Coventry Kenny R, Griffiths Debra, Hamilton Colin J
School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, UK.
Department of Psychology, Northumbria University, UK.
Cogn Psychol. 2014 Mar;69:46-70. doi: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2013.12.001. Epub 2014 Jan 20.
Spatial demonstratives - terms including this and that - are among the most common words across all languages. Yet, there are considerable differences between languages in how demonstratives carve up space and the object characteristics they can refer to, challenging the idea that the mapping between spatial demonstratives and the vision and action systems is universal. In seven experiments we show direct parallels between spatial demonstrative usage in English and (non-linguistic) memory for object location, indicating close connections between the language of space and non-linguistic spatial representation. Spatial demonstrative choice in English and immediate memory for object location are affected by a range of parameters - distance, ownership, visibility and familiarity - that are lexicalized in the demonstrative systems of some other languages. The results support a common set of constraints on language used to talk about space and on (non-linguistic) spatial representation itself. Differences in demonstrative systems across languages may emerge from basic distinctions in the representation and memory for object location. In turn, these distinctions offer a building block from which non-spatial uses of demonstratives can develop.
空间指示词——包括“这个”和“那个”等词汇——是所有语言中最常见的词汇之一。然而，不同语言在指示词如何划分空间以及它们所指代的物体特征方面存在相当大的差异，这对空间指示词与视觉和行动系统之间的映射是普遍存在的这一观点提出了挑战。在七个实验中，我们展示了英语中空间指示词的使用与（非语言的）物体位置记忆之间的直接相似之处，这表明空间语言与非语言空间表征之间存在紧密联系。英语中空间指示词的选择以及对物体位置的即时记忆会受到一系列参数的影响——距离、所属关系、可见性和熟悉程度——这些参数在其他一些语言的指示词系统中被词汇化。这些结果支持了一组关于用于谈论空间的语言以及（非语言的）空间表征本身的共同限制。不同语言中指示词系统的差异可能源于物体位置表征和记忆中的基本区别。反过来，这些区别为指示词的非空间用法的发展提供了一个基石。
