Abstract

This study examines a crucial factor in determining the directionality of conversion: frequency of occurrence. The primary objective is to assess the psycholinguistic methodologies which contribute to identifying the direction of conversion in Persian: What happens cognitively during listening comprehension of converted item? Specifically, it investigates whether the well-established principle that higher frequency facilitates faster processing can help resolve this issue (directionality of conversion). Furthermore, it explores whether theoretical predictions align with empirical evidence obtained through psycholinguistic experimentation (psycholinguistic reality). The study adopts the theoretical framework of Shapiro and Levine (1990), which employs cross-modal lexical decision tasks measured using the DMDX software which records processing times in milliseconds during listening comprehension of sentences containing various types of conversion (e.g., adjective to noun/adverb, verb to noun, and noun to adjective). The independent variable is the type of conversion within the sentences, while the dependent variable is participants’ reaction times to visual stimuli. A total of 25 female university students, aged 18–30, participated in the study, matched according to specific criteria such as academic performance and grades. The findings suggest that frequency of occurrence, as documented in corpus data (Bijankhan & Mohseni, 2018), along with processing time, serves as a reliable indicator of conversion directionality.