Word Association Verification Study (Word Association Judgments)

Background

The basis of communication relies on a shared understanding of word meanings. Empirical studies, for example, have demonstrated variations in the meanings of common words across languages and cultures (e.g., Wang and Bi, 2021). However, only a few studies have explicitly quantified the number of distinct concepts mapped onto a single word and the extent to which this conceptual diversity can be attributed to an individual’s language differences. The present study investigated the role of language in shaping individuals’ understanding of common word meanings. Specifically, we examined to what extent common words can be interpreted differently between native Chinese speakers and native English speakers.

Research Questions / Hypotheses

The present study proposes two hypotheses. Firstly, we hypothesize that there will be variations in the conceptual agreement of common word meanings interpreted between native Chinese speakers and English speakers. Secondly, we hypothesize that language differences (i.e., native Chinese speaker versus English speaker) will account for larger conceptual variations when compared to gender differences.

Participants

A total of 293 participants, who were native speakers of either English or Chinese, were recruited for the study. Certain participants were excluded from the data analysis due to incomplete study participation or an inability to identify them as either native English or native Chinese speakers.

Methods

The cue words used in this study comprised a set of 140 common English nouns that had previously been utilized in the study conducted by De Deyne et al. (2023). Participants engaged in a 60-minute online session and were presented with 28 words. The first task involved familiarity judgment task, where participants provided familiarity ratings for each cue words. Secondly, participants conducted the judgement of associative strength task, where they were tasked with evaluating the degree of association between a set of associates and each cue word.

Results

Our results revealed evidence for language-specific meanings was present in all cue words between native English and Chinese speakers, with strong evidence found in nearly 80% of them. We found that the number of gender-specific words was much smaller than the number of language-specific words, thus supporting our hypothesis.

Implications

The implications of our findings extend to understanding how common words used daily can carry different meanings across languages and cultures. This understanding is of significant practical relevance, as neglecting language and cultural nuances can lead to translation discrepancies and misunderstandings, especially for bilingual translators and language learners who may not be well-acquainted with the cultural nuances of a second language. The results of this study will also be communicated through a psychology Honours thesis and journal article.