Individual differences in temporal predictions in speech: word segmentation and conversational turn-taking

在处理语音时，听者使用各种线索，包括语速，来预测即将到来的语言内容。然而，这种预测是如何做出的很可能受到听者之间不同因素的影响：具体来说，工作记忆、注意力和一般韵律处理方面的个体差异可能都与语言预测使用的差异有关。一项由三部分组成的研究将测试个人认知因素是否会影响听者追踪语速的能力，如果是的话，某些听者是否更善于利用时间线索来预测即将到来的单词边界和会话回合。实验1将测试听者的注意力、工作记忆和韵律处理与他们通过手指敲击任务跟踪语速的能力之间的联系。实验2将调查这些个体差异是否会影响听者预测即将到来的单词边界的能力（通过在一串无意义的音节中找到目标探针）或对话者的轮询（通过在记录的对话中检测到轮询转换时按下按钮）。实验3将调整第二个实验中使用的任务，增加背景噪音，以确定个体差异是否能预测现实世界的听力表现。我们预计，认知和韵律处理的个体差异将影响听者追踪语速的能力，从而做出预测，增强对言语的感知和理解。这些发现将为患有语言发育障碍的婴儿或患有获得性神经语言学障碍的成人提供基于语言的互动支持。

When processing speech, listeners use a variety of cues,including speech rate, to make predictions about upcominglinguistic content. How such predictions are made is likely tobe influenced by factors that vary between listeners, however:specifically, individual differences in working memory,attention, and general prosodic processing may all beassociated with variation in the use of linguistic predictions.A three-part study will test whether individual cognitive factorsaffect listeners' ability to track speech rate and, if so, whethercertain listeners are better at using timing cues to predict bothupcoming word boundaries and conversational turn-taking.Experiment 1 will test for associations between listeners'attention, working memory and prosodic processing and theirability to track speech rate by means of a finger-tapping task.Experiment 2 will investigate whether these individualvariations influence listeners' ability to predict upcoming wordboundaries (by finding a target probe in a string of nonsensesyllables) or interlocutors' turn-taking (by button pressing assoon as a turn transition is detected in recorded conversation).Experiment 3 will adapt tasks used in the second experiment,with the addition of background noise, to identify whetherindividual differences predict real-world listening performance.We expect that individual difference in cognition and prosodicprocessing will affect listeners' ability to track speech rate andthus to make predictions that enhance perception andunderstanding of speech. These findings will point to means ofsupport for speech-based interactions in infants with disordersof language development or in adults with acquiredneurolinguistics impairments.