1887
Volume 51, Issue 1
  • ISSN 1810-7478
  • E-ISSN: 2589-5230

Abstract

Abstract

This study examines whether knowledge encoded in evidential categories is perceived differently by readers with varying levels of certainty. A questionnaire with a five-point scale was conducted to collect readers’ judgments about events introduced by evidential markers in Chinese. The evidential markers were manually categorized into categories, and inter-rater agreement was calculated. The findings reveal two hierarchies in terms of readers’ degree of certainty in judging the veracity of the knowledge: visual > hearsay and inference > quotative > hearsay. Additionally, three factors were observed to influence readers’ judgments about events: (a) whether a detailed event depiction is provided, (b) whether knowledge of an event is provided by more than one source, and (c) whether knowledge of an event has a close relationship with readers’ political standpoints or personal societal beliefs.

Available under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license.
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2025-05-22
2025-06-24
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