Cascaded processing in naming and reading: Evidence from Chinese and Korean

Previous studies have shown that the ability to simultaneously process multiple items when these appear in serial format (called “cascaded” processing) is an important element of reading fluency. However, most evidence in support of cascaded processing comes from studies conducted in European orthographies. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to examine whether the same findings generalize to nonlinear and nonalphabetic orthographies (i.e., Korean and Chinese). Serial and discrete naming of digits and objects were measured in a sample of 610 Chinese and Korean children from Grades 1, 3, 5, and 6. Children were also assessed on discrete word reading and on word- and text-reading fluency. Results of hierarchical regression analysis showed that discrete naming was the main predictor of discrete word reading in both languages as early as Grade 1. Serial digit naming was the main predictor of word-reading fluency across grades and languages. Finally, serial object naming made a unique contribution to word- and text-reading fluency in Chinese upper grades. Taken together, these findings suggest that, beyond accurate and fast word recognition, there is a universal multi-item (or cascaded) processing skill involved in serial naming and reading fluency.