Modeling scalar implicature processing in Mandarin: A study on gradable adjectives and closed-class words

The present study aims to examine which cognitive processing model, namely the Default Model, Context-driven Model, or Standardization Model, offers the most effective explanation for how native Mandarin speakers process scalar implicatures. The experiment in the current study employs a forced-choice task to investigate whether native Mandarin speakers interpret scalar terms literally or pragmatically by having participants complete dialogues containing these terms, which were then analyzed for their scalar implicature interpretation rates and response times. The experimental materials contain gradable adjective pairs re/tang ‘hot/scalding’ and hao/youxiu ‘good/excellent’ as well as closed-class pairs youxie/suoyou ‘some/all’ and huo/he ‘or/and’ placed in three distinct types of contexts, specifically upper-bounded context, lower-bounded context and neutral context. The preliminary results show that the processing of both gradable adjective pairs is best explained by the Standardization Model while that of the two closed-class pairs best fits the predictions of the Default Model.