Predictability and perception for native and non-native listeners

Bibliographic Data

ID21226563
AuthorsMelissa M Baese‐berk (0000-0002-4855-9319, University of Oregon, corresponding author), Melissa Baese-Berk (University of Oregon), Tuuli H Morrill, Tuuli Morrill, Laura C Dilley (0000-0002-1667-8575, Michigan State University), Laura Dilley (Michigan State University , East Lansing, MI , USA)
Year2018
Volume4
Issues2
Publication date2018-09-25
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueLinguistics Vanguard (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2199-174X • E-ISSN: 2199-174X
PublisherWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1515/lingvan-2017-0022
OpenAlexW2886602350
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited35

Phonological knowledge is influenced by a variety of cues that reflect predictability (e.g. semantic predictability). Listeners utilize various aspects of predictability when determining what they have heard. In the present paper, we ask how aspects of the acoustic phonetic signal (e.g. speaking rate) interact with other knowledge reflecting predictability (e.g. lexical frequency and collocation strength) to influence how speech is perceived. Specifically, we examine perception of function words by native and non-native speakers. Our results suggest that both native and non-native speakers are sensitive to factors that influence the predictability of the signal, including speaking rate, frequency, and collocation strength, when listening to speech, and use these factors to predict the phonological structure of stretches of ambiguous speech. However, reliance on these cues differs as a function of their experience and proficiency with the target language. Non-native speakers are less sensitive to some aspects of the acoustic phonetic signal (e.g. speaking rate). However, they appear to be quite sensitive to other factors, including frequency. We discuss how these results inform our understanding of the interplay between predictability and speech perception by different listener populations and how use of features reflecting predictability interacts with recovery of phonological structure of spoken language

Active listening · Cognitive psychology · Linguistics · Perception · Predictability · Speech perception · Speech recognition · Communication · Computer Science · Hearing Loss and Rehabilitation · Mathematics · Neuroscience and Music Perception · Phonetics and Phonology Research · Psychology · Artificial Intelligence