Revisiting Emotional Effects Under Lexical Control in L2 Auditory Word Recognition Memory

Emotional valence and arousal have been shown to influence word recognition and memory, yet evidence from second language (L2) contexts remains mixed and task-dependent. The present study examined whether emotional valence and arousal modulate auditory recognition memory for L2 English words encoded in emotionally valenced audiovisual discourse among Chinese EFL learners at an upper-intermediate proficiency level. Stimulus words were drawn from authentic news videos and pre-rated for emotional and lexical properties. Participants first encountered target words embedded in audiovisual news clips and were later tested on isolated auditory tokens, such that the task indexed recognition memory rather than real-time auditory lexical access. Reaction times and accuracy were analyzed using trial-level generalized additive mixed models, allowing for nonlinear effects while controlling for lexical variables (frequency or familiarity, number of syllables) and random variability across participants and items. Across analyses, emotional effects were not robust. Neither valence nor arousal reliably predicted recognition accuracy. A small valence effect on reaction time emerged only in frequency-controlled models including both correct and incorrect responses, and disappeared when analyses were restricted to correct trials. In contrast, lexical frequency consistently facilitated responses, and substantial variance was attributable to individual- and item-level differences. Overall, emotional effects in L2 auditory word recognition appear weak, conditional, and sensitive to analytical choices.