Olkoniemi Henri, Johander Eerika, Kaakinen Johanna K
Department of Psychology, University of Turku, 20014, Turku, Finland.
Turku Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Turku, 20014, Turku, Finland.
Mem Cognit. 2019 Jan;47(1):87-105. doi: 10.3758/s13421-018-0852-2.
Previous eye-tracking studies suggest that when resolving the meaning of sarcastic utterances in a text, readers often initiate fixations that return to the sarcastic utterance from subsequent parts of the text. We used a modified trailing mask paradigm to examine both the role of these look-back fixations in sarcasm comprehension and whether there are individual differences in how readers resolve sarcasm. Sixty-two adult participants read short paragraphs containing either a literal or a sarcastic utterance while their eye movements were recorded. The texts were presented using a modified trailing mask paradigm: sentences were initially masked with a string of x's and were revealed to the reader one at a time. In the normal reading condition, sentences remained visible on the screen when the reader moved on to the next sentence; in the masked condition, the sentences were replaced with a mask. Individual differences in working memory capacity (WMC) and the processing of emotional information were also measured. The results showed that readers adjusted their reading behavior when a mask prevented them from re-examining the text content. Interestingly, the readers' compensatory strategies depended on spatial WMC. Moreover, the results showed that the ability to process emotional information was related to less processing effort invested in resolving sarcasm. The present study suggests that look-backs are driven by a need to re-examine the text contents but that they are not necessary for the successful comprehension of sarcasm. The strategies used to resolve sarcasm are mediated by individual differences.
以往的眼动追踪研究表明，在理解文本中讽刺话语的含义时，读者常常会发起注视，从文本的后续部分返回到讽刺话语上。我们使用了一种改良的后掩蔽范式，来考察这些回视注视在讽刺理解中的作用，以及读者在理解讽刺时是否存在个体差异。62名成年参与者阅读包含字面表述或讽刺话语的短段落，同时记录他们的眼动情况。文本采用改良的后掩蔽范式呈现：句子最初用一串“x”进行掩蔽，然后一次向读者显示一个。在正常阅读条件下，当读者继续阅读下一句时，句子仍显示在屏幕上；在掩蔽条件下，句子被掩蔽所取代。我们还测量了工作记忆容量（WMC）和情绪信息处理方面的个体差异。结果表明，当掩蔽阻止读者重新审视文本内容时，读者会调整他们的阅读行为。有趣的是，读者的补偿策略取决于空间工作记忆容量。此外，结果表明，处理情绪信息的能力与理解讽刺时投入的处理精力较少有关。本研究表明，回视是由重新审视文本内容的需要驱动的，但它们对于成功理解讽刺并非必要。理解讽刺所采用的策略受个体差异的调节。
