چيدمان سازه‌ها در زبان فارسي متاثر از وزن دستوري: تبييني پردازش‌محور

Constituent Ordering in Persian under the Influence of Grammatical Weight: A Processing-based Explanation

بر اساس نظريۀ كنشي ترتيب واژگاني1 و اصول بهره وري2 در دستور (hawkins, 1994, 2004)، چيدمان سازه ها ي زباني متاثر از راندمان پردازشي است. به بيان شفاف تر، سازه ها به نحوي مرتب مي شوند كه پردازش زباني را تسهيل كنند. اين پژوهش با بهره گيري از تكليف برخط خوانش جمله، با هدف بررسي نقش وزن دستوري در عملكرد حركت سازه ها به جايگاه پسافعلي و تحليل سطح پردازشي جملات در صورت بندي هاي متناظر شكل گرفت. تكليف پيش گفته به عنوان الگويي مناسب براي تحليل سطح پردازشي ساخت هاي نحوي، در محيط نرم افزار open sesame طراحي شد. دو مجموعۀ 24 جمله اي در سه سطح وزني (سبك، متوسط و سنگين) و دو سطح ساختاري (سازه در جايگاه بي نشان پيش فعلي و پسافعلي) براي 40 آزمودني فارسي زبان داراي تحصيلات دانشگاهي (سنين 18 تا 40 سال) كه به شيوۀ تصادفي انتخاب شدند ارائه شد. مجموعۀ نخست شامل جملات داراي بند موصولي و مجموعۀ دوم جملات حاوي سازۀ پسايند شده و جملۀ متناظر غيرمقلوب بود. پس از هر جمله، يك پرسش بلي/ خير مطرح شد. داده ها با نرم افزار spss و آزمون تحليل واريانس تحليل شد. در وزن دستوري سبك، وقتي سازۀ مورد مطالعه در جايگاه بي نشان قرار دارد، سرعت زمان خوانش به نسبت جملات متناظر پسافعلي بيشتر است، حال آنكه اين الگو با افزايش وزن دستوري برعكس مي شود؛ به بيان ديگر، در وزن دستوري متوسط، حركت پسافعلي سازه ها، به كاهش ميانگين خوانش جمله منجر مي شود. اين كاهش به مراتب در حالت سنگين معنادارتر است. ترتيب سازه ها و گشتار حركت نسبت به وزن دستوري سازه ها حساس است؛ درنتيجه، گرايش سنگيني پاياني در زبان فارسي در رابطه با ساخت هاي پيش گفته با انگيزش افزايش راندمان پردازشي تاييد مي شود.

In the framework known as processing approach to grammar, it is argued that processing provides a full-fledged functional explanation for all syntactic phenomena including constituent ordering. Linguistic structure is simply built in a way that eases processing difficulty of sentences and results in efficiency of language use. It seems that the operation of that part of the linguistic representation system that leads to formulation of concepts utilizing lexical access procedure is governed by processing mechanisms. The processing mechanisms, as it has put forward by Hawkins (1994) are those that make it possible for humans to recognize (and produce) grammatical structure in a rapid and efficient manner. The formulator is also planned in a way that minimizes the processing load. Therefore, it appears that some ordering regularities and grammatical constraints in word order and syntactic phenomena such as movement are motivated by the flawless performance of this phase of human linguistic processor. According to performance theory and efficiency principles, constituent ordering is influenced by processing efficiency, i.e. the ordering of constituents is intended to facilitate processing. Aim The research aims to study the processing basis of relativisation and syntactic movement known as scrambling and the effects of grammatical weight in Persian by drawing upon evidence from self-paced reading. Adopting an online reading time paradigm, the research was aimed at studying the role of grammatical weight in likelihood of post-verbal movement and processing loads of pairs of corresponding sentences. Hypotheses: Questions increasing the motivation and triggering initiation of doing this research are how different structural configurations of sentences with identical truth condition modify processing level and if the increase of grammatical weight could result in likelihood of syntactic movement. The final questions are how the movement of grammatically heavy constituents including relative clause and scrambled constituents explained in terms of processing implications. Accordingly, four hypotheses were developed in the course of the research. Method The aforesaid paradigm, as an efficient experimental technique to assess processing speed of syntactic structures, was designed by Open Sesame Software. Two sets of 24 sentences in three levels of weight (light, medium and heavy) and two structural levels (unmarked preverbal constituent and post-verbal one) were presented to 40 randomly selected Persian-speaking participants (between the ages 18 and 40) with university education. The first set consisted of sentences containing relative clause in two configurations and the second set of pairs of scrambled (post-verbal) and unscrambled sentences. Sentences were followed by a yes/no question. Data was analyzed using SPSS and ANOVA test. Findings: In light level, the mean reading time of sentences with canonical constituent ordering was less than those with post-verbal constituents. However, this trend got reversed by the increase of grammatical weight of the constituent subjected to scrutiny. In other word, the post-verbal movement of constituents resulted in reduction of mean reading time in medium-weight sentences. This decline was markedly more significant in heavy sentences. Conclusion The ordering of constituents and the likelihood of movement is highly weight-sensitive. As a conclusion, the end-weight principle as an incentive to optimize the processing efficiency was approved in Persian.