VISUAL SEARCH DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CHINESE-ENGLISH AND MALAY-ENGLISH BISCRIPTALS

Abstract

Letters are searched differently from almost all other symbols in a way that sensory factors cannot account for. Visual search RT functions for symbols are U-shaped, while letter search functions are M-shaped, reflecting "end effects", an advantage in speed of identification for the initial and end positions of an array. This study investigated whether end effects are the result of visual processing factors which are influenced by language background and English proficiency. Sixty-eight 13-year old Malay-English and Chinese-English biscriptals completed both letter and Chinese character versions of the visual search task, which required them to identify previously presented probes from an array of five items. The subjects differed in terms of their L1 writing script (alphabetic or logographic) and their level of proficiency in English. The search function for Chinese characters was significantly quadratic (U-shaped) for all groups, but the only letter search function to show end effects was that of the Malay good English proficiency group, indicating that the factors influencing the M-shaped letter search function are closely related to proficiency in alphabetic scripts. The results are interpreted. and limitations of the study discussed are discussed with suggestions for future research