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Effects of Animacy and Executive Functions in Mandarin-Speaking Children's Processing of Relative Clauses: A Self-Paced Listening Task

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Title: Effects of Animacy and Executive Functions in Mandarin-Speaking Children's Processing of Relative Clauses: A Self-Paced Listening Task
Language: English
Authors: Yuxin Yang, Fabrizo Arosio, Shenai Hu (ORCID 0000-0001-5829-0977)
Source: First Language. 2026 46(1):100-125.
Availability: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 26
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Descriptors: Executive Function, Cognitive Processes, Language Processing, Form Classes (Languages), Mandarin Chinese, Child Language, Preschool Children, Pacing, Listening Comprehension, Short Term Memory, Inhibition, Cues, Foreign Countries, Intelligence Tests, Vocabulary, Verbal Ability
Geographic Terms: China
Assessment and Survey Identifiers: Raven Progressive Matrices, Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test
DOI: 10.1177/01427237251352334
ISSN: 0142-7237
1740-2344
Abstract: This study investigated how animacy cues and executive functions (i.e., working memory [WM], inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility) influence 4- to 5-year-old Mandarin-speaking children's processing of subject relative clauses and object relative clauses (ORCs). Using a self-paced listening task combined with a picture selection task, two experiments tested distinct animacy configurations. Experiment 1 employed relative clauses (RCs) with animate embedded nouns and manipulated the head noun animacy (animate vs. inanimate), revealing a facilitation effect for inanimate head nouns. Experiment 2 used RCs with inanimate embedded nouns and the same head noun animacy manipulation but found the opposite pattern: a facilitation effect for animate head nouns. The reverse animacy effects support the similarity-based interference processing account. Both experiments showed an ORC preference in accuracy, modulated by head noun animacy, and critically, WM played a prominent role in children's comprehension of RCs. The study underscores the multifaceted nature of RC comprehension, which is influenced by syntactic complexity, animacy cues, and cognitive resources.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1496491
Database: ERIC
FullText Text:
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PubType: Academic Journal
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  Data: Effects of Animacy and Executive Functions in Mandarin-Speaking Children's Processing of Relative Clauses: A Self-Paced Listening Task
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Yuxin+Yang%22">Yuxin Yang</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Fabrizo+Arosio%22">Fabrizo Arosio</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Shenai+Hu%22">Shenai Hu</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5829-0977">0000-0001-5829-0977</externalLink>)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22First+Language%22"><i>First Language</i></searchLink>. 2026 46(1):100-125.
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  Data: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
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  Data: Y
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  Data: 26
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  Data: 2026
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  Data: Journal Articles<br />Reports - Research
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22China%22">China</searchLink>
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  Data: 10.1177/01427237251352334
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  Data: This study investigated how animacy cues and executive functions (i.e., working memory [WM], inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility) influence 4- to 5-year-old Mandarin-speaking children's processing of subject relative clauses and object relative clauses (ORCs). Using a self-paced listening task combined with a picture selection task, two experiments tested distinct animacy configurations. Experiment 1 employed relative clauses (RCs) with animate embedded nouns and manipulated the head noun animacy (animate vs. inanimate), revealing a facilitation effect for inanimate head nouns. Experiment 2 used RCs with inanimate embedded nouns and the same head noun animacy manipulation but found the opposite pattern: a facilitation effect for animate head nouns. The reverse animacy effects support the similarity-based interference processing account. Both experiments showed an ORC preference in accuracy, modulated by head noun animacy, and critically, WM played a prominent role in children's comprehension of RCs. The study underscores the multifaceted nature of RC comprehension, which is influenced by syntactic complexity, animacy cues, and cognitive resources.
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  Data: 2026
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  Data: EJ1496491
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        Value: 10.1177/01427237251352334
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      – SubjectFull: Cognitive Processes
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      – SubjectFull: Language Processing
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      – TitleFull: Effects of Animacy and Executive Functions in Mandarin-Speaking Children's Processing of Relative Clauses: A Self-Paced Listening Task
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              Y: 2026
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