First impressions and last resorts: how listeners adjust to speaker variability
Tanya Kraljic1, Arthur G Samuel, Susan E Brennan
1University of California San Diego, Center for Research in Language (CRL), La Jolla, CA 92093-0526, USA. tkraljic@crl.ucsd.edu
Psychological Science
|April 11, 2008
Summary
Speech perception research reveals that the brain identifies speakers by learning their unique vocal characteristics, not just the sound signal itself. Early experiences shape these "first impressions," influencing how we perceive a speaker
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Science
- Psycholinguistics
- Auditory Perception
Background:
- Speech perception theories grapple with extracting stable information from variable acoustic signals.
- Acoustic invariance in speech is limited, posing a challenge for perception models.
- Understanding how listeners identify speakers is crucial for auditory processing research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether speech perception focuses on signal invariants or speaker source invariants.
- To determine how the perceptual system learns speaker-characteristic properties versus incidental ones.
- To explore the role of episodic order and "first impressions" in identifying speaker characteristics.
Main Methods:
- Experimental manipulations of speech signals to isolate speaker-specific versus incidental variations.
- Analysis of listener responses to determine learned properties.
- Controlled presentation of speech stimuli to assess the impact of early exposure.
Main Results:
- Listeners learn properties unique to the speaker, not incidental signal variations.
- The system prioritizes properties experienced early in exposure (episodic order) as speaker-characteristic.
- This "first impressions" bias can be overridden by temporary, non-characteristic variations.
Conclusions:
- Speech perception likely recovers invariants related to the speaker's vocal production, not just the acoustic signal.
- Early exposure plays a significant role in forming an initial representation of a speaker's characteristics.
- The perceptual system demonstrates flexibility in updating speaker representations based on new information.
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