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<p>This study explores the emotional processing mechanism of Chinese abstract nouns from an embodied cognition perspective, using semantic priming experiments. Thirty Chinese learners at HSK5 or above and 30 native Chinese college students participated in two experiments, programmed and conducted using E-prime 2.0. The experiments employed a 2 × 2 × 2 mixed design, examining subject type (learners vs. native speakers), vocabulary-picture correlation (semantically relevant vs. irrelevant), and affective valence (positive vs. negative). Results revealed that abstract nouns and situation pictures can mutually prime each other, with a significant impact of vocabulary-picture correlation on processing cost for both groups and on accuracy for learners only. Positive valence abstract nouns exhibited lower processing cost and higher accuracy than negative ones. Additionally, learners demonstrated significantly lower processing cost and accuracy compared to native speakers. Based on the Embodied Theory of Semantic Representation and Situation Processing Architecture, an interactive priming model between abstract nouns and concrete situations is proposed. The study concludes with specific teaching suggestions for abstract nouns in international Chinese education, emphasizing contextualized, intensive, and systematic approaches.</p>

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Unraveling the emotional complexity of abstract nouns in Chinese learners’ second language processing: an empirical investigation

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年1月14日

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  • Hong Shi,
  • Haiyang Liu

摘要

This study explores the emotional processing mechanism of Chinese abstract nouns from an embodied cognition perspective, using semantic priming experiments. Thirty Chinese learners at HSK5 or above and 30 native Chinese college students participated in two experiments, programmed and conducted using E-prime 2.0. The experiments employed a 2 × 2 × 2 mixed design, examining subject type (learners vs. native speakers), vocabulary-picture correlation (semantically relevant vs. irrelevant), and affective valence (positive vs. negative). Results revealed that abstract nouns and situation pictures can mutually prime each other, with a significant impact of vocabulary-picture correlation on processing cost for both groups and on accuracy for learners only. Positive valence abstract nouns exhibited lower processing cost and higher accuracy than negative ones. Additionally, learners demonstrated significantly lower processing cost and accuracy compared to native speakers. Based on the Embodied Theory of Semantic Representation and Situation Processing Architecture, an interactive priming model between abstract nouns and concrete situations is proposed. The study concludes with specific teaching suggestions for abstract nouns in international Chinese education, emphasizing contextualized, intensive, and systematic approaches.