Age Estimation in Foreign-accented Speech by Native and Non-native Speakers.

Area of Science:

• Speech perception
• Sociolinguistics
• Acoustic phonetics

Background:

• Listeners can accurately estimate speaker age from speech.
• Speaker characteristics like first language (L1) and acoustic features may influence age perception.
• Understanding these factors is crucial for cross-linguistic communication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of speaker's first language (L1) on age estimation accuracy.
• To examine the role of acoustic features (fundamental frequency, speech rate) in age perception.
• To determine how language familiarity affects listeners' age judgments.

Main Methods:

• English and Japanese L1 speakers listened to English- and Japanese-accented English speech.
• Participants estimated the age of the speakers.
• Acoustic analyses of fundamental frequency and speech rate were conducted.

Main Results:

• Highest age estimation accuracy was observed for English listeners rating English speakers.
• Japanese listeners showed similar accuracy for both English and Japanese speakers.
• English listeners rated Japanese speakers as younger; lower fundamental frequency and male voices were perceived as older.

Conclusions:

• Listeners utilize sociolinguistic cues, including language familiarity, for speaker age estimation.
• Language background significantly impacts the accuracy of age perception in speech.
• Acoustic features like fundamental frequency play a role in perceived speaker age across languages.