When processing costs impact predictive processing: The case of foreign-accented speech and accent experience

Abstract

Listeners use linguistic information and real-world knowledge to predict upcoming spoken words. However, studies of predictive processing have focused on prediction under optimal listening conditions. We examined the effect of foreign-accented speech on predictive processing. Furthermore, we investigated whether accent-specific experience facilitates predictive processing. Using the visual world paradigm, we demonstrated that although the presence of an accent impedes predictive processing, it does not preclude it. We further showed that as listener experience increases, predictive processing for accented speech increases and begins to approximate the pattern seen for native speech. These results speak to the limitation of the processing resources that must be allocated, leading to a trade-off when listeners are faced with increased uncertainty and more effortful recognition due to a foreign accent.

Face masks and speaking style affect audio-visual word recognition and memory of native and non-native speech

“…Such non-native-accented productions can lead to decreased intelligibility, segmental and lexical ambiguity, and increased processing effort (e.g., Anderson‐Hsieh et al , 1992 ; Munro and Derwing, 1995 ). Even when the non-native talkers are highly intelligible, comprehension of accented speech may still require more effort on the part of the listener, as shown with both behavioral and physiological measures ( Porretta et al , 2020 ; Brown et al , 2020 ; Hazan and Baker, 2011 ; Van Engen and Peelle, 2014 ). This difficulty can be further compounded by the use of masks and in background noise.…”

Exploring effects of brief daily exposure to unfamiliar accent on listening performance and cognitive load

“…Although L2 accent can pose a challenge during speech processing, listeners are able to rapidly accommodate L2 speakers' unique productions, thereby reducing cognitive load (Clarke and Garrett, 2004;Brown et al, 2020). Additionally, correlational evidence suggests that the efficiency and accuracy of L2 accent processing depends on a listener's prior (real world) experience, with more experienced listeners typically processing L2 accent faster and more accurately (Kennedy and Trofimovich, 2008;Porretta et al, 2020). Empirical evidence connecting these two literatures, however, is lacking: Few studies to date have examined perceptual accommodation of L2 accent across multiple days (or weeks, etc.).…”

“…For example, Kennedy and Trofimovich (2008) found that both semantically meaningful and semantically anomalous Mandarin Chinese-accented sentences were transcribed with higher accuracy by L1 English listeners who had greater experience with Mandarin Chinese accent. Psychophysiological evidence from pupillometry and eye-tracking has also indicated a benefit of experience: Task-evoked pupil response in Porretta and Tucker (2019) indicated that L1 English listeners who had more experience with Mandarin Chinese accent processed Mandarin Chineseaccented English words (presented in noise) more easily, and gaze behavior in Porretta et al (2020) demonstrated that greater experience with Mandarin Chinese accent also resulted in faster speech processing for Mandarin Chinese-accented English. Further behavioral evidence from L1 Dutch listeners also suggests that activation of L2-accented words depends on listener experience with the target accent.…”

Prediction in challenging situations: Most bilinguals can predict upcoming semantically-related words in their L1 source language when interpreting

“…In addition, prior empirical efforts also show that limited processing time causes reduced prediction in both listening (Huettig & Guerra, 2019) and reading (Ito, Corley, Pickering, Martin, & Nieuwland, 2016). Challenging situations impeding predictive processing also relate to some perceptual difficulties in adverse conditions, such as casual speech with many phonological reductions (Brouwer et al, 2013) and foreign-accented speech with unreliable and potentially ambiguous input (Porretta, Buchanan, & Järvikivi, 2020; Romero-Rivas, Martin, & Costa, 2016; Schiller et al, 2020).…”