word order on category accessibility for nouns and adjectives by comparing Portuguese speakers (in whose language nouns precede adjectives) with English speakers (in whose language adjectives precede nouns). In two studies, we presented participants with different numbers of verbal or pictorial stimuli, and subsequently they answered questions about noun- and adjective-conditioned frequencies. The results demonstrated a primacy effect of nativelanguage word order. Specifically, although both populations showed a speed advantage for noun-conditioned questions, this tendency was significantly stronger for Portuguese than for American participants. We discuss the important role of native-language syntax rules for the categorization and representation of information.