Early Speech Perception and Later Language Development: Implications for the "Critical Period"
Early Speech Perception and Later Language Development: Implications for the "Critical Period"
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DOI：
10.1080/15475441.2005.9671948
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发表时间：
2005-01-01
影响因子：
1.5
通讯作者：
Pruitt, Jessica
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Kuhl, Patricia K.;Conboy, Barbara T.;Pruitt, Jessica
在这篇文章中，我们提出了一个总结，最近的研究联系在婴儿期的言语知觉，以后的语言发展，以及一个新的实证研究检查这种联系。婴儿的语音识别最初是普遍的语言，但语音识别的下降发生在第一年年底的非母语音素。利用6至12个月大的语音感知的这种转变，我们检验了非母语语音识别能力下降与母语语音学习相关的假设。通过对7个月大的婴儿进行言语辨别的标准行为测量，以及对14、18、24和30个月大的婴儿进行语言能力测量，我们发现：（a）婴儿早期的母语和非母语语音辨别技能之间存在负相关;（B）7个月大的母语和非母语语音辨别技能对未来语言能力的预测存在差异。在7个月大时，更好的母语辨别力预示着后期语言能力的加速，而在7个月大时，更好的非母语辨别力预示着后期语言能力的降低。讨论的重点是（a）言语感知与语言发展之间的理论联系;（B）这些发现对语音学习假定的“关键期”的影响。
In this article, we present a summary of recent research linking speech perception in infancy to later language development, as well as a new empirical study examining that linkage. Infant phonetic discrimination is initially language universal, but a decline in phonetic discrimination occurs for nonnative phonemes by the end of the 1st year. Exploiting this transition in phonetic perception between 6 and 12 months of age, we tested the hypothesis that the decline in nonnative phonetic discrimination is associated with native-language phonetic learning. Using a standard behavioral measure of speech discrimination in infants at 7 months and measures of their language abilities at 14, 18, 24, and 30 months, we show (a) a negative correlation between infants' early native and nonnative phonetic discrimination skills and (b) that native-and nonnative-phonetic discrimination skills at 7 months differentially predict future language ability. Better native-language discrimination at 7 months predicts accelerated later language abilities, whereas better nonnative-language discrimination at 7 months predicts reduced later language abilities. The discussion focuses on (a) the theoretical connection between speech perception and language development and (b) the implications of these findings for the putative "critical period" for phonetic learning.