Between Reading Time and the Information Status of Noun Phrases

Abstract

Japanese noun phrases are not marked by articles. The information status of Japanese noun phrases is not overt. Due to limited contextual information and world knowledge, it is difficult to estimate the information status, which is analyzed through the given/new status or indefinite/definite status. However, in Japanese language processing, the notion of the information status is yet to be understood. In this paper, we explain the information status of Japanese noun phrases. Then, we explore how the information status of Japanese noun phrases is estimated through the reading time. As a first step, we investigate the correlation between reading time and the information status of Japanese noun phrases. The statistical evaluation shows that readers’ information status affects reading time in Japanese.