How does a second language influence native Mandarin speakers' representation of time?
Location
Science Center: Bent Corridor
Document Type
Poster
Start Date
4-26-2024 12:00 PM
End Date
4-26-2024 2:00 PM
Abstract
We use metaphors in everyday communications to describe abstract concepts, and people across cultures rely on spatial metaphors to understand and represent time. Then does learning a second language change the way we think about time and how we talk about time? This current research asks whether and how spatial metaphors for time in Mandarin and English influence native Mandarin speakers’ representation of time. A total of 61 native Mandarin speakers completed a survey that asked about their language experience background and five questions that tested whether they take a time-moving or an ego-moving perspective to represent time. Mandarin monolinguals were only tested in Chinese; Mandarin-English bilinguals were tested in both Chinese and English on the same set of questions. Results indicated that native Mandarin speakers tend to take a time-moving perspective regardless of their English proficiency. A statistically significant amount of ME bilingual participants took a time-moving perspective when tested in Chinese and an ego-moving perspective when tested in English. The results imply that the second language does not have a strong influence on individuals’ temporal reasoning in the context of their native language, and individuals can acquire a new system of time metaphors in their second language and use this knowledge in the context of the target language. Those findings contribute to a better understanding of the time metaphors used in Mandarin and how second language acquisition might influence the way we conceptualize and represent time.
Keywords:
Time, Metaphor, Mandarin, Bilingualism
Recommended Citation
Song, Yiyin (Coco), "How does a second language influence native Mandarin speakers' representation of time?" (2024). Research Symposium. 6.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/researchsymp/2024/posters/6
Major
Psychology
Project Mentor(s)
An Nguyen, Johns Hopkins University
2024
How does a second language influence native Mandarin speakers' representation of time?
Science Center: Bent Corridor
We use metaphors in everyday communications to describe abstract concepts, and people across cultures rely on spatial metaphors to understand and represent time. Then does learning a second language change the way we think about time and how we talk about time? This current research asks whether and how spatial metaphors for time in Mandarin and English influence native Mandarin speakers’ representation of time. A total of 61 native Mandarin speakers completed a survey that asked about their language experience background and five questions that tested whether they take a time-moving or an ego-moving perspective to represent time. Mandarin monolinguals were only tested in Chinese; Mandarin-English bilinguals were tested in both Chinese and English on the same set of questions. Results indicated that native Mandarin speakers tend to take a time-moving perspective regardless of their English proficiency. A statistically significant amount of ME bilingual participants took a time-moving perspective when tested in Chinese and an ego-moving perspective when tested in English. The results imply that the second language does not have a strong influence on individuals’ temporal reasoning in the context of their native language, and individuals can acquire a new system of time metaphors in their second language and use this knowledge in the context of the target language. Those findings contribute to a better understanding of the time metaphors used in Mandarin and how second language acquisition might influence the way we conceptualize and represent time.
Notes
Program/Department affiliation: Lumiere Individual Research Program