Abstract
Sex differences in word perception are an important issue in reading. Previous studies that used various word perception tasks have indicated that girls outperform boys. The composite paradigm is a typical task for measuring visual perception and was employed here to identify the age at which sex differences in the perceptual processing of Chinese characters emerge. We tested 124 typically developed children from junior (6–7 years) and middle grades (9–11 years), studying in a primary school. Chinese character processing was better in congruent than incongruent conditions for all children with one or more years of experience in learning Chinese characters. Importantly, girls in the middle grade showed better discrimination sensitivity performances than boys, whereas no sex differences were found in the junior grade. These results suggest that sex differences in the visual perceptual processing of Chinese characters begin to emerge in middle-grade children.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
The data and material of this study are available via the corresponding author.
Code availability
The datasets generated for this study are available on request to the corresponding author.
References
Adani, S., & Cepanec, M. (2019). Sex differences in early communication development: Behavioral and neurobiological indicators of more vulnerable communication system development in boys. Croatian Medical Journal, 60(2), 141–149. https://doi.org/10.3325/cmj.2019.60.141
Barel, E., & Tzischinsky, O. (2018). Age and sex differences in verbal and visuospatial abilities. Advances in Cognitive Psychology, 14(2), 51–61. https://doi.org/10.5709/acp-0238-x
Bauer, D. J., Goldfield, B. A., & Reznick, J. S. (2002). Alternative approaches to analyzing individual differences in the rate of early vocabulary development. Applied Psycholinguistics, 23(3), 313–335. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716402003016
Berninger, V. W., & Fuller, F. (1992). Gender differences in orthographic, verbal, and compositional fluency: Implications for assessing writing disabilities in primary grade children. Journal of School Psychology, 30(4), 363–382. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-4405(92)90004-O
Best, R. M., Floyd, R. G., & Mcnamara, D. S. (2008). Differential competencies contributing to children’s comprehension of narrative and expository texts. Reading Psychology, 29(2), 137–164. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702710801963951
Bitan, T., Lifshitz, A., Breznitz, Z., & Booth, J. R. (2010). Bidirectional connectivity between hemispheres occurs at multiple levels in language processing but depends on sex. Journal of Neuroscience, 30(35), 11576–11585. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1245-10.2010
Bradshaw, J. L., Gates, A., & Nettleton, N. C. (1977). Bihemispheric involvement in lexical decisions: Handedness and a possible sex difference. Neuropsychologia, 15(2), 277–286. https://doi.org/10.1016/0028-3932(77)90036-7
Burman, D. D., Bitan, T., & Booth, J. R. (2008). Sex differences in neural processing of language among children. Neuropsychologia, 46(5), 1349–1362. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2007.12.021
Burman, D. D., Minas, T., Bolger, D. J., & Booth, J. R. (2013). Age, sex, and verbal abilities affect location of linguistic connectivity in ventral visual pathway. Brain and Language, 124(2), 184–193. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandl.2012.12.007
Cassia, V. M., Picozzi, M., Kuefner, D., Bricolo, E., & Turati, C. (2009). Holistic processing for faces and cars in preschool-aged children and adults: Evidence from the composite effect. Developmental Science, 12(2), 236–248. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7687.2008.00765.x
Chan, D. W., Ho, C. S., Tsang, S., Lee, S., & Chung, K. K. (2007). Prevalence, gender ratio and gender differences in reading-related cognitive abilities among Chinese children with dyslexia in Hong Kong. Educational Studies, 33(2), 249–265. https://doi.org/10.1080/03055690601068535
Chen, H., Bukach, C. M., & Wong, A. C. N. (2013). Early electrophysiological basis of experience-associated word perception processing of Chinese characters. PLoS ONE, 8(4), e61221. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0061221
Clinton, V., Seipel, B., van den Broek, P., McMaster, K. L., Kendeou, P., Carlson, S. E., & Rapp, D. N. (2014). Gender differences in inference generation by fourth-grade students. Journal of Research in Reading, 37(4), 356–374. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9817.2012.01531.x
Cousin, E., Perrone, M., & Baciu, M. (2009). Hemispheric specialization for language according to grapho-phonemic transformation and gender. A divided visual field experiment. Brain and Cognition, 69(3), 465–471. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandc.2008.10.001
Dong, Q., Mei, L., Xue, G., Chen, C., Li, T., Xue, F., et al. (2008). Sex-dependent neurofunctional predictors of long-term maintenance of visual word learning. Neuroscience Letters, 430(2), 87–91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neulet.2007.09.078
Gauthier, I., & Bukach, C. (2007). Should we reject the expertise hypothesis? Cognition, 103(2), 322–330. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2006.05.003
Graves, R., Landis, T., & Goodglass, H. (1981). Laterality and sex differences for visual recognition of emotional and non-emotional words. Neuropsychologia, 19(1), 95–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/0028-3932(81)90049-X
Gummadavelli, A., Wang, Y., Guo, X., Pardos, M., Chu, H., Liu, Y., ... & Xiang, J. (2013). Spatiotemporal and frequency signatures of word recognition in the developing brain: a magnetoencephalographic study. Brain Research, 1498, 20–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brainres.2013.01.001
Ho, C. S. H., & Bryant, P. (1997). Phonological skills are important in learning to read Chinese. Developmental Psychology, 33(6), 946. https://doi.org/10.1037//0012-1649.33.6.946
Hsiao, J. H., & Cottrell, G. W. (2009). Not all visual expertise is holistic, but it may be leftist: The case of Chinese character recognition. Psychological Science, 20(4), 455–463. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02315.x
Hsiao, J. H. W. (2005). Hemispheric processing in reading Chinese characters: statistical, experimental, and cognitive modelling approach. Unpublished doctoral thesis, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
Hu, C. F., & Catts, H. W. (1998). The role of phonological processing in early reading ability: What we can learn from Chinese. Scientific Studies of Reading, 2(1), 55–79. https://doi.org/10.1207/s1532799xssr02013
Li, H., & Rao, N. (2000). Parental influences on Chinese literacy development: A comparison of preschoolers in Beijing, Hong Kong, and Singapore. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 24(1), 82–90. https://doi.org/10.1080/016502500383502
Majeres, R. L. (1999). Sex differences in phonological processes: Speeded matching and word reading. Memory & Cognition, 27(2), 246–253. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03211409
Mäki, H. S., Voeten, M. J., Vauras, M. M., & Poskiparta, E. H. (2001). Predicting writing skill development with word recognition and preschool readiness skills. Reading and Writing, 14(7), 643–672. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012071514719
Meinhardt-Injac, B., Boutet, I., Persike, M., Meinhardt, G., & Imhof, M. (2017). From development to aging: Holistic face perception in children, younger and older adults. Cognition, 158, 134–146. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2016.10.020
Murray, A. D., Johnson, J., & Peters, J. (1990). Fine-tuning of utterance length to preverbal infants: Effects on later language development. Journal of Child Language, 17(3), 511–525. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000900010862
Petersen, A. C. (1976). Physical androgyny and cognitive functioning in adolescence. Developmental Psychology, 12(6), 524–533. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.12.6.524
Rebok, G. W., Smith, C. B., Pascualvaca, D. M., Mirsky, A. F., Anthony, B. J., & Kellam, S. G. (1997). Developmental changes in attentional performance in urban children from eight to thirteen years. Child Neuropsychology, 3(1), 28–46. https://doi.org/10.1080/09297049708401366
Richler, J. J., & Gauthier, I. (2014). A meta-analysis and review of holistic face processing. Psychological Bulletin, 140(5), 1281–1302. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0037004
Richler, J. J., Tanaka, J. W., Brown, D. D., & Gauthier, I. (2008). Why does selective attention to parts fail in face processing? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 34(6), 1356–1368. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013080
Rossell, S. L., Bullmore, E. T., Williams, S. C., & David, A. S. (2002). Sex differences in functional brain activation during a lexical visual field task. Brain and Language, 80(1), 97–105. https://doi.org/10.1006/brln.2000.2449
Rutter, M., Caspi, A., Fergusson, D., Horwood, L. J., Goodman, R., Maughan, B., ... & Carroll, J. (2004). Sex differences in developmental reading disability: new findings from 4 epidemiological studies. JAMA, 291(16), 2007–2012. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.291.16.2007
Shaywitz, S. E., & Shaywitz, B. A. (2005). Dyslexia (specific reading disability). Biological Psychiatry, 57(11), 1301–1309. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2005.01.043
Shu, H., McBride-Chang, C., Wu, S., & Liu, H. (2006). Understanding Chinese developmental dyslexia: Morphological awareness as a core cognitive construct. Journal of Educational Psychology, 98(1), 122. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.98.1.122
Spironelli, C., Penolazzi, B., & Angrilli, A. (2010). Gender differences in reading in school-aged children: An early ERP study. Developmental Neuropsychology, 35(4), 357–375. https://doi.org/10.1080/87565641.2010.480913
Stanislaw, H., & Todorov, N. (1999). Calculation of signal detection theory measures. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 31(1), 137–149. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03207704
Tso, R. V. Y., Au, T. K., & Hsiao, J. H. (2012). Writing facilitates learning to read in Chinese through reduction of holistic processing: A developmental study. Journal of Vision, 12(9), 530. https://doi.org/10.1167/12.9.530
Tso, R. V. Y., Au, T. K. F., & Hsiao, J. H. W. (2014). Perceptual expertise: Can sensorimotor experience change holistic processing and left-side bias? Psychological Science, 25(9), 1757–1767. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797614541284
Tso, R. V. Y., Chan, R. T. C., Chan, Y. F., & Lin, D. (2021). Holistic processing of Chinese characters in college students with dyslexia. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81553-5
Ventura, P., Fernandes, T., Leite, I., Almeida, V. B., Casqueiro, I., & Wong, A. C. N. (2017). The word composite effect depends on abstract lexical representations but not surface features like case and font. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1036. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01036
Ventura, P., Delgado, J., Guerreiro, J. C., Cruz, F., Rosário, V., Farinha-Fernandes, A., ... & Sousa, A. M. (2020). Further evidence for a late locus of holistic word processing: Exploring vertex effect in the word composite task. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 82(7), 3259–3265. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13414-020-02113-z
Vidyasagar, T. R., & Pammer, K. (2010). Dyslexia: A deficit in visuo-spatial attention, not in phonological processing. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 14(2), 57–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2009.12.003
Wang, X. L., & Tao, B. P. (1993). Chinese character recognition test battery and assessment scale for primary school children. Shanghai Education Press.
Wang, L. C., & Yang, H. M. (2016). Temporal processing development in Chinese primary school–aged children with dyslexia. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 51(3), 302–312. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219416680798
Wang, H., Chang, R. B., & Li, Y. S. (1986). Modern Chinese frequency dictionary. Beijing Language Institute.
Wang, L. C. C., Lam, E. T., & Chen, Y. H. (2019). A case study of using the Smart Board as a Chinese learning application by elementary school students. International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning, 11(1), 71–79.
Warrick, P. D., & Naglieri, J. A. (1993). Gender differences in planning, attention, simultaneous, and successive (PASS) cognitive processes. Journal of Educational Psychology, 85(4), 693–701. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.85.4.693
Wheldall, K., & Limbrick, L. (2010). Do more boys than girls have reading problems. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 43(5), 418–429. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219409355477
Xu, M., Liang, X., Ou, J., Li, H., Luo, Y. J., & Tan, L. H. (2020). Sex differences in functional brain networks for language. Cerebral Cortex, 30(3), 1528–1537. https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhz184
Yeung, P. S., Ho, C. S. H., Wong, Y. K., Chan, D. W. O., Chung, K. K., & Lo, L. Y. (2012). Longitudinal predictors of Chinese word reading and spelling among elementary grade students. Applied Psycholinguistics, 34(6), 1245–1277. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716412000239
Yore, L. D., & Ollila, L. O. (1985). Cognitive development, sex, and abstractness in grade one word recognition. The Journal of Educational Research, 78(4), 242–247. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.1985.10885609
Zhao, J., Maurer, U., He, S., & Weng, X. (2019). Development of neural specialization for print: Evidence for predictive coding in visual word recognition. PLoS Biology, 17(10), e3000474. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000474
Funding
This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.31571159).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
X. Cao developed the study concept. Testing and data collection were performed by P. Xue. X. Cao and P. Xue analyzed and interpreted the data. X. Cao, W. Sommer and P. Xue drafted the manuscript. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript for submission.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethical approval
The study was approved by the ethical committee of Zhejiang Normal University and was conducted in accordance with the approved guidelines.
Consent to participate
Informed consent was obtained from all participants included in the study.
Consent for publication
This manuscript has not been published and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere.
Competing interests
All authors declare no conflict of interest with the reported research.
Additional information
Publisher's note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Xue, P., Sommer, W. & Cao, X. Sex differences in perceptual processing of Chinese characters emerge in middle-grade primary school children. Curr Psychol 42, 22312–22319 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03337-y
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03337-y