This study explored the impact of semantic radical information types in Kanji on inferential behaviors among native speakers and learners of Japanese as a foreign language (JFL). JFL learners start to learn a large number of Kanji in early stage of learning Japanese and they need to infer the meanings of unknown Kanji in texts. Since Kanji is used exclusively for content words in Japanese, inferring the meaning of unknown Kanji is a critical skill for JFL learners for text comprehension.
In this study, native speakers and JFL learners from different instruction levels were asked to infer the meanings of unknown Kanji which contained radicals providing reliable-, less reliable-, and no reliable-semantic information. The data indicated that the inference behavior was heavily constrained by the reliability of semantic radical information among both native speakers and JFL learners, and Kanji knowledge affected learners' sensitivity to the semantic reliability of radicals. It seems that this sensitivity emerges and evolves when Kanji knowledge increases.
Based on these findings, the Kanji introduction order which may foster analytical approaches to kanji learning can be suggested. Introducing Kanji which contain radicals with reliable semantic information may be helpful for novice learners to understand that using these radicals is beneficial when they encounter unknown Kanji. By learning explicitly that the incorporation of radical information is a reliable cue, readers will come to realize the functional property of semantic radicals. When learners accumulate sufficient Kanji knowledge, introducing characters containing radicals that provide less- and no-reliable semantic information will also become necessary. It will assist them in expanding inference strategy repertoire and prepare them for extensive reading.