using subtitles for inference production while viewing a movie ECP 2013 Stockholm Sweden
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This document discusses a study that evaluated the effects of native language subtitles on comprehension of a foreign language film. The study showed that subtitles facilitated comprehension of both visual and dialogue information. Participants who watched the film with subtitles produced more correct inferences and more elaborate inferences, indicating subtitles support the creation of a richer situation model. This enhanced comprehension and allowed more resources to be devoted to processing other information in the film. The presence of subtitles overall improved inference production, a sign of deep comprehension of the full film.
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using subtitles for inference production while viewing a movie ECP 2013 Stockholm Sweden
- 1. Using subtitles for inference production while watching a foreign language movie Dominique Bairstow & Jean-Marc Lavaur
- 2. Introduction • Movies are a very popular media (Psychocinematics) • Complex object made up of many different types of information • Information in constant evolution and interaction => Yet, easy to understand (generally) 2
- 3. Languages • Language barriers (audience) • Using subtitles to overcome them • Different types of subtitles Hide! Cache toi! 3
- 4. Information on-screen • Different types of information • Subtitles= extra source • Interaction with viewer’s own knowledge Visual Auditory Linguistic Subtitles, written signs Dialogues, song lyrics Non-linguistic Images, sequence of images Background sounds, music 4
- 5. Previous studies • Bairstow & Lavaur (2011): Subtitles can be used to enhance comprehension • Lavaur et Nava (2008): Subtitles affect visual information processing • Zacks & Magliano (2011): Films are engaging experiences and are as memorable as everyday events 5
- 6. Previous studies • Lavaur & Bairstow (2011): The effects of subtitles depend on the viewers’ language levels • Bairstow (2012): Their effects also depend on the type of subtitles (language combinations) • Marian (2009): The presence of written text in films is beneficial to language learning 6
- 7. Inference production • Inferences are a good indicator of deep comprehension • Usually measured with reading comprehension • An additional source of data evaluating the role of subtitles in film comprehension 7
- 8. Aims • Evaluating the effects of native subtitles on movie comprehension • Measuring visual and dialogue information processing and inference production as an indicator for comprehension levels • Measuring the impact of native subtitles on quantity and quality of inferences 8
- 9. Method • Vivement Dimanche! (F. Truffaut, 1983) Length: 7min25. • Two versions: - original (French) - and subtitled (English) 9
- 10. Method • Questionnaires: - personal data (with self-measures) - comprehension: multiple-choice visual and dialogue items + open-ended inference production items • Population: 24 native English students, very low level of French 10
- 11. Procedure • Each participant saw the film once, then answered the comprehension questionnaire and finished with their personal data. • Inferences were recoded a posteriori depending on whether they were - correct or incorrect - simple or elaborate. 11
- 12. Results • Mean scores depending on version and type of information 12
- 13. • Inference production: correct Vs. incorrect Results 13
- 14. Results • Inference production: simple Vs. elaborate 14
- 15. Discussion • Subtitles play a capital role in movie comprehension • Facilitating effects not only for dialogue comprehension but for whole film (visual and inferences) => Easy access to dialogue meaning = more resources for processing other information 15
- 16. Discussion • Subtitles enhance inference production • Also promote better inference quality (longer and more elaborate answers) => More complete Situation Model (viewer’s knowledge + information from movie + inferences) Movie information Viewer’s previous knowledge Situation Model Inferences 16
- 17. Discussion-Situation Model • Access to dialogue meaning enables better apprehension and comprehension of the situation • Many links can then be made between different information, creating a complex representation ⇒ Rich situation model giving participant high confidence in answering ⇒ High confidence = more elaborate inferences SUBTITLES Access to dialogues Easier linking of information ELABORATE INFERENCES High confidence Rich Situation Model 17
- 18. Perspectives • Shimamura: I-SKE Model 18
- 19. Perspectives • Beginning of a new line of study involving films and inferences. • More data is needed, using different types of inferences. • Other films versions (especially native) for comparison 19
- 20. Thank you for your attention! 20
Editor's Notes
- « Shimamura has named the study of film viewing experience psychocinematics. Movies are a very popular media as everybody has seen films before. They are complex in the sense that they are made up of very many different types of information which are changing constantly and can sometimes be contradictory. Yet, films are generally easy to understand without too much cognitive effort and viewers can easily overcome any inconsistency in the different sources of information. So, in spite of all the information on-screen the viewer can select the main information at each moment in order to promote understanding of the situation ».
- “ But comprehension can become difficult when the language used on-screen is an issue (=a problem). Indeed, the audience can be very diversified and, therefore, they might need some help for dialogue comprehension. This help can be given through the use of subtitles at the bottom of the screen and the necessity of reading them will depend on the viewer’s language expertise. Depending on the language used in the dialogues and the one used in the subtitles, various language combinations will be possible and will have different effects on comprehension.”
- “ Movies are made up of information that can be either visual or auditory, linguistic or non-linguistic, forming complex interactions. Subtitles will be an extra source of information, that will need to be processed at the same time as the others. Finally all these sources will be in interaction with the viewer’s knowledge, concerning films, stories, past experiences and the world in general. Comprehension will depend on the number of different types of information on the screen, but also on how well they complement each other.
- “ Research has looked into many aspects of subtitled film reception and comprehension. The main results of these studies show that subtitles do have an effect on comprehension and that these effects depend on the type of information being processed. There can be an interference of subtitles as they attract the viewer’s attention. The fact that film viewing can be assimilated to everyday events is very interesting when examining the underlying cognitive processes involved in these situations”.
- What is more, previous research has highlighted the central importance of the languages involved, whether the ones on the screen or the ones known by the viewer, as well as their different combinations. This will be very relevant when examining the role of subtitled films in language learning, for example. Because words are presented in a very rich semantic context with many links to other information and the global situation in the film, which is ideal for learning.
- Despite all the information provided by the film, links must be created by the viewer in between the different elements appearing on-screen, encouraging inference production. Indeed, inferences may be produced on the basis of the information provided by the film to which the viewer adds his own knowledge in order to make sense of the situation on-screen, even if in fact the inferences turn out to be wrong. When measuring comprehension, evaluating the number and quality of inferences produced by the viewer can be a good indicator of the way in which the film is understood. Inference production is typically used in the field of text comprehension but has recently been studied by Zacks and Magliano for movie comprehension. In addition to visual and dialogue based data, inferences could therefore be useful in measuring the impact of subtitles on film comprehension.
- “ The aim of the present study is to evaluate the effects subtitles may have on movie comprehension. In order to fully understand these effects, visual and dialogue processing are measured, along with inference production. In this way, the quantity and quality of inferences produced should be a good indicator of how a film is understood, both with and without subtitles.
- “ An extract from a French film, Vivement Dimanche (Confidentially Yours), was selected on many strict criteria. The story takes place in the evening, in a couple’s house. The situation is tense and the man is talking about divorce. Suddenly, a policeman comes to the door and asks the man to follow him. The scene then continues at the police station where the man is questioned about a murder. The extract lasts 7 minutes 25 and two versions were prepared: the original French version with no subtitles, and the French version with English subtitles.”
- “ Two questionnaires were used; a personal data questionnaire including self-measuring scales for evaluating language proficiency (French) and a comprehension questionnaire made up of 36 items. This included 12 visual and 12 dialogue related items with multiple choice answers, as well as 12 open-ended inference production items. Inference production was essential to the viewers in order to understand the intrigue and create links between the scenes. The participants to this study were all native English speakers with a low level in French (newly arrived exchange students)”.
- The procedure was very simple and each participant was warned that the film would be either subtitled or in French, depending on the group they were assigned to. The visual and dialogue questions were coded with 1 for a correct answer and zero for an incorrect answer. Concerning the inferences, they were recoded afterwards as either correct or incorrect, simple or elaborate (more than one idea per answer). (Examples in seperate document?)
- On this graph, we can see the main effects of subtitles on the three aspects of film comprehension. The results show a globally better processing of movie information when subtitles are on the screen, especially for dialogue related information. What is more, we can see that even visual information processing is not negatively affected by the presence of subtitles on-screen.
- In this graph, we can see the results of inference production depending on their status, correct or incorrect. The results show that the participants produce less incorrect inferences and more correct ones when subtitles are on-screen. This seems to point to a better comprehension of the situation when access to the dialogue’s meaning is made easier through the use of subtitles. It is also possible that the presence of subtitles promotes the creation of links between the different sources of information on-screen, making inference production easier.
- This last graph represents the inferences produced by the participants depending on whether they are simple (easy deduction, one short sentence) or more elaborate (reflecting a certain level of interpretation). The results show that the presence of subtitles enhances the production of elaborate inferences about the situation, whereas their absence of subtitles provokes the production of simple and superficial inferences.
- As most studies show, subtitles can have strong effects on movie comprehension. The present study has shown a global facilitating effect of subtitles for all dimensions of comprehension, although this can strongly depend on the type of film used for the experiment. In this case however, it seems that access to dialogues through subtitles facilitates comprehension by liberating cognitive resources for processing and linking together the other information of the film.
- Furthermore, we have seen that subtitles can also be of aid to help create links with the viewer’s previous knowledge and create an intricate and complex situation model. From this situation model, elaborate inferences will be made concerning the situation.
- All these results seem to point to the validity of using inference production in order to evaluate subtitled film comprehension. This study has put forward the fact that access to the dialogue by using subtitles seems to help the viewer form a correct and complete representation of the story on-screen. Linking the information from the movie with his own knowledge is easier, giving the viewer higher confidence in his understanding of the movie. In turn, this will make inference production easier and more fluent.
- When considering the film viewing experience, Shimamura has developped the I-SKE Model that describes the viewer’s response to a film: filmmakers can play on our audiovisual experience (sensations), make us think about the world in new ways (knowledge), and of course instill a variety of feelings and empathetic responses (emotion). This opens a new perspective in the cognitive study of film comprehension as it looks into the way in which the film affects the viewer on many dimensions.
- We can thus predict the begining of a new line of study looking into film comprehension using inference production. Of course, much data will be needed, analysing the many different types of inferences, but also using all the different versions of films and language combinations available. A great number of factors can have an impact on film comprehension and their study has only just begun.