Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Count/Mass Distinction in Native and Non-Native Grammar

语言和认知有着深刻的联系，既有普遍的影响，也有语言特有的影响。本论文旨在考察认知对象/实体区分与语言数量/质量区分之间的关系。更具体地说，这个项目调查了说英语、韩语和汉语的人如何在他们的母语中使用和解释计数名词和大量名词，以及以韩语和普通话为第二语言的英语学习者如何使用和解释英语中的计数名词和大量名词。该项目旨在深入了解在计数/质量区分领域什么是普遍的，什么是特定的语言。为了达到本研究的目的，本研究将首先探讨英语、韩语和普通话中的宾语/物质释义与数量/量词区别的语法之间的关系。一旦三种语言的数量/质量区分的性质都建立起来，本研究将考察说韩语和说普通话的英语学习者如何理解不同类型的英语名词，以及他们如何在离线和在线(反应时间)任务中判断和处理英语复数标记(计数/质量区分的标记)。该项目将通过提供母语和非母语的语法知识和处理方面的信息，为理论语言学和心理语言学领域作出贡献。此外，该项目加强了对东亚语言语法的理解，特别是韩语和普通话。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Language and cognition are deeply related, influencing each other in both universal and language-specific ways. This dissertation project aims to examine the relationship between the cognitive object/substance distinction and the linguistic count/mass distinction. More specifically, this project investigates how English, Korean and Mandarin Chinese speakers use and interpret count vs. mass nouns in their native languages and how Korean-speaking and Mandarin-speaking learners of English as a second language use and interpret count and mass nouns in English. This project aims to provide insights into what is universal and what is language-specific in the domain of the count/mass distinction. This project also has the potential to inform educators, language teaching professionals and developers of language teaching software about learners' use of the count/mass distinction.To meet its goals, this dissertation research will first investigate the relationship between the object/substance interpretation and the grammar of the count/mass distinction in English, Korean and Mandarin. Once the properties of the count/mass distinction in all three languages are established, this research will examine how Korean-speaking and Mandarin-speaking learners of English interpret different types of English nouns, as well as how they judge and process English plural marking (a marker of the count/mass distinction), in both offline and online (reaction-time) tasks. This project will contribute to the fields of theoretical linguistics and psycholinguistics by providing information on grammatical knowledge and processing in both native and non-native language. Furthermore, this project enhances the understanding of the grammars of East Asian languages, specifically Korean and Mandarin Chinese.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.