Informational masking influences segmental and suprasegmental speech categorization

Datos Bibliográficos

ID21641397
AutoresAshley E Symons (0000-0001-5980-6752, Birkbeck, University of London), Lori L Holt (0000-0002-8732-4977, Carnegie Mellon University, autor de correspondencia), Adam Tierney (0000-0002-7624-6918, Birkbeck, University of London), A T Tierney
Año2024
Volumen31
Número2
Páginas686-696
Fecha de publicación2024-04-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaPsychonomic Bulletin & Review (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1069-9384 • E-ISSN: 1531-5320
EditorialSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.3758/s13423-023-02364-5
PMID37658222
OpenAlexW4386350168
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas5
Referencias citadas49

Auditory categorization requires listeners to integrate acoustic information from multiple dimensions. Attentional theories suggest that acoustic dimensions that are informative attract attention and therefore receive greater perceptual weight during categorization. However, the acoustic environment is often noisy, with multiple sound sources competing for listeners’ attention. Amid these adverse conditions, attentional theories predict that listeners will distribute attention more evenly across multiple dimensions. Here we test this prediction using an informational masking paradigm. In two experiments, listeners completed suprasegmental (focus) and segmental (voicing) speech categorization tasks in quiet or in the presence of competing speech. In both experiments, the target speech consisted of short words or phrases that varied in the extent to which fundamental frequency (F0) and durational information signalled category identity. To isolate effects of informational masking, target and competing speech were presented in opposite ears. Across both experiments, there was substantial individual variability in the relative weighting of the two dimensions. These individual differences were consistent across listening conditions, suggesting that they reflect stable perceptual strategies. Consistent with attentional theories of auditory categorization, listeners who relied on a single primary dimension in quiet shifted towards integrating across multiple dimensions in the presence of competing speech. These findings demonstrate that listeners make greater use of the redundancy present in speech when attentional resources are limited

Audiology · Categorization · Cognitive psychology · Linguistics · Communication · Hearing Loss and Rehabilitation · Phonetics and Phonology Research · Psychology · Speech and Audio Processing