讀寫文化對於兩岸中文母語者之閱讀表現差異研究

Abstract

語言與思想的因果關係一直以來都是語言學界和心理學界熱切討論的議題。許多研究從時空隱喻和空間認知的角度探討不同語言對於人們思考模式的影響。然而，目前探討讀寫文化如何影響不同母語者思考模式的相關研究並不多，而不同讀寫文化如何影響擁有相同母語背景人士的相關研究更是付之闕如。 中國母語者長期接觸直書教育，而台灣母語者則同時接受直、橫書教育，因此本研究以中國籍母語者和台灣籍母語者為研究對象，並設計行為實驗。筆者將受試者分為直書組和橫書組，請受試者閱讀篇章及作答選擇題，旨在收集兩岸中文母語者的閱讀正確率及閱讀反應時間，作為判斷其閱讀表現的指標。最後，筆者統計分析受試者在閱讀相異排版方向的篇章時，兩岸中文母語者在閱讀正確率及反應時間的表現，進一步探討讀寫文化因素對於母語者閱讀表現的影響。 實驗結果發現，沒有直書習慣的中國籍母語者在直書刺激材料的答題正確率及反應時間皆比有直書習慣的台灣籍母語者差，這說明讀寫文化確實影響同一母語人士的閱讀表現。換而言之，不同的語言影響人們的思考模式，但讀寫文化差異對於人們語言思考的影響力仍不可忽視。

The causal relationship between language and thought has long been a topic of debate in linguistics and psychology. So far, many researches have already studied the influence of different languages on human’s way of thinking from spatiotemporal metaphor and spatial cognition approach. However, few studies focused on how the difference of writing direction affects the ways of thinking between speakers of different language background. Moreover, rare studies have been conducted to investigate how different writing directions affect the reading performance of speakers sharing the same language. In view of the fact that speakers in China have been exposed to vertical-layout texts since childhood, while speakers in Taiwan have been exposed to both vertical-layout and horizontal-layout texts, the present research takes native speakers in Taiwan and China as participants, designing behavioral experiments. The participants were divided into vertical-layout group and the horizontal-layout group. They were asked to read short essays and answer questions. The accuracy rate and reaction times of native speakers in Taiwan and China were subsequently collected for later analysis. The results indicated that the accuracy rate and reaction times of native speakers in China were worse than those of native speakers in Taiwan. To conclude, difference in writing direction does have an impact on native speakers’ performance in reading. It is undeniable that languages affect people’s way of thinking. The impact of cultural differences in writing direction on people’s language should also be taken into account