Over the last twenty years a major area of cognitive psychology has developed centred upon research into the issues of how visually presented words are processed so that they can be read and understood. The focus has been on how words are stored in the mental lexicon and retrieved during the reading process. If we possessed no mental lexicon, we would be unable to read. This book dedicates itself to a critical evaluation of the ideas that have emerged from this body of research. The text outlines the major models of lexical processing that have been put forward in the literature, and how they explain the basic empirical findings that have been reported. It then goes on to consider the possible influence that sentential context has on lexical processing, the impact of the pronunciation of a word on its visual processing, and the role played by internal word structure (i.e., syllables and morphemes) in the recognition of a word. A connectionist style model emerges during the course of the evaluation of these issues. This book is suitable for advanced students and researchers, and is intended to serve as a springboard for discussion and an inspiration for empirical research.

This volume reflects a consensus that the investigation of words in the mind offers a unique opportunity to understand both human language ability and general human cognition. It brings together key perspectives on the fundamental nature of the representation and processing of words in the mind. This thematic volume covers a wide range of views on the fundamental nature of representation and processing of words in the mind and a range of views on the investigative techniques that are most likely to reveal that nature. It provides an overview of issues and developments in the field. It uncovers the processes of word recognition. It develops new models of lexical processing.

This book brings together current research findings on the involvement of word-internal structure for the purpose of word reading (especially morphological structure). The central theme of reading complex words is approached from several angles, such that the chapters span a wide variety of topics where this issue is important. It is a valuable resource for all researchers studying the mental lexicon and to those who teach advanced courses in the psychology of language.

This volume does not offer a complex perspective of the L2 lexicon, but rather represents a sustained attempt to answer some very basic questions clustered around the relationship between the L2 mental lexicon and the L1 mental lexicon. It provides a review of L1 and L2 lexical research issues such as similarities and differences between the conditions of L1 and L2 acquisition, the respective roles of forming and meaning in L1 and L2 processing, and the degree of separation/integration between L1 and L2 lexical operations.

This book surveys the psycholinguistic dimensions of lexical access to the mental lexicon in Japanese, and attempts to synthesize the diversity of Japanese psycholinguistic research into the nature of written word processing in Japanese. Ten chapters focus on the nature of such psycholinguistic inquiry and its history, the structural origins of the Japanese script types and their relative frequencies, lexical access studies in kanji, the hiragana and katakana syllabaries, romaji, and mixed text processing, laterality preferences in kana/kanji processing and their implications for scientific discussions of language and cognition, evidence from eye-movement studies, the acquisition of orthographic skills by Japanese children, and a review of the implications and conclusions that arise from the contributions of such research. The text is directed at filling the need for an overview of this research because of its importance to theoretical modelling in linguistics and psychology, as well as aphasiology, mathematical and statistical linguistics, educational practices and governmental intervention in respect to language policies, and studies of linguistic and cultural history.

How does a human acquire, comprehend, produce and control multiple languages with just the power of one mind? What are the cognitive consequences of being a bilingual? These are just a few of the intriguing questions at the core of studying bilingualism from psycholinguistic and neurocognitive perspectives. Bringing together some of the world's leading experts in bilingualism, cognitive psychology and language acquisition, The Cambridge Handbook of Bilingual Processing explores these questions by presenting a clear overview of current theories and findings in bilingual processing. This comprehensive handbook is organized around overarching thematic areas including theories and methodologies, acquisition and development, comprehension and representation, production, control, and the cognitive consequences of bilingualism. The handbook serves as an informative overview for researchers interested in cognitive bilingualism and the logic of theoretical and experimental approaches to language science. It also functions as an instrumental source of readings for anyone interested in bilingual processing.

Featuring new coverage of the brain and language, and lexical corpora, the 4th edition of Words in the Mind offers readers the latest thinking about the ways in which we learn words, remember them, understand them, and find the ones we want to use. Explores the latest insights into the complex relationship between language, words, and the human mind, creating a rich and revealing resource for students and non-specialists alike Addresses the structure and content of the human word-store – the ‘mental lexicon’ – with particular reference to the spoken language of native English speakers Features a wealth of new material, including an all-new chapter focusing exclusively on the brain and language, and enhanced coverage of lexical corpora – computerized databases – and on lexical change of meaning Incorporates numerous updates throughout, including expansion of many notes and suggestions for further reading Comprises state-of-the-art research, yet remains accessible and student-friendly