Quadri-syllabic Schematic Idioms in Chinese: Description and Acquisition

Acknowledgments
Contents
List of Figures
List of Tables
1 Introduction
	1.1 Research Orientation
	1.2 Theoretical and Pedagogical Value
	1.3 Organisation of the Book
	References
2 From Idioms to Constructions
	2.1 Views on English Idiom Studies
		2.1.1 Traditional Noncompositional View
		2.1.2 Compositional/Multidimensional View
	2.2 Constructional View on Idiomaticity
		2.2.1 Idioms as Constructions
		2.2.2 Constructions as Basic Linguistic Units
		2.2.3 Features of Construction Grammar
		2.2.4 Psychological Reality of Constructions in Language Processing
		2.2.5 Schematic Idioms as Constructional Idioms
	2.3 Studies on Chinese Idioms
		2.3.1 Features of Chinese Idioms
		2.3.2 Weakness of Current Chinese Idiom Definitions
		2.3.3 Studies on Chinese Schematic Idioms as Constructions
		2.3.4 Redefining Chinese Idioms
	2.4 Summary
	References
3 Idiom Acquisition and Usage-Based Language Learning Theory
	3.1 Models on Idiom Representation
		3.1.1 The Direct Access Model
		3.1.2 The Compositional Model
		3.1.3 The Hybrid Model
		3.1.4 Cognitive Motivation for Idiomatic Expressions
	3.2 Factors in L1 Idiom Comprehension
	3.3 Empirical Studies on Chinese Idiom Learning
	3.4 A Critique on Current Studies of Idiom Learning
	3.5 Usage-Based Language Learning Theory—How Constructions Are Learned
		3.5.1 Schematisation and Entrenchment—Item-Based Learning
		3.5.2 Explanation of Overgeneralisation—Entrenchment and Pre-emption
		3.5.3 Research Methods in Usage-Based Model
		3.5.4 Important Factors in Usage-Based Model
	3.6 Summary
	References
4 Chinese Schematic Idioms—Productivity and Constraints
	4.1 Semi-Fixed Patterns in Chinese Idioms
	4.2 Distributional Analysis of XAXB Construction
		4.2.1 Types of Relations in Chinese Lexical Words
		4.2.2 Features of the Fixed Morpheme X in XAXB Construction
		4.2.3 Constraints on Open Morphemes of A, B in XAXB Construction
		4.2.4 A Case Study of the bu-A-bu-B Schema
		4.2.5 Interpretations of XAXB Construction and the Distributional Statistics
		4.2.6 Statistical Distribution of XAXB Expressions
		4.2.7 Senses of bu-A-bu-B Expressions and the Natural Distribution
		4.2.8 Statistical Distribution of bu-A-bu-B Expression in Corpus
	4.3 Distributional Analysis of XAYB and AXBY Constructions
		4.3.1 Productivity of XAYB Construction
		4.3.2 Interpretations of XAYB and the Statistical Distribution
		4.3.3 Statistical Distribution of XAYB Expressions in the Corpus
		4.3.4 Productivity of AXBY Construction
		4.3.5 Interpretations of AXBY and the Distributional Statistics
		4.3.6 ABs Across the Constructions
	4.4 Summary of Distributional Analysis
	4.5 RQs and Design
		4.5.1 RQs
		4.5.2 Age Factor
		4.5.3 Instruments
		4.5.4 A Summary of Experimental Studies
	4.6 Summary
	References
5 Study One
	5.1 Experimental Design and Materials
		5.1.1 Participants
		5.1.2 Procedures
		5.1.3 Scoring
	5.2 Results of Study One
		5.2.1 Results of the Acceptability Judgment Test
		5.2.2 Results of Sentence Production Task
	5.3 Discussions
6 Study Two
	6.1 Experimental Design and Materials
		6.1.1 Participants
		6.1.2 Procedure
		6.1.3 Scoring
	6.2 Results
		6.2.1 Results of the Acceptability Judgment Test in Study Two
		6.2.2 Results of Sentence Production Task
	6.3 Discussions on Study Two
7 Study Three
	7.1 Research Method
		7.1.1 Design and Materials
		7.1.2 Participants
		7.1.3 Procedure
	7.2 Results of Study Three
	7.3 Summary and Discussions of Study Three
	Reference
8 Study Four
	8.1 Research Method
		8.1.1 Design and Materials
		8.1.2 Participants
		8.1.3 Procedure
	8.2 Results and Discussion of Study Four
	8.3 Summary of Four Experimental Studies
	Reference
9 Error Analysis in Sentence Production Tasks
	9.1 Classification of Error Types
	9.2 Overall Error Distribution in Sentence Productions
		9.2.1 Syntactic Restriction Violations
		9.2.2 Semantic Restriction Violations
		9.2.3 Sense Disagreement
		9.2.4 Incomplete Responses
	9.3 Patterns in Error Type Distribution
	9.4 Summary
	References
10 Discussion and Conclusion
	10.1 General Results
	10.2 Effects of Identified Factors
		10.2.1 Input Frequency
		10.2.2 Structural Complexity and Internal Semantic Relation
		10.2.3 Chunk Selection of Open Morphemes
		10.2.4 Age
	10.3 Empirical Evidence of Schematic Idioms as Constructions
	10.4 Representations of Schematic Idioms
		10.4.1 Entrenchment, Schematisation and Pre-emption
		10.4.2 Emergentist Model on Idiom Learning
		10.4.3 Whole-Form Frequency Effect
	10.5 Implications for Language Pedagogy
	10.6 Limitations of the Present Study
	10.7 Conclusion
	References
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C
Appendix D
Appendix E
Appendix F
Bibiliography