1. Introduction

Chapter 1 introduces the concept of embodied cognition, which argues that language comprehension is grounded in bodily activity and that cognition is a highly embodied and situated activity. This view is supported by research showing that the same sensorimotor areas of the brain are activated during language processing. The chapter also discusses the embodied view of language comprehension, introducing the action-sentence compatibility effect as evidence of the connection between language meaning and action. It concludes with an overview of research on Chinese counterfactual sentences and abstract sentences, highlighting the capacity for counterfactual thinking in Chinese and the role of the sensorimotor system in the comprehension of abstract language.

2. Methodology

This chapter discusses the methodology used in the experiment. It includes information about the participants, materials, pretests of materials, experimental design, and procedures. The participants were 105 students from Dalian University of Technology, all right-handed, neurologically healthy, and Chinese native speakers. 192 sentences comprising 96 counterfactual and 96 factual sentences were created, and pretests were conducted to select the most suitable stimuli for the experiment. The experimental design involved four factors manipulated within participants, and the experiment was performed using E-Prime 3.0 software. The procedures included auditory presentation of sentences, word probe tasks, and response time measurements.

3. Results

This chapter describes the analysis of the dependent variables using SPSS 26.0 software and discusses the motor response time and word probe time. For motor response time, the interaction between hand motion direction and transfer verb direction can be observed in action-related abstract Chinese factual and counterfactual sentences, demonstrating the presence of the action-sentence compatibility effect. For word probe time, there is also a significant effect observed, specifically a four-way interaction. The response time of the word probe task was also influenced by the experimental design.

4. Discussion

Discussion:

This chapter discusses the interaction between language comprehension and action performance. It demonstrates the facilitating action-sentence compatibility effect observed in the experiment, supporting the embodied cognition theories. The experiments suggest that the mental simulation of the event or situation described by the sentences occurs during the language comprehension process, whereas real bodily action underlies the meaning conveyed by the language.

Embodied Meaning in Abstract Factuals:

This section examines the embodiment in abstract sentences. Research indicates that abstract sentences, like concrete ones, are grounded in perception systems. It demonstrates the facilitating action-sentence compatibility effect in the comprehension of abstract factuals, supporting the embodied cognition theories. Additionally, it explains the three approaches to explaining the embodiment in abstract language, involving metaphor, simulation processes, and action as separate explanations. These explanations emphasize different aspects of the same phenomenon.

Overall, this chapter provides in-depth insights into the embodied meaning in comprehending abstract Chinese counterfactuals, demonstrating the interaction between language and action, and the role of embodied meaning in understanding abstract sentences.

5. Conclusion

The research investigates whether embodied meaning is activated in comprehending action-related abstract Chinese counterfactual sentences. The study found a significant interaction between hand motion direction and direction implied by the sentence, referred to as a facilitating action-sentence compatibility effect. This effect, along with the interfering action-sentence compatibility effect, demonstrates the activation of embodied meaning and supports embodied cognition theories. Further research is needed to compare embodied representations of abstract and concrete counterfactuals and explore possible differences between them.