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A second chance for a first impression: Sensitivity to cumulative input statistics for lexically guided perceptual
Christina Y Tzeng1, Lynne C Nygaard2, Rachel M Theodore3,4
1Department of Psychology, San Jose State University, One Washington Square, San Jose, CA, 95192, USA.
Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
|January 14, 2021
Summary
Perceptual learning of speech sounds is shaped by cumulative experience, not just initial or recent exposure. This study reveals how listeners integrate acoustic information with lexical knowledge over time for robust speech perception.
Area of Science:
- Psycholinguistics
- Auditory Perception
- Speech Processing
Background:
- Lexical knowledge influences how listeners map acoustic signals to speech sounds.
- The temporal dynamics of exposure for lexically guided perceptual learning remain unclear, with conflicting evidence on initial vs. recent exposure.
- Understanding the timecourse of experience is crucial for explaining robust perceptual learning.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the type and timecourse of auditory exposure that promotes lexically guided perceptual learning.
- To reconcile conflicting findings regarding the role of initial versus recent exposure in perceptual learning.
- To determine whether perceptual learning reflects cumulative experience with a talker's input.
Main Methods:
- Three experiments involving 560 listeners categorized speech sounds from an /ashi/-/asi/ continuum after an exposure phase.
- Exposure phase included critical productions (ambiguous fricatives in biasing contexts) interspersed with regular trials.
- Manipulations included context biasing, order of clear/ambiguous productions, and context stability.
Main Results:
- Listeners showed perceptual learning, with specific contexts influencing responses.
- Perceptual learning occurred irrespective of the order of clear and ambiguous productions when the context was consistent.
- A decrease in learning was observed with decreasing exposure to stable lexically biasing contexts.
- Results were replicated across novel stimulus sets.
Conclusions:
- Perceptual learning of speech sounds is not solely dependent on initial or most recent exposure.
- Robust lexically guided perceptual learning reflects the cumulative experience listeners have with a talker's input over time.
- This cumulative experience model reconciles previous conflicting findings on perceptual learning timecourses.
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