DEVELOPMENT OF PHONETIC CATEGORIES

语音类别的发展

• 批准号: 6195701
• 负责人: JAMES E. FLEGE
• 金额: $ 26.36万
• 依托单位: UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 1984
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1984-07-01 至 2005-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/6195701
• 关键词: Hispanic Americans; Italy; age difference; behavioral /social science research tag; caucasian American; clinical research; ethnic group; human subject; immigrant; language development; learning; longitudinal human study; model design /development; multilingualism; nonEnglish language; phonology; psychological models; sound; speech; speech recognition; speech therapy

The later immigrants arrive in North America and begin to learn English as a second language (L2), the less accurately they produce and perceive certain English vowels and consonants, the stronger their overall degree of foreign accent tends to be, and the more difficulty they may have recognizing English words. Such effects are usually attributed to the passing of a critical period. This research will evaluate an alternative account, that of the Speech Learning Model (SLM). The SLM proposes that age- related effects on L2 speech arise from the development of the L1 phonetic system, not a diminished ability to learn speech. More specifically, the SLM proposes that as L1 phonetic categories are refined, they become more likely to assimilate L2 sounds and thus to block formation of the phonetic categories needed for the accurate production and perception of speech sounds. The first proposed project will examine native Spanish adults who recently immigrated to the U.S. at 6-month intervals over 7 years. Among the hypotheses to be tested are that (1) Overall degree of foreign accent will decrease as the ability to produce particular English sounds improves; (2) Improvements in segmental production will be observed only if the ability to perceive certain English sounds has also improved; (3) Improvements in the perception of English sounds will be accompanied, or preceded by the detection of phonetic differences between sounds found in English and Spanish. Another project will examine 240 native Italian adults who are all highly experienced in English but who differ according to their age of first exposure to English (range: 10 to 30 years). The SLM predicts that the native Italian participants' degree of foreign accent will increase linearly to the end of adolescence, then level out. The model also predicts that a significant correlation will exist between degree of foreign accent and the scores obtained on two perceptual tests. The final project will examine four groups of native Italian speakers who differ according to their age of first exposure to English and self-reported native language (L1) use. Eight experiments will test for the formation of phonetic categories by examining the production and perception of English vowels, and the recognition of English words. By hypothesis, early bilinguals will outperform late bilinguals, and individuals who now use their L1 seldom will outperform those who continue to use their L1 frequently.

较晚到达北美并开始学习英语作为第二语言（L2）的移民，他们产生和感知某些英语元音和辅音的准确性越低，他们的整体外国口音程度越强，他们识别英语单词的难度也越大。这种影响通常归因于一个关键时期的过去。本研究将评估另一种解释，即语音学习模型（SLM）。SLM认为，年龄对二语语音的影响来自于母语语音系统的发展，而不是语言学习能力的下降。更具体地说，SLM提出，随着母语语音类别的完善，它们更有可能吸收第二语言语音，从而阻碍准确产生和感知语音所需的语音类别的形成。第一个提议的项目将在7年内每隔6个月对最近移民到美国的西班牙本土成年人进行调查。需要测试的假设包括：(1)随着特定英语发音能力的提高，外国口音的总体程度会降低；(2)只有当感知某些英语发音的能力也有所提高时，才会观察到音段产生的改善；(3)英语语音感知的改善将伴随着或先于发现英语和西班牙语语音之间的语音差异。另一个项目将调查240名土生土长的意大利成年人，他们都有丰富的英语经验，但根据他们第一次接触英语的年龄（范围：10到30岁）而有所不同。SLM预测，意大利本土参与者的外国口音程度将在青春期结束时呈线性增长，然后趋于平稳。该模型还预测，在两个感知测试中获得的分数与外国口音程度之间存在显著的相关性。最后的项目将检查四组母语为意大利语的人，根据他们第一次接触英语的年龄和自我报告的母语（L1）使用情况不同。八个实验将测试语音类别的形成，通过检查英语元音的产生和感知，以及英语单词的识别。根据假设，早期双语者会比晚期双语者表现得更好，现在很少使用母语的人会比那些经常使用母语的人表现得更好。