ERIC Number: EJ1112935
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 24
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0163-853X
EISSN: N/A
The Role of Perspective Shifts for Processing and Translating Discourse Relations
Zufferey, Sandrine; Gygax, Pascal M.
Discourse Processes: A multidisciplinary journal, v53 n7 p532-555 2016
Previous research has suggested that some discourse relations are easier to convey implicitly than others due to cognitive biases in the interpretation of discourse. In this article we argue that relations involving a perspective shift, such as confirmation relations, are difficult to convey implicitly. We assess this claim with two empirical studies involving the ambiguous French connective "en effet," which can either convey a causal relation or a confirmation relation. First, we compare the processing of implicit and explicit causal and confirmation relations conveyed by this connective in a self-paced reading experiment and show that removing the connective in confirmation relations disturbs processing. Second, we compare the percentage of implicit translations of "en effet" for both discourse relations across three target languages using parallel directional corpora and find that causal relations always lead to more implicit translations than confirmation relations.
Descriptors: Role, Perspective Taking, Discourse Analysis, French, Ambiguity (Semantics), Form Classes (Languages), Computational Linguistics, Attribution Theory, Translation, Language Processing, Comparative Analysis, Reading Processes, Test Items, Computer Assisted Testing, College Faculty, College Students, Foreign Countries, Computer Software, English, German, Statistical Analysis, Contrastive Linguistics
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Germany; Switzerland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A