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Temporal asynchrony affects letter-speech sound integration in second language reading
1Graduate School of Education, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.
Brain and Language
|July 29, 2026
Summary
Audiovisual (AV) congruency in reading aids second language (L2) learners. A 300ms delay between visual letters and speech sounds improved N1 brain responses in intermediate English learners, aiding letter-sound integration.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Second Language Acquisition
- Psycholinguistics
Background:
- Audiovisual (AV) congruency, the alignment of visual and auditory stimuli, is vital for literacy, especially in alphabetic languages.
- Prior studies show AV congruency enhances auditory N1 amplitude in advanced second language (L2) learners during reading.
- The precise temporal relationship influencing these AV congruency effects in L2 readers remains underexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how the temporal coincidence (stimulus onset asynchrony, SOA) between visual letters and auditory speech sounds affects AV congruency effects in intermediate L2 English learners.
- To examine both behavioral and electroencephalographic (EEG) responses during a letter-sound priming task.
Main Methods:
- A behavioral experiment and an electroencephalography (EEG) experiment were conducted with native Japanese speakers learning English.
- Participants performed a priming task involving visual letters/symbols preceding auditory sounds at various SOAs.
- Event-related potentials (ERPs), specifically the N1 component, were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Behaviorally, congruent trials showed facilitated responses (shorter reaction times) across all SOAs.
- Electrophysiologically, an enhanced early N1 response to congruent AV pairs was observed in the frontotemporal region.
- This N1 enhancement was significant only in the AV300 condition, where letters preceded sounds by 300ms.
Conclusions:
- The temporal relationship between visual letters and auditory speech sounds critically influences AV congruency effects in L2 reading.
- A specific, slightly longer SOA (300ms) may facilitate the integration of letters and sounds for intermediate L2 learners by compensating for reduced automaticity.
- Findings enhance understanding of L2 reading mechanisms and offer a basis for studying atypical integration in L2 reading difficulties.
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